With high costs and lack of charging infrastructure, Maruti Suzuki recently announced their plans of postponing the launch of the WagonR EV in India beyond 2020.
We had earlier reported that Maruti Suzuki is looking to make their debut in the electric vehicle space with the WagonR EV. It was scheduled to be introduced in early 2020. However, in a recent press conference for the announcement of the company’s quarterly results, Maruti Suzuki has revealed that the 2020 launch for the Wagon R EV has now been pushed back. They haven’t revealed any particular timeline for the vehicle.
Maruti Suzuki has cited several reason for which they believe that the mass adoption of electric vehicles is still a problem in India. The comparatively heavy price tag with almost nil public charging infrastructure still remains the overriding problem. Maruti Suzuki believes that till the time such issues are not sorted, hybrids could go a long way in bridging the gap between internal combustion engines and pure electric cars.
Maruti Suzuki already offers their Smart Hybird System in a quite a few cars. With improved performance and fuel efficiency, Maruti’s crop of hybrid vehicles has found good success in the country. Maruti Suzuki is thus planning to introduce even stronger hybrids down the line.
Also Read : Here’s the First Leaked Image of the Toyota Raize Sub-Compact SUV!
Now coming back to the WagonR EV, the company has been testing 50 prototypes of the vehicle on our roads since late last year. With the launch of the WagonR EV now postponed, Maruti will continue testing and development of the vehicle. The WagonR EV is expected to have a real-world driving range of about 130 km, although official claimed figures are much higher. The EV will also come with fast-charging functionality. While DC fast charging will allow a 0-80% charge in under an hour, charging times using a normal AC supply are claimed to be around 7hrs.
Also Read : Renault Has A India-Specific Subcompact Sedan in the Cards!
India’s largest automobile manufacturer may be shying away from entering the electric space but other manufacturers seem quite up on their toes in this regard. Hyundai has already introduced the Kona and they are also planning for a smaller, more affordable EV. Tata has launched an updated iteration of the Tigor EV and plans to introduce the Nexon electric SUV in early 2020. Mahindra too plans to bring the all-electric version of the XUV300 to the market next year. But the earliest to arrive would be the MG ZS EV that is scheduled for an unveil in India in December, 2019.
