Electric Vehicles That May Come To India
With pollution being a serious issue in India, the government is keen on adopting strategies which will help the country in not being a “gas chamber”.
One such approach is the quicker adoption of electric vehicles (EV) and the government is aiming to make India a 100 per cent EV nation by 2030.
According to industry body Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV), “electric vehicles in India is less than 1 percent of the total vehicle sales however it has a potential to grow to over 5 percent in few years.”
At present, India has two fully electric cars – Mahindra e2o Plus, and Mahindra e-Verito. There are six hybrid cars available in India - Toyota Prius, Toyota Camry Hybrid, BMW i8, Mahindra Scorpio MicroHybrid, Maruti Suzuki Ciaz Diesel SHVS (Smart Hybrid Vehicle by Suzuki), and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga Diesel SHVS.
However, with auto manufacturers seeing potential in the EV industry in India, BW Businessworld brings to you the EVs which might arrive in the country.
1. Hyundai Ioniq – The all-new Hyundai Ioniq (Hybrid, Electric and Plug-in) line-up celebrated its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show 2016, and the South Korean automaker has announced that it might introduce the car for its Indian customers at Auto Expo 2018.
The Ioniq Electric comes equipped with 28 kWh lithium-ion-polymer battery for an estimated range of over 250 km. The maximum torque of 295 Nm is delivered by the electric motor with maximum output of 88 kW (120 PS) through the single-speed reducer transmission accelerating the car up to 165 km/h.
2. Nissan Leaf – There are some speculations that the Japanese carmaker Nissan might bring Leaf EV to India, as a pilot project by working with government bodies and other institutions, in 2018.
First introduced in 2010, Nissan Leaf’s electric motor produces 80 kW of power and 280 Nm of maximum torque. It has a range of up to 107 miles.
3. Renault Zoe - At the Paris Motor Show 2016, Sumit Sawhney, MD & CEO, Renault India said, "As the Indian government wants at least 150 km range for EVs, we are sure Zoe will be very suitable as it has a range of 400 km."
Renault has launched the new Zoe with a range of 400 km NEDC (New European Driving Cycle) in September 2016.
4. Tesla Model 3 – First unveiled on March 31, 2016, this all-electric luxury sedan has a range of at least 346 km. Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, has tweeted that countries including India, Brazil, South Africa, South Korea, New Zealand, Singapore and Ireland have been added to the Model 3 order page.
5. BMW i3 – India already has BMW i8 from the German luxury carmaker’s electric vehicle portfolio. Looking at how progressively the company is working with its EV vision, there are chances of its BMW i3 coming to the country. If reports are to be believed, BMW might be bringing this vehicle in India by mid-2018. The latest BMW i3 has a 114-mile range on a full charge.
