Hybrids not only offer better fuel economy than fuel-only models, they also have significant performance benefits. And electric cars are practical nowadays and they have fast charging capability as well as enough range to address the concern. However, India is still far behind in terms of EV infrastructure. Nonetheless, people are slowly and steadily starting to accept EVs as a replacement for ICE cars.
In this article, we list down the upcoming hybrid/electric vehicles that will be soon launched in India across various price segments.
Honda City Hybrid
Honda City E: HEV was unveiled on April 14, 2022, and will launch on May 4, 2022.
Talking about the exteriors, the car remains identical to its ICE counterpart except for the E: HEV badge, new fog lamp garnish and the rear diffuser that differentiates the vehicle from the standard model. The interiors continue to feature the dual-tone scheme.
Honda City e: HEV is the first company to bring self-charging hybrid technology to the mid-size sedan segment in India. The Honda City Hybrid will be powered by dual electric motors mated to a 1.5-litre DOHC i-VTEC petrol engine.
The naturally aspirated, four-cylinder Atkinson engine is capable of producing 98 bhp power and 127 Nm of torque. In combination with the dual-electric motors, the car produces a combined 126 Bhp of power and 253 Nm of torque. The hybrid set-up is mated to an eCVT automatic transmission. Honda claims that the City Hybrid will return an average fuel efficiency of 26.5 kmpl.
Honda has started production of Honda City Hybrid. It has already rolled out the first unit off the assembly lines of the Japanese carmaker’s facility in Tapukara, Rajasthan.
Honda City e: HEV price in India is expected to be around Rs 18 lakh (ex-showroom). There will be no direct competition with the Honda City Hybrid. However, in the mid-size sedan segment, it will compete with the Skoda Slavia, Maruti Suzuki Ciaz, Hyundai Verna and the upcoming Volkswagen Vertus.
Hyundai IONIQ 5
It’s official, IONIQ 5 is coming to India. Right after Kia announced the launch of the EV6, Hyundai will now launch its second electric vehicle in the Indian market in the form of the IONIQ 5. We expect the launch to happen in the second half of this year.
IONIQ is a combination of the words “ion” and “unique”. It will be built on the company’s highly acclaimed skateboard platform, the e-GMP – Electric Global Modular Platform.
Coming to the exterior of the IONIQ, it gets U-shaped dual LED headlights, a swooping bonnet, pop out electric door handles in a rectangular shape and LED tail lamps that give it an antique touch. It also gets massive 20-inch aerodynamically designed wheels, an integrated spoiler, shark fin antenna and raked glass at the rear.
Talking about the interiors, it gets HUD display and 12-inch twin screen with BlueLink connectivity, while the seats and other parts are made of eco-friendly material.
The Hyundai Ioniq 5 will be offered with two battery pack options which include 72.6 kWh and 58 kWh. The 72.6 kWh battery offers a maximum range of 481 km (claimed) while the smaller battery offers a maximum range of 385 km (claimed). Its 2WD variant gets a rear axle-mounted electric motor that makes 217 hp power and 350 Nm torque. The AWD variant gets two electric motors, each with an axle, that churns out 305 hp power and 605 Nm torque.
Kia EV6
The next electric car on the list is the Kia EV6. The car was unveiled globally on March 2021 and a year later, Kia is launching its first electric car in India on 26 May 2022. Built on the e-GMP EV platform, the EV6 will come to India as a CBU unit and will be limited. 100 units only.
Kia India is yet to reveal the powertrain options of the upcoming EV6 in India, however, we expect it to use a 58 kWh battery available in two configurations – 170 bhp with a rear-wheel-drive single-motor power and all-wheel-drive with a dual electric motor producing a power of 235 hp. The second option is a 77.4 kWh battery mated to a single motor that produces a cumulative 229 hp power under the guise of rear-wheel-drive. In all-wheel-drive, the battery along with the twin motors churns out 325 hp of power.
There is also a performance-focused GT variant with dual electric motors that churns out 585 bhp of power and a massive 740 Nm of torque.
In the US, the Kia EV6 price starts at $40,900 (approximately Rs 31,37,377 at current exchange rates).
4. Maruti-Toyota co-developed rival for Hyundai Creta SUV
The next big product from Maruti Suzuki will be a new mid-sized hybrid compact SUV. The vehicle will be jointly developed and sold by Maruti Suzuki Toyota, This compact hybrid SUV will take on established players in the segment like Hyundai Creta and Kia Seltos etc.
The two new upcoming SUVs in India will be based on a new architecture that is based on the modular DNGA platform sourced from Daihatsu. The DNGA platform is specifically designed for emerging markets and is used for many Toyota and Daihatsu vehicles in international markets.
This upcoming one is expected to get a robust hybrid powertrain, which will contribute to fuel efficiency. It is expected to get a 1.5-litre petrol engine along with a number of premium features like a panoramic sunroof, a large touchscreen infotainment system, a 360-degree camera, heads-up display, 17-inch wheels, digital cameras, and more. Instrumental Cluster, LED Headlights and much more.
Maruti’s SUV codenamed YFG and Toyota’s SUV, codenamed D22, will be manufactured at Toyota’s second manufacturing facility in Bidadi, Karnataka.
While an official announcement is still awaited, Maruti is expected to launch the new SUV in October ahead of the festive season.
5. Toyota RAV4 Hybrid
The test mule of the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid has been spotted several times on the Indian roads.
The Toyota RAV4 Hybrid is based on the Toyota New Global Platform-K (TNGA-K) platform. The platform is also the basis for the Camry luxury sedan that has been brought to India as a Completely Knocked Down (CKD) unit and is locally assembled at the company’s Bidadi plant in Karnataka.
The Toyota RAV4 Hybrid is powered by a 2.5-litre NA, four-cylinder, Atkinson cycle petrol engine mated to an electric motor that puts out 215 bhp of power. The engine is mated to a CVT automatic transmission as standard.