India is one of the largest passenger vehicles market in the world and with the contemporary onset of a fast-paced yet stable progress towards an electric automotive economy, India is still young to the electric car culture. However, the sales of the electric vehicles in India form a very insignificant part of the total sales!
With the government’s push towards electric mobility and electrification and the recent launch of the Hyundai Kona Electric SUV has paved the way for other electric cars that one can look forward to in the next one year!
Audi e-tron
Among the luxury car manufacturers, Audi is gearing up to launch the e-tron in India. The preview of the car happened in July and it will be the first fully electric luxury SUV in India.
On a full charge the e-tron gets a range of 400 km and that’s quite good. The e-tron gets two electric motors, one on each axle. The one on the front makes 125 kW while the rear motor makes 140 kW, giving out a combined output of 265 kW or 355 bhp. The peak torque output is 561 Nm. In the boost mode, the power output goes up to 300 kW or 408 bhp. It has a range of 400 km on a single charge according to WLTP cycle and can attain a top speed of 200 kmph.
MG eZS
MG Motor entered the Indian market with the much awaited Hector SUV and pulled the covers off its eZS electric SUV earlier this year in April and the car is slated to be launched in India by end of 2019 or early 2020. It will be the second launch from MG after the Hector, which was recently launched. The eZS EV will get over-the-air technology and will have a range of 300 kilometres on a single charge from its lithium-ion battery. MG is yet to announce the exact specifications for the eZS but the company has confirmed that it will be assembled in India in order to keep the costs competitive. It has also tied up with a Finland-based company called ‘Fortum’ to install 50 kilo watt fast-charging DC chargers in India.
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Nissan Leaf
Up next is the Nissan Leaf! Yes! Nissan has confirmed that it will be launching the Leaf in India this year. Fun fact, the Leaf is the highest-selling highway capable electric vehicle in the world and we expect it to be launched at about a price of 35 to 40 lakh rupees. The fact that it is an import pushes the cost up! The Leaf gets a 40 kilo watt hour battery which can offer a range of up to 400 km on a single charge, and has a power output of 148 bhp and peak torque of 320 Nm. Charging time of the battery is between 8 and 16 hours, depending on power capacity. The car also gets a quick charging feature which can give 80 per cent battery charge in just 40 minutes.
Jaguar I-Pace
Jaguar Land Rover too has plans of launching the I-pace in India, but only towards the end of 2020. The I-pace is the company’s first all-electric SUV and it was first showcased in March 2018. Jaguar took 4 years develop the car from its concept version to the production version. The I-Pace comes with two synchronous permanent magnet electric motors at the front and the rear axle which have a combined power output of 395 bhp and makes maximum of 696 Nm of torque. It also features an AWD system. A 0-100 kmph sprint takes 4.5 seconds and the performance SUV will have a range of over 480 km.
Mahindra KUV100 Electric
Mahindra has always been a pioneer in the field of electric mobility. And it has confirmed that the electric version of the KUV100 will be launched in 2019. Exact specifications aren’t confirmed but its electric motor could churn out about 50 bhp and 120 Nm. All these variables could change once the final production model is launched. Expect the electric KUV100 to be priced around 10 lakh rupees.