- 360 hp crossover, all-wheel drive standard, which Bonto calls "go-anywhere" — Rayo went specifically to the test facility and still got lost
- Starts at $47,500. As-shown, with the Explorer package, $56,900
- Named "Atlas" for the map-making instrument. Rayo did not use a map to get there and this may explain the delay
- Roof rails rated for 165 lbs. Rayo has never rated anything by weight capacity before this assignment
- Assembled in Australia — the first hard fact about this car Rayo could confirm without asking twice
I arrived eleven minutes late to review a car named after a map-making tool, having taken two buses and one confidently wrong turn on foot. I want that fact on the record before anyone reviews my review.
THE EXTERIORA Shape Built for Going Places, Reviewed by Someone Who Got Lost Going There
The Atlas B has a boxy, upright stance that Bonto says maximizes interior room. It is 182 inches long and has roof rails rated to 165 pounds, a number I have never previously needed to know about anything.
There's an available roof tent accessory, which I was shown a photo of. I have slept on a bus exactly once, unintentionally, and have no further comment on outdoor sleeping arrangements.
I mentioned my two-bus journey to get there. The representative offered to look up a more direct route for next time. I appreciated the gesture more than I expected to.
THE INTERIORRoomy, Upright, Built for a Trip Rayo Did Not Plan Well
The seating position is high and upright, which Bonto calls "commanding sightlines." I appreciated being able to see clearly, given how poorly I had navigated getting there in the first place.
There's a household-style outlet in the cargo area, presumably for camping gear I do not own and a lifestyle I have not yet adopted.
THE NUMBERSNumbers for Getting There, Eventually
360 horsepower, zero to sixty in 5.4 seconds, all-wheel drive standard. Bonto's engineer emphasized the AWD system "finds grip you didn't know you needed." I did not know I needed grip. I needed a working sense of direction, which this car cannot provide.
Top speed is 130 mph, a figure that means nothing to a man who was, ninety minutes earlier, confidently walking the wrong way down a service road.
I asked if the navigation system could have prevented my wrong turn. I was told yes, had I been in the car at the time, which I was not, because I do not drive.
At $47,500, this is roughly forty-seven years of bus fare — less than the crossover reviewed two entries ago, more than the one before that. I am starting to keep a running tally.
As-shown runs to $56,900 with the Explorer package, which adds roof rails Rayo did not load with anything.
Questions people actually ask
Did Rayo drive the Bonto Atlas B?
No, and notably, Rayo also failed to find the test facility without help.
Is the Bonto Atlas B quick / efficient / good, per its category?
By all published accounts, competitive for the segment. Rayo's own sense of direction remains the weaker system in this comparison.
Is this car worth $47,500?
That depends on how often you get lost on the way to things. Bonto can probably help. Rayo cannot.
Rayo cannot evaluate off-road capability or roof-rail load ratings from firsthand experience. Rayo can confirm the Atlas B, unlike its driver on this particular Tuesday, would probably have found the test facility on the first try.
This article is 100% fictional satire. The Bonto Atlas B is not a real vehicle.
