BYD and Ora score five stars in Green NCAP assessment

Green NCAP has awarded two new Chinese electric cars, one from BYD and another from ORA, top scores in its assessment.

BYD was the top seller worldwide of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles last year but is still a relatively unknown brand in Europe today. This is likely to change quickly as BYD is currently bringing a range of competitive electric models onto the market, including last-year’s ATTO 3, a compact SUV.

In Green NCAP tests, the car's low energy usage in cold weather conditions stood out. This is due to its “well-designed” heating system, which uses a heat-pump and a range of different sources of waste heat to provide the right level of cabin comfort.

The vehicle's grid-to-battery output efficiency of 87%, on the other hand, is average and might have been greater with optimized charger and battery charging/discharging behaviour. Overall, the BYD ATTO 3 achieved a score of 97% and five Green Stars.

Great Wall Motors produces the ORA Funky Cat, which delivered a similarly robust result in Green NCAP tests.  The ORA Funky Cat is a compact family vehicle with a full-electric drivetrain and a battery capacity of 63kWh.  In contrast to the ATTO 3, its grid-to-battery output is 93.2%, a number not previously recorded in Green NCAP testing.  

This enables the car to lower its overall consumption values and hence, with an a score of 97%, the ORA Funky Cat comfortably achieves five Green Stars as well.

Green NCAP also tested the Mercedes-Benz E300d 4MATIC estate, which comes equipped with a two-litre diesel engine.  This car, given its weight and size, takes advantage of the efficiency of its diesel powertrain, which is supported by a 48V mild-hybrid system, but the high greenhouse gas emissions are not enough for a result better than 1.9 out of 10 in this part of the assessment.  

The greatest achievement of Mercedes’ engineers is visible in the Clean Air Index: with a result of 9.3 out of 10, the diesel E-Class becomes the least polluting combustion car Green NCAP has tested so far.  The car earns a score of 50% and three Green Stars.

Further testing, saw the Dacia Jogger Hybrid - equipped with a 1.6 litre naturally aspirated petrol engine, electric traction motor and automatic transmission – achieve a score of 51% and three Green stars.

The Ford Ranger Raptor was given just one Green Star by Green NCAP. The pick-up uses a three-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol engine.  While it is approved as a commercial vehicle it does not need to meet the same stringent legislative requirements as a regular passenger car. 

Due to its high consumption and CO2 emissions, it receives no points in the Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Indexes.  Its performance in the Clean Air Index is mediocre, leaving room for improvement, Green NCAP concluded.

Dr. Aleksandar Damyanov, Green NCAP technical manager, said: “Some of the vehicles tested clearly demonstrate the achievements made by industry in the quest for cleaner and less climate damaging cars, even if still powered with conventional engines.

“With results like that, upcoming Euro 7 regulation should not be a big challenge for the manufacturers of today’s best performers. And the high scores of the five-star Chinese newcomers show they are ready to compete for market share.”