Suzuki and Toyota have been working together on a new 4WD-capable electric SUV, and in Italy yesterday, Suzuki revealed the fruits of the collaboration: a new compact called the E Vitara. It’s the automaker’s first EV, and it’s scheduled for production at Suzuki Motor Gujarat in India starting next spring.
The E Vitara will launch in Europe, India, and Japan “around” the summer of next year, and there will be a Toyota-badged version, which will probably look a lot like the Urban SUV Concept Toyota revealed in 2023. Toyota similarly shares its mediocre bZ4X EV with Subaru, which is rebadged as the Solterra EV.
Image: Suzuki
Toyota and Suzuki have been slow to adopt EVs into their lineups, with Toyota refocusing on building more hybrids and a three-row electric SUV for the US market. As reported by Autocar, Suzuki’s previously announced target of launching multiple EVs by 2030 is on hold, with President Toshihiro Suzuki saying the company will “monitor the situation” due to cooling EV demand.
Image: Suzuki
As for the E Vitara, the vehicle will be powered by a lithium iron phosphate battery in either 49 kWh or 60 kWh capacities. Both batteries can be offered in 2WD drivetrains, but 4WD versions only come with the larger one. According to The Japan Times, Suzuki said the E Vitara can get up to 400km (about 248 miles) on a single charge.
At its peak, the E Vitara motor is capable of 135 kW output. It’s fairly underpowered compared to the 150 kW output of the similarly-sized Chevy Bolt, which is just 130mm shorter in length than the 4,275mm E Vitara.
There’s currently no pricing for the E Vitara, and like Hyundai’s Inster, the US market is not in the launch plans for this tiny EV.