Carmaker Honda is testing its first electric four-wheeler model for India for durability, range, and performance. Honda 0 Alpha — which was unveiled at the Japan Mobility Show 2025 and scheduled to be launched in the second half FY26 — will be manufactured at its Tapukara plant in Rajasthan at an estimated investment of Rs 1,200 crore.
Kunal Behl, vice-president, marketing & sales, Honda Cars India, says India will serve as the production base for Honda 0 Alpha for both domestic sales and for export to Japan and other countries.
Honda 0 Alpha will be taking on the likes of Hyundai Motor‘s EV Creta, Mahindra’s BE6, Tata Motor’s EV Curvv and MG ZS EV in the SUV arena. Tata Motors is the leader with 40% of the overall passenger EV market while Mahindra rules the sports utility vehicle (SUV) segment.
Experts reckon if Honda were to make a serious bid for the market, it must play the price game, something which it not used to doing. In fact, the company lacks a presence in over 70% of the passenger car market, particularly in the lower-budget categories.
With the launch of the Honda Elevate and third generation Amaze the company has adopted a more aggressive stance but it still does not compete in the bargain-basement sector, keeping their entry point around Rs 7 lakh.
What do analysts say?
That plan will need some serious tweak, say analysts. “Edgy design, feature loaded cars, competitive and innovative pricing, warranties on batteries besides partnerships with charging infrastructure players have all proven to be effective in helping new entrants generate strong customer interest translating into volumes,” says Rohan Rao, partner, automotive & lead, electric mobility, KPMG India.
According to automotive & mobility advisor Vinay Piparsania, Honda needs to treat India as a core market rather than a satellite by investing in India-specific EV platforms and ensuring consistent, long-term product portfolio depth. “To succeed, Honda must move beyond a few products, localise components deeply, and meet evolving customer demands for quality, reliability, and serviceability,” he writes in a LinkedIn post.
Then there is the issue of stiff competition. Tata Motors, Mahindra and JSW MG Motors have been quick to throw their hats into the ring. In 2025, the MG Windsor EV was India’s top-selling electric car, dominating sales with its innovative battery-as-a-service (BaaS) model. It was followed closely by the Tata Punch EV, Tata Nexon EV, and Mahindra’s new electric SUVs.
Honda is yet to reveal the price and technical specifications of Honda 0 Alpha, but observers say it will wear a tag of Rs 25-30 lakh with a battery size of 65 kWh to 75kWh. For its part, Mahindra’s XEV 9E starts from Rs 21.9 lakh and goes all the way up to Rs 29.4 lakh and offers battery size of 59 kWh up to 79 kWh. The BE 6 model starts at a much lower price of Rs 19.6 lakh with similar battery size options as the XEV 9E variant.
The thing to note is, Honda has cancelled its many EV launches across global markets — namely, the Honda 0 SUV, Honda 0 Saloon, and the Acura RSX electric — citing unfavourable business environment. “The fact that it is going ahead with the India launch shows it is serious about the EV play,” says Hormazd Sobarjee, editor, Autocar India. “It would look to sell about 1,000-1,500 units domestically and another 1,000 in the global markets.”
Can Honda step on the gas?
Never too late
The car-maker has been in India for about three decades now and holds a low, single-digit share (under 5%) of the passenger car market. But it sees India as a top-three key market for future growth. To that end, besides the electric SUV, the company is aiming to launch 10 new models by 2030.
The EV entry is a “cautious” decision on its part, say experts, because till now Honda had not looked at the segment with much seriousness focusing its energies instead on the Elevate SUV and the City and Amaze sedans to sustain volume.
In fact, in 2020, Honda had said that it had no EV-specific plans for India because the market was not ready — the available models were expensive and infrastructure underdeveloped. Of course, that was the time when India’s EV penetration was only about a-fifth of the global penetration (NITI Aayog, 2020).
EV car adoption has picked up since then to over two-fifth of the global penetration in 2024 (Unlocking a $200 Billion Opportunity: NITI Aayog). Which explains the change of heart of the 6th largest passenger car brand globally.
While EVs make up just about 4.3% of the overall passenger vehicle market the country, category growth is picking up speed. Sales surged 77% in 2025 to over 1.76 lakh units, driven by new model launches and strong demand, positioning the sector as a key global growth market.
The sector aims for 30% electrification by 2030, supported by localised manufacturing, massive charging infrastructure expansion (over 26,000 public chargers), and a 66% rise in luxury EV sales in early 2025.