Narrowest Electric Cars in Australia (2026): EVs That Fit a Tight Garage

The narrowest electric cars in Australia are the Hyundai Inster (1,610 mm wide), the BYD Atto 1 (1,720 mm), the Mini Aceman and Cooper SE (about 1,755 mm) and the BYD Dolphin (1,770 mm). All four are narrower than a Volkswagen Golf. Beyond them, most small electric SUVs land between 1,800 and 1,900 mm, and a Tesla Model Y is 1,921 mm.

Width is only half the problem in a tight garage, though. A body that’s 50 mm narrower matters less than a short bonnet, a tight turning circle and a surround-view camera, and much less than whether you can open the door far enough to get out. That’s especially true if the driver is moving up from a low hatch because getting in and out has started to hurt.

Every figure here comes from Australian sources: manufacturer AU pages and Australian press spec sheets, viewed in October 2026. Widths exclude mirrors unless we say otherwise. Prices are as of October 2026, before on-road costs (ORC) unless marked drive-away (d/a).

Narrowest electric cars in Australia: the full width table

The table below ranks 17 EVs on sale in Australia by body width. Two petrol hatches sit in the list for reference, because “will it fit like my Golf?” is usually the real question.

Model	Width (mm)	Length (mm)	Height (mm)	Turning circle	360 camera on base grade?	Price (Oct 2026)
Hyundai Inster	1,610	3,825	1,610	10.6 m	No (Cross only)	$37,500 +ORC
BYD Atto 1	1,720	3,990	1,590	9.9 m	No (Premium only)	$23,990 +ORC
Mini Aceman SE	1,754	4,079	1,514	11.1 m	Yes	$60,990 +ORC
Mini Cooper SE	1,756	3,858	1,460	n/a	Yes (Favoured)	$58,990 +ORC
BYD Dolphin	1,770	4,290	1,570	10.5 m	Yes	$29,990 +ORC
VW Golf (petrol)	1,789	4,282	1,467
Toyota Corolla hatch (petrol)	1,790	4,375	1,435
Geely EX2	1,805	4,135	1,580	9.9 m	No (Inspire only)	$26,490 +ORC
BYD Atto 2	1,830	4,310	1,675	10.5 m	No (Premium only)	$31,990 +ORC
GWM Ora 5	1,833	4,471	1,641	10.9 m	Yes	$33,990 d/a
Volvo EX30	1,838	4,233	1,550	10.6 m	No (Ultra and Cross Country)	$49,990 +ORC
MG4 Urban	1,842	4,395	1,549	About 10.5 m	Yes	$31,990 d/a
MGS5 EV	1,849	4,476	1,621	Not confirmed	Yes (reported)	$42,990 d/a
Kia EV3	1,850	4,300	1,560	10.4 m	No grade has one	$47,600 +ORC
Jaecoo J5 EV	1,860	4,380	1,650	Not confirmed	One grade only	$35,990 +ORC
BYD Atto 3 Evo	1,875	4,455	1,615	Not confirmed	Yes	$41,990 +ORC
Leapmotor B10	1,885	4,515	1,655	About 10.5 m	Yes	$37,888 +ORC
Geely EX5	1,901	4,615	1,670	10.8 m	Yes	$41,990 +ORC
Tesla Model Y	1,921	4,792	1,624	12.1 m	No true top-down view	$58,900 +ORC

Turning circles are kerb-to-kerb where the source says so, except the EX30 (kerb figure shown; 11.0 m wall-to-wall), Kia EV3 and Mini Aceman (both wall-to-wall). “Not confirmed” means we couldn’t find an Australian figure we trusted. Line up any two of these side by side in our EV compare tool.

The spread is smaller than people expect. From the Inster to the Model Y is just 311 mm, about the width of a ruler. Inside the small-SUV pack, the Ora 5 is only 44 mm wider than a Golf and the MGS5 EV is 60 mm wider.

How wide is a single garage in Australia?

A single garage built to the Australian parking standard is 3.0 m wide inside, 5.5 m deep, with a 2.4 m door opening. That’s AS/NZS 2890.1 as applied by NSW councils such as the City of Ryde, whose development control plan sets out those exact minimums. Victoria’s planning provisions ask for more: 3.5 m wide and 6 m long for a single garage or carport.

Plenty of homes are below both numbers. Villa complexes, older townhouses and garages with a laundry tub, a fridge or a wall of shelving end up with far less usable width. Measure wall to wall at the narrowest point, then subtract anything that sticks out.

