Maruti-Toyota Developing Tata Punch EV Rival! •
Posted by Arun Dagar On 25-Jan-2022 06:36 AM
Maruti Suzuki and Toyota are in the process of developing an all-new electric SUV, codename YY8 to rival the upcoming Tata Punch EV and will be launched in 2024 according to reports. This is a surprising news, as earlier Maruti executives, had said that the company considers electric cars to not be feasible for India and they will continue focussing on CNG vehicles.
The company may have changed its plans how-ever with its alliance with Toyota, Maruti has an able partner to help it in developing electric vehicles, as Toyota has a lot of expertise in Electric car technology. Thus, they have decided to co-develop this new electric product with Toyota, who will sell it after cross-badging the car with its name. Maruti Suzuki has been testing an electric version of its Wagon R hatchback for quite a few years and was expected to launch it as its first EV but going by the rising demands of SUVs and the success of the Tata Punch micro-SUV, the company has rightly so replaced the hatchback with a SUV. Other information regarding the Y88 micro-SUV is scarce but we will continue to update you on it. Though its going to be interesting to see if this new electric SUV will be based on Maruti’s Heartect platform or Toyota’s DNGA platform, the car is expected to get a driving range of around 250kms and will be priced around Rs. 9-10 lakhs. The Y88 will definitely share parts with other Maruti cars to keep the costs down.