Suzuki Motor Corp will enter the electric vehicle (EV) market by 2025 starting in its stronghold market India, Nikkei reported on Monday. The automaker plans an all-electric compact model to be made available for around 1.5 million yen ($13,626 or Rs 10-11 lakh) after government subsidies are taken into account, the Nikkei said. “We have been saying that we will enter EV and strong hybrid cars in India by 2025,” a Suzuki spokesperson said but added that the company has not announced any price or whether it will launch EVs in India first.
Maruti Suzuki sells the most cars in India compared to all car brands available here and most of these sales are dominated by the compact car segment that includes Alto, WagonR, Baleno and Swift. The very first electric car is expected to be in this segment.
Also read: Maruti Suzuki’s first electric car spotted: WagonR EV seen sans camouflage
According to the Nikkei report, the EV will first be launched in India and then followed to other markets, including its home market Japan and Europe. Despite being one of the largest car markets in the world, the shift to EVs in India is not too drastic. While electric two- and three-wheelers are catching on, factors like high prices and range anxiety in electric cars stunt EV growth here. A small affordable electric car could be an answer.
Earlier this month, a test mule of an electric Suzuki was spotted in India without any camouflage. The automaker had been testing the Japanese market Wagon R Electric Kei car during the development phase which was seen on the roads on multiple occasions. But now a new car based on the current-generation India-spec Wagon R has been seen with a new design. Click the link above for more details.