Here is what a true 3.0 m garage leaves you, before you open a door:

Car	Body width	Spare width in a 3.0 m garage	Per side if centred
Hyundai Inster	1,610 mm	1,390 mm	695 mm
BYD Atto 1	1,720 mm	1,280 mm	640 mm
VW Golf	1,789 mm	1,211 mm	about 605 mm
Tesla Model Y	1,921 mm	1,079 mm	about 540 mm

The door opening is where big cars get tight. A Model Y measures 2,129 mm across its mirrors, so a 2.4 m opening leaves 271 mm in total, about 135 mm a side. Fold the mirrors (1,982 mm) and that grows to 418 mm. The Volvo EX30, at 2,032 mm across its mirrors, leaves 368 mm. Power-folding mirrors help, but only if you remember to fold them before you drive in.

The standard itself is built around a “design car” 1,870 mm wide. That’s why anything up to about the Atto 3 Evo sits comfortably inside the rules, and why some full-size SUVs and dual-cab utes sit outside them. Cars really have grown. The NRMA noted in February 2026 that the current Mini 3 Door is 322 mm wider than the original 1,422 mm Mini. And SUVs took 61.1 per cent of all new-vehicle sales in 2025, according to FCAI VFACTS data, so the trend isn’t reversing.

Why door space matters more than body width

Getting out is usually harder than getting in. A modern front door is long and needs a wide arc to open far enough for an adult to swing their legs out. If one side of the car is hard against a wall, the driver needs most of the spare width on their side.

In practice, that means:

• Park off-centre. In a 3.0 m garage, a small SUV can sit 300 to 400 mm from the passenger wall and give the driver 800 mm or more.
• Foam door guards stuck to the garage wall let you open the door until it touches without chipping the paint. They’re cheap and owners rate them.
• Shorter cars give you depth to play with. The Inster (3,825 mm) and Atto 1 (3,990 mm) leave well over a metre spare in a 5.5 m garage, so you can walk around the front instead of squeezing down the side.
• Rear doors are shorter. In a tight space, a passenger may find it easier to get out through a rear door.

If you plan to charge at home, think about the charging port too. A port on the far side from your power point means the cable runs down the narrow gap you walk through. Our guide to EV charger installation requirements covers where a wallbox can legally go.

Turning circle, bonnet length and cameras

A tight turning circle and a surround-view camera make more difference in a narrow driveway than a few centimetres of body width. A surround-view or 360-degree camera stitches feeds from cameras around the car into a single top-down image, so you can see both sides of the car at once while you creep into the garage.

Turning circle. The BYD Atto 1 and Geely EX2 both turn in 9.9 m kerb to kerb, the tightest figures in this list. The Kia EV3 manages 10.4 m wall to wall, which is excellent for its size. The Model Y needs 12.1 m, more than two metres extra, and that’s the difference between one reverse and three on a narrow villa driveway. Rear-wheel-drive EVs often turn tightly because the front wheels can steer further without driveshafts in the way. The EX2 and Leapmotor B10 are both rear-drive.

Bonnet length. A short nose means you can see where the car ends. The EV3 and Inster both have stubby bonnets. Long-bonnet SUVs can feel bigger than they measure, though owners of the Jaecoo J5 EV report it feels no bigger in the garage than the small sedan it replaced.

Cameras. Check the grade, not the model. The Atto 1, Atto 2, Geely EX2 and Hyundai Inster only get a 360 camera on the dearer grade. No Kia EV3 sold in Australia has one, according to CarExpert’s January 2026 review. The Dolphin, Ora 5, MG4 Urban, B10, EX5 and Atto 3 Evo have it as standard.

Remote parking lets you line the car up, get out, and drive it into the garage from your phone. It’s mostly fitted to bigger, dearer EVs, and Kia’s system needs the surround-view camera, which rules out the EV3. None of the narrow cars in this guide has a confirmed Australian remote parking feature.

The best narrow EVs for a tight garage

Hyundai Inster: the narrowest, by a long way

1,610 mm wide | 10.6 m turning circle | from $37,500 +ORC

At 1,610 mm the Hyundai Inster is 110 mm narrower than anything else here. It’s tall and boxy, so headroom and the seat height are good for its size. As of October 2026 Hyundai is running the base Inster at $35,990 drive-away until 31 December 2026. The 360 camera is only on the Inster Cross. The styling is the catch: it’s a love-or-hate car, and some buyers can’t get past the interior. Our Hyundai Inster review covers the rest.

Verdict: the answer if your garage really is tight and you like how it looks.

BYD Atto 1: narrow, short and cheap

1,720 mm wide | 9.9 m turning circle | from $23,990 +ORC

The BYD Atto 1 combines the second-narrowest body with the tightest turning circle and a length under four metres. BYD had it on offer at $19,990 drive-away until 15 December 2026. Get the Premium if you want the 360 camera. Our BYD Atto 1 guide has the range and spec detail.

Verdict: the best value for a narrow garage, if a city-sized car suits you.

BYD Dolphin: Golf-sized, with the camera standard

1,770 mm wide | 10.5 m turning circle | from $29,990 +ORC

The BYD Dolphin is 19 mm narrower than a Golf and close to the same length, and every grade has a 360 camera. At 1,570 mm tall it’s about 100 mm taller than a Golf, but it’s still a hatch, so it helps less with a getting-in-and-out problem than the SUVs below.

