Maruti Suzuki will be stepping into the world of electric vehicles (EV) with the launch of e Vitara at the upcoming Bharat Mobility Global Expo 2025. The e Vitara will be a stepping stone for the carmaker but Maruti will hope to penetrate the EV segment deeper in the future. For this, it will need a more affordable and mass market EV.
According to Autocar India, Maruti is working on an entry-level electric hatchback which is expected to enter production by 2028. Internally codenamed Y2V, this EV is expected to be based on the eWX concept, the patent of which was filed by Maruti Suzuki in India last year.
Maruti Suzuki electric hatchback expectations
The report further mentions that the Y2V will be developed locally by Maruti to keep the cost under check and cater to the entry-level EV market. Currently, there are only two prominent battery-powered models priced under Rs 10 lakh (ex-showroom): Tata Tiago EV and MG Comet EV. We suspect Maruti will target this range and price its upcoming electric hatch around Rs 7-8 lakh (ex-showroom).
As per the report, the Y2V will probably come equipped with a 35kWh battery. However, there are no concrete details available about this model at this point in time. The report adds that commercial production of this electric hatchback will depend on multiple factors like market demand, economic conditions and cost-efficiency evaluations.
The Y2V hatchback is part of Maruti Suzuki’s EV expansion plan where the company intends to launch six EVs in the market by FY2031. Maruti is expecting that EVs will account for 15 percent of its total share by the end of this decade.
This isn’t the first time Maruti has been planning a battery-powered hatchback.Previously, the company was developing an all-electric version of WagonR, a concept of the same was showcased at the Auto Expo a few years back. Test mules of the WagonR EV were spotted on numerous occasions and the industry awaited the launch of the same for a very long time. However, unviability of the project forced Maruti to shelve the project altogether.
Source: Autocar India
