Akihabara News (Tokyo) — Mini Electric Vehicles (Mini EVs) appear poised to play a significant role in the Japanese market due to their compactness and low cost.
Most recently, SAIC-GM-Wuling Motor (SGMW) announced that its Wuling Hongguang Mini EV will next year become the first Chinese-made Mini EV to go on sale in Japan.
The Wuling Hongguang Mini EV has clinched the top spot for EV sales volumes in China for the last two years. It has already entered the European market as well.
Tokyo-based Apatech Motors is being employed by SGMW to conduct market research ahead of the launch.
The Wuling Hongguang Mini EV is expected to be priced from about ¥650,000 (US$4,700), which should make it highly competitive, even for Japanese consumers who may be initially reluctant to buy China-made cars.
However, this vehicle will not be the only Mini EV on the road.
The Japan-made Nissan Sakura and Mitsubishi eK X Mini EVs were both launched in May. Both automakers were so overwhelmed by the consumer demand that they have recently decided to temporarily stop taking new orders.
However, both of these Japan-made Mini EVs cost about ¥2,350,000 (US$17,000), more than three times the price of the China-made Mini EVs.
Apart from the price point, Mini EVs may do well in the Japanese market precisely because of their small size in a country where parking space is limited and often narrow.
One challenge which still needs to be overcome, however, is to have EV charging stations more readily available throughout Japan in order to give EVs greater range.
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