Verdict: the easy pick if you want a normal-sized hatch that fits where your Golf did.

Geely EX2: Golf width, tightest turning

1,805 mm wide | 9.9 m turning circle | from $26,490 +ORC

The Geely EX2 is only 16 mm wider than a Golf and shorter, with rear-wheel drive and a 9.9 m turning circle. Owners coming out of Golfs say it parks like one. Opinions split on the seating position: some find it noticeably higher than a hatch, others say it feels like any small car. Sit in one before you decide. The surround camera is on the Inspire only. Read our Geely EX2 review.

Verdict: the most manoeuvrable car here for the money.

BYD Atto 2 and GWM Ora 5: higher seats, still narrow

Atto 2: 1,830 mm wide, 1,675 mm tall, from $31,990 +ORC | Ora 5: 1,833 mm wide, 1,641 mm tall, $33,990 d/a

These two suit a buyer who wants a higher seat without a big car. The BYD Atto 2 is the tallest narrow option in the list at 1,675 mm. One owner who moved from a Corolla for exactly this reason reports that the extra height made getting in far easier, while the extra 40 mm of width went unnoticed. The GWM Ora 5 is only 44 mm wider than a Golf, has 175 mm of ground clearance and has a 360 camera as standard. Compare them in our GWM Ora 5 review.

Verdict: the best fit for an older driver who finds a hatch too low.

Kia EV3: short nose, no 360 camera

1,850 mm wide | 10.4 m turning circle | from $47,600 +ORC

The Kia EV3 is wider than the cars above, but its short bonnet and 10.4 m turning circle make it easy to place. The big omission for a tight garage is the camera: no Australian EV3 grade has a surround-view system.

Verdict: a good garage car if you’re comfortable with a reversing camera and sensors alone.

MG4 Urban: the cheapest standard 360 camera

1,842 mm wide | about 10.5 m turning circle | $31,990 d/a

The MG4 Urban is a mid-pack width with a surround camera as standard at a drive-away price. That makes it the cheapest way into a standard 360 camera here, after the Dolphin. See our MG4 Urban review.

Verdict: worth a look if you’d rather have the camera than the narrowest body.

Which bigger EVs still fit?

All of them fit a standard 3.0 m single garage. What changes is how much room you have to get out. The Leapmotor B10 (1,885 mm), Geely EX5 (1,901 mm) and Tesla Model Y (1,921 mm) leave a little over a metre of spare width, which is workable if you park off-centre and nobody needs to get out of the passenger side.

The bigger issue is usually length and turning circle, not width. A Model Y is 4,792 mm long, leaving about 700 mm in a 5.5 m garage, and its 12.1 m turning circle is the widest here. The B10 and EX5 are shorter and turn in about 10.5 and 10.8 m, so they’re easier on a narrow driveway than their width suggests.

If you’re still choosing between body styles, our best small electric cars guide ranks the small EVs on range, price and space rather than size alone. The electric vehicles hub lists every model on sale.

How we chose

We started with every battery-electric car on sale in Australia in October 2026 priced at roughly $61,000 or less, plus the Model Y as a wide reference point, and ranked them by body width excluding mirrors. Widths, lengths, heights and turning circles come from Australian spec sheets: manufacturer AU pages and Australian press spec listings. Where two Australian sources disagreed on a turning circle (the Atto 3 Evo, the MGS5 EV and the Jaecoo J5 EV), we left it out rather than guess. We ignored overseas spec sheets, because trims and equipment differ between markets, and a 360 camera that’s standard in Europe can be missing here.

What decides the ranking of the narrowest electric cars in Australia is the body, not the mirrors, because that’s the figure every manufacturer publishes. Mirror-to-mirror widths are rarely published in Australia, so we only quote them where an Australian source gives one.

How to test a car in your own garage

A test drive at the dealership tells you nothing about your garage. Ask to take the car home, or at least measure your space and bring the numbers.

1. Measure three widths: the garage door opening, the inside of the garage at its narrowest point, and the driveway at its tightest corner.
2. Note the obstacles: bins, a fridge, a step, the tap. They cost more width than any car’s spec sheet.
3. Drive it in forwards and reverse it out, ideally with the 360 camera on. Count how many corrections the turn takes.
4. Open every door you’ll use with the car parked where it will live. Check the driver can get out with a bag in hand.
5. Check the mirrors fold, and whether they fold automatically on lock.

In Australia’s electric car market, which reached about 157,000 sales including plug-in hybrids in 2025 according to the Electric Vehicle Council, buyers have more choice of small, narrow models than ever. The narrowest electric cars in Australia now start at under $25,000, so a tight garage no longer forces you into a compromise you’ll regret.