Suzuki to launch its first all-electric vehicle in japan next january

According to foreign media reports, Suzuki Motor Corporation announced on September 16 that its first pure electric vehicle will be launched in Japan in mid-January next year. The company also stated that the process of electric vehicle adoption in Japan will accelerate.

The model named e Vitara is part of Suzuki's "multi-pathway" strategy for transitioning to eco-friendly vehicles and will join its lineup of products that includes hybrid vehicles, biofuel vehicles, and compressed natural gas vehicles.

Vitara; Image Source: Suzuki Automobile

At a press conference held on September 16, Suzuki Motor Corporation President Toshihiro Suzuki expressed optimism about the performance of the e Vitara model in markets such as Japan, despite Japan's relative lag in electric vehicle adoption. He stated, "I believe the e Vitara will become a model that opens up new markets with product appeal that previous electric vehicles did not possess."

He added that the car features "mature and complete four-wheel drive performance" and, being compact in size, offers maneuverability for city driving in the Japanese market, which has great growth potential.

Suzuki Motor stated that through innovative designs such as integrating the motor, inverter, and drive axle into one unit, the interior space of the e Vitara has been enhanced, which also improves the energy efficiency of this model. According to the Worldwide harmonized Light vehicles Test Cycles (WLTC) standard, the e Vitara model can achieve a single-charge range of 433 to 520 kilometers.

The starting price of this pure electric SUV in the Japanese market is slightly below 4 million yen (approximately $27,000). If we take into account the government subsidy for clean energy vehicles, which amounts to 870,000 yen, the actual cost of purchasing the vehicle will be significantly reduced.

Notably, the e Vitara is equipped with batteries from BYD, and the vehicle will be manufactured in India. Currently, Suzuki maintains a leading position in the Indian passenger car market.

Maruti Suzuki, the Indian subsidiary of Suzuki, will manufacture this electric vehicle at its plant in Gujarat, located in the western part of India. At the ceremony for the first batch of new car shipments held last month, Indian Prime Minister Modi attended the event along with the company's senior executives.

Suzuki plans to export the e Vitara to over 100 countries and regions worldwide. The model is already available for orders in European countries such as the UK, Norway, and Switzerland. Suzuki will also begin selling this car in India within the fiscal year ending March 2026.

After the press conference, President Suzuki told Nikkei Asia, "Developing electric vehicle models for each market would require huge investments and be difficult to achieve profitability. As a strategic first step, we will produce in India and supply the global market." He also stated, "Depending on sales performance in the future, we may need to diversify production locations to achieve localized production and meet local market demand. However, in the current first stage, concentrating production in one place is the most prudent approach."

Suzuki plans to invest 1.2 trillion yen in India over the next six years to enhance production capacity and strengthen India's position as its export hub.

According to reports, the e Vitara is the first in a series of electric vehicle models that Suzuki plans to launch in Japan before 2030. Suzuki's president stated, "We will continue to launch pure electric vehicle models that meet the demands of local markets, based on deep insights into the actual usage scenarios of users in Japan and other regions around the world."

According to data from Tokyo-based research firm MarkLines, in July, electric vehicles accounted for only 1.9% of total car sales in Japan. In contrast, the figure was 85.4% in Norway and 22.5% in Thailand.

However, the president of Suzuki expects that the Japanese market will gradually begin to embrace electric vehicles in the near future. Nissan Motor Company plans to launch the new generation Leaf pure electric vehicle in Japan after its debut in the United States this fall. Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD has developed an electric microcar for the Japanese market, which is set to be launched next year.