Toyota EV company will work independently and develop fast-to-market electric cars; it will go functional from next month
Autonomous driving and Electric powertrain are the two technologies every automaker around the world are working on. Toyota being one of the leading automakers across the globe doesn’t want to stay behind. The Japanese automaker is launching a new EV company, which will work independently and will be responsible to develop fast-to-market electric cars.
The new EV company will go functional from next month and it consists of just four people, who are from different branches of the Toyota Group. This team of four people will have access to the technical database of entire Toyota Group. The automaker believes that, such a small workforce will ensure speedy progress or electric cars, thanks to an unconventional work process.
Also read: New-Generation Toyota Aygo Could Come As an EV
Toyota is presently shifting its focus toward the EVs, as it believes the electric cars are more viable as mainstream cars in the present market scenario. Alongside this new strategy, the automaker has also said that, it will continue supporting the fuel-cell cars. But, compared to fuel-cell cars, EVs have better chance to become popular, thanks to a better infrastructure.
The first EV developed by the new company, is expected to be a SUV with 300 km range, which could be launched by 2020. This electric car is expected to borrow its platform from the Prius, which will save the production cost as well as precious time also. Also, the company is planning to introduce the Aygo as a fully electric powered car.
Also read: Toyota Hybrid Sales in Europe to Increase with C-HR Crossover
Presently, the Toyota Aygo is manufactured alongside the Peugeot 108 and Citroen C1, at the same plant. These three models share several components with each other. With introduction of electric powertrain, Aygo will be very much different than the two other cars. While the next generation Toyota Aygo could come as an EV, it is not clear whether the Peugeot 108 and Citroen C1 will take the same path or not.