BYD has unveiled its biggest SUV yet for European buyers. The seven-seat Atto 8 made its debut at the Paris Motor Show on October 12, 2026, with a 115 kWh battery, a claimed 405 miles of WLTP range and a charging system BYD says can refill the pack from 10 to 97% in nine minutes. Showrooms across Europe, including the UK, are due to receive it in the first quarter of 2027.
The target is clear: large electric family SUVs such as the Kia EV9 and the Hyundai Ioniq 9.
Two versions, one big battery
The Atto 8 will be sold in two trims that share the same 115 kWh pack. The difference is the drivetrain.
- Design RWD: a single rear motor delivering 462 PS (340 kW) and 365 Nm, good for 0-62 mph in 8 seconds. WLTP range is 405 miles (about 652 km).
- Excellence AWD: a second motor on the front axle lifts output to 775 PS (570 kW) and 775 Nm, cutting 0-62 mph to 4.6 seconds. Range drops to 374 miles (about 602 km).
Size: a true full-size SUV
The Atto 8 measures 5,040 mm long, 1,996 mm wide and 1,760 mm tall, putting it in the same class as the EV9 (5,015 mm) and the Ioniq 9 (5,060 mm). With all three rows in use there are 270 litres of luggage space, growing to 1,960 litres with the second and third rows folded. A 136-litre front trunk adds room for smaller bags.
Flash Charging is the headline
The Atto 8 is the first BYD in Europe to use the company’s second-generation Blade battery, and with it comes Flash Charging. BYD’s figures:
- 10-70% in about 5 minutes
- 10-97% in about 9 minutes
- 20-97% in about 12 minutes at -30°C
BYD says the 10-97% time is roughly a third of what rival SUVs need to go from 10 to 80%. That is a manufacturer claim, and it depends on plugging into a compatible charger. BYD plans to have more than 3,000 Flash Charging stations across Europe by the end of 2027, so the headline numbers will not be available everywhere on launch day. If you want to see what your own charging stops might look like on today’s networks, try our charging time calculator, and see how EV charging works and our EV battery guide for background on why cold weather and state of charge matter so much.
How it stacks up against the EV9 and Ioniq 9
Based on the figures in our database and BYD’s launch details:
| BYD Atto 8 (Design RWD) | Kia EV9 99.8kWh RWD | Hyundai Ioniq 9 Long Range RWD | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Battery (total) | 115 kWh | 99.8 kWh | 110.3 kWh |
| WLTP range | 405 mi (about 652 km) | 541 km | 620 km |
| Fast charging | 10-97% in 9 min (BYD claim, Flash Charging) | 10-80% in 25 min | 10-80% in 24 min (350 kW charger) |
| Length | 5,040 mm | 5,015 mm | 5,060 mm |
| Starting price (Europe) | Not announced | €72,500 | €69,300 |
On paper the Atto 8 leads on range and charging speed, though the charging comparison is not like for like: BYD quotes 10-97% while Kia and Hyundai quote 10-80%. The missing piece is price. BYD has not given European pricing yet, and the EV9 and Ioniq 9 start in the €69,000-72,000 range, so that number will decide how serious a rival the Atto 8 really is. For side-by-side numbers on any of these, use our compare tool.
Inside: lots of kit as standard
Both trims get a 15.6-inch central touchscreen with Google built in, a 10.25-inch driver display and a 26-inch head-up display. Front seats and the outer second-row seats are heated, ventilated and massaging, and every seat is covered in genuine leather. A 2.39 m² panoramic glass roof, tri-zone climate control, dual 50W wireless phone chargers and USB-C ports in both rows come standard.
The Excellence AWD adds a 21-speaker DiSound audio system (the Design RWD has 10 speakers) and a front refrigerator that BYD says can chill to -6°C or warm to 50°C.
A rebadged Tang?
The Atto 8 name is new for Europe, but reports suggest the car is the export version of BYD’s Tang L, already on sale in China, and that it will take over the flagship family-SUV role from the current BYD Tang. BYD already sells the SeaLion 7 and other models in Europe; browse them all on our BYD page, or see where BYD sits among the best Chinese EVs of 2026.
What to watch next
- Pricing: still unannounced for Europe and the UK.
- Charger rollout: how fast BYD gets Flash Charging stations built, since the 9-minute figure needs one.
- Real-world range: WLTP numbers are lab-based; our guide on how to read EV specs explains why highway results are usually lower.
Charging infrastructure is moving quickly elsewhere too. See our recent story on Nio’s off-grid, solar-powered battery swap station in the Gobi Desert, and our ranking of the fastest-charging EVs of 2026 to see where today’s cars stand. For more on the rivals, visit our Kia and Hyundai pages.
Sources: BYD Europe press release (October 12, 2026) and ArenaEV coverage of the Paris Motor Show announcement; competitor figures from the Electricarly specification database.
