√Safety bulletin issued for BYD Atto 3

The Australian distributor for the BYD Atto 3 electric car has issued a bulletin to owners advising them not to install a child restraint in the middle back seat, as enquiries continue about a possible compliance breach that could spark a recall and a ‘stop sale’ notice.

Australian owners of the Chinese BYD Atto 3 electric car have been issued a bulletin advising them to not install a child restraint in the middle back seat position.

The email – sent to owners over the weekend – comes after Drive revealed a five-star safety score is yet to be issued to the BYD Atto 3 electric car in Australia after questions were raised over its approval for use on local roads.

The BYD Atto 3 was awarded five stars for safety by independent crash test authorities in Europe and New Zealand. However, the five-star score has not yet been applied in Australia pending a review into the federal approval for the BYD Atto 3 by the regulator. 

Lawyers representing the distributor of the BYD Atto 3 in Australia told Drive it would issue a media statement “within 24 hours” of the announcement of the European five-star rating, which was issued at 7pm last Wednesday night (12 October 2022).

To date, the bulletin sent to BYD customers is the only public statement the company has made about the incident.

The email to BYD customers says: “BYD Australia advises BYD Atto 3 owners and users that they should not use the rear centre seat to attach any child seat.

“BYD Australia is in the process of resolving this issue and will shortly provide you with a further update.”

The email then asks BYD customers to “please click below to acknowledge that you have read and understand”.

As Drive reported exclusively last week, the BYD Atto 3 currently lacks an accessible top tether child restraint anchor point in the centre position in the back seat (see picture above), a long-standing requirement for five-seat passenger-vehicle compliance in Australia.

The BYD Atto 3 does come with two ISOFIX child seat latches (with corresponding top tether mounts) in each outboard rear seating position. 

The BYD Atto 3 is missing an accessible top tether for the middle seat, which is deemed the safest position in a car for a child because it is away from the doors in a side impact crash. 

Drive understands there may be provision for a top tether behind the seat-back fabric (see above).

However, as reported, this would not comply with Australian Design Rules, which state:

“Clearance shall be provided around each ‘Upper Anchor Fitting’ to allow latching and unlatching, without the use of tools, of the ‘Attaching Clip’ to the ‘Upper Anchor Fitting’ when it is installed in the vehicle.”

The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communication and The Arts – which is responsible for motor vehicle approvals in Australia – said in a statement to Drive last week:

“Passenger vehicles entering Australia are currently assessed against the standards for child restraint anchorages and fittings as set out in ADR 34/03.

“The department recently granted a vehicle type approval for the BYD Atto 3 to be provided in Australia. The department granted this approval after considering the information, including declarations, that BYD Auto Co Ltd provided with its application.

“If the Atto 3 is determined to be non-compliant with an applicable standard, the department will work with BYD Auto Co to bring itself into compliance and determine the most appropriate way to inform and protect the public.”

Contrary to perception, motor vehicles have for years not been subject to a physical inspection by federal authorities to ensure they meet local regulations. 

Instead, federal authorities rely on legal undertakings by car companies – or agencies that specialise in motor vehicle compliance approvals – that new models meet Australian regulations. 

If the BYD Atto 3 is deemed to have fallen foul of Australian regulations for five-seat passenger cars, it means the hundreds of examples that have already been delivered to customers may need to be recalled – and vehicles yet to be delivered could be issued a ‘stop sale’ notice until the anomaly is addressed. 

In an email to Drive last week, lawyers representing the distributor of BYD cars in Australia said:

“Our client is working co-operatively with ANCAP to finalise a rating. That process is ongoing. In this respect, our client will be releasing a press release within the next 24 hours concerning the process it is undertaking to obtain a five-star rating for the Australian-specific models of the BYD Atto 3.” 

Last week, a statement from the Australasian New Car Assessment Program (ANCAP) – which independently tests and then scores the safety of new motor vehicles – said:

“Australian-supplied BYD Atto 3 vehicles are currently unrated (in terms of a safety score). ANCAP is working with BYD to finalise the applicability of a rating for Australian-specified models.”

ANCAP has told Drive it currently has nothing to add to the pending safety score for the BYD Atto 3. However, Drive understands it is dependent on the outcome of a review by the federal motor vehicle regulator into the compliance of the BYD Atto 3.

The post Safety bulletin issued for BYD Atto 3 appeared first on Drive.

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