Development of Electrification and Next-Generation Hybrids

「The main reason for the evaluation was that an exhaust valve using NMC340, a proprietary material developed for NITTAN’s core overlay-welding technology, entered mass production as a product installed in FFV vehicles for Maruti Suzuki India.」

「Production of Suzuki’s first global-strategy BEV, the “e VITARA,” began at the Hansalpur plant of Suzuki subsidiary Maruti Suzuki, and sales are being launched successively in India, Europe, Japan and other countries.」

「The Super ENE-CHARGE introduced last year is in advanced development, and we now have a clear path to achieving its target performance. We have already begun introducing carbon-neutral fuel technologies in India, and all motorcycle and automobile models are now compatible with E20 fuel. For FFVs, mass production of motorcycles has begun, while development of automobiles is progressing toward introduction within the current fiscal year.」

「Production of the “e VITARA” will begin at Suzuki Motor Gujarat in spring 2025, with sales scheduled to begin successively in India, Europe, Japan and other countries around summer 2025.」

「The relative environmental impact of EVs and HEVs varies depending on the availability of non-fossil energy. We believe a multipathway technology lineup is necessary, selecting EVs, hybrids or internal-combustion engines using carbon-neutral fuels according to the region and timing.」

「In Japan, we plan to introduce EVs including small SUVs, kei passenger vehicles and kei commercial vehicles, and roll out 6 models from fiscal 2024 through fiscal 2030. In Europe, we will introduce EVs from fiscal 2024, expand into SUVs and the B segment, and roll out 5 models by fiscal 2030. In India, we will roll out 6 models from fiscal 2024 through fiscal 2030.」

「In Japan, we plan to introduce a kei commercial battery EV in fiscal 2023, followed by small SUVs, kei passenger vehicles and other models, and will roll out 6 models by fiscal 2030. In Europe, we will introduce battery EVs from fiscal 2024, expand into SUVs and the B segment, and roll out 5 models by fiscal 2030. In India, we will launch EVs in fiscal 2024 and roll out 6 models by fiscal 2030.」

「For EV development, we began testing in March 2022 to collect data while having members of the general public use prototype vehicles for commuting and on holidays. We are preparing for EV production in India, including investment in Gujarat, and will feed the test results back into the EV currently being developed jointly with TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION.」

「By 2025, we will have prepared electrification technologies such as hybrid systems and EVs, fully deploy electrification technologies in products from 2025, and pursue quantitative expansion of electrified products from 2030. Outside the four-wheel vehicle business, we plan to introduce EV scooters in the two-wheel vehicle business. We will also address new technologies such as electrification for outboard motors.」

「For EV development, we conducted fleet testing of 37 prototypes in India, a more demanding environment for EVs, through October 2019. We collected various data and customer feedback through on-road testing, verified performance and durability suitable for market acceptance, and will apply the results to future EV development.」

「As part of our efforts in advanced development, we began fleet testing in India in October 2018 using 50 prototype EVs. We will collect various data and customer feedback through on-road testing, verify the performance and durability required for market acceptance, and apply the results to the development of EVs scheduled for market launch around 2020.」

「Regarding electric vehicles, as announced on 17 November 2017, we agreed with TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION to study the establishment of a cooperative relationship for launching EVs in the Indian market around 2020, and we are continuing those discussions.」

「For powertrain electrification, we newly developed our proprietary hybrid system, which combines a drive motor capable of generating electricity, or MGU, with an Auto Gear Shift (AGS) transmission offering high transmission efficiency, achieving highly efficient EV driving. The new system is installed in the Solio and Solio Bandit, achieving class-leading fuel economy of 32.0 km/L.」

「Domestic revenue declined from the same period of the previous year despite efforts to strengthen our product lineup and expand sales by adding the Solio and Solio Bandit registered vehicles equipped with the newly developed hybrid system and introducing the new Spacia Custom Z model, due to lower kei-car sales and OEM revenue, among other factors.」

「In electrification technology, we have evolved our proprietary fuel-efficiency technology “ENE-CHARGE” and are expanding adoption of “S-ENE CHARGE,” which uses an ISG (integrated starter generator) to improve fuel economy and enable smooth restarting after the engine stops. It was adopted in the Wagon R, Wagon R Stingray, Hustler and Spacia kei passenger cars launched during the consolidated fiscal year.」