Toyota to get Suzuki’s first-ever electric vehicle

Japanese automaker Suzuki Motor’s Indian unit will supply its first-ever electric vehicle to Toyota Motor, in a move that marks their first collaboration on green vehicles, the two companies said.

This new model is scheduled to be manufactured at Suzuki Motor Gujarat in India from the spring of 2025.

It will be launched worldwide, providing a BEV choice even in the SUV market. The new model was designed exclusively as a Battery Electric Vehicle (BEV), according to a media release. 

“Suzuki will supply our first BEV to Toyota globally. I am grateful that the collaboration between the two companies has further deepened in this way,” Suzuki President Toshihiro Suzuki said. “While continuing to be competitors, we will deepen our collaborations toward solving social issues, including the realization of a carbon-neutral society through a multi-pathway approach.”

“By leveraging the BEV unit and platform that we jointly developed, we will take a new step in our collaboration in the field of electrified vehicles,” Toyota President Koji Sato said. “This will allow us to deliver various choices that contribute to a carbon-neutral society to customers worldwide. We would like to learn from each other’s strengths, compete, and further joint efforts based on a multi-pathway approach.”

Toyota sold just over 108,000 battery-powered EVs worldwide during the first nine months of the year, accounting for 1.5% of its global sales over that period.

Maruti Suzuki plans to add a fourth production line at the Gujarat facility with a capacity of 250,000 units per year, just for EVs.