Honda Cars India had launched the Elevate mid-sized SUV in the country in 2023. The SUV has received an overwhelming response from car buyers, as Honda manages to sell over 4,000 units per month. At the global debut event, Honda had confirmed that it will have 5 SUVs in its portfolio by 2030. Adding to it, the Elevate based electric SUV has also been confirmed to be launched by 2026.
Honda Cars India is also aiming to export significant amount of vehicles to global markets, which will play an important role for the brand’s future growth strategy. The company will convert its internal combustion engine (ICE) SUVs to electric versions. The new Elevate based SUV under its project ACE ‘Asian Compact Electric’ will be ready by 2026 and almost 50-70 percent of the vehicles produced in India will be exported to key overseas markets, including Japan.
It is reported that Honda Cars India is developing a product with a codename DG9D, which has a potential annual volume of 1 lakh units. This electric SUV will be positioned against the upcoming Hyundai Creta EV, which is scheduled to be launched sometime in 2024-25. The company will start retooling of its Tapukara based plant in Rajasthan for EV production in 2024. Honda could also make additional investment in the country, as most of the production volumes expected from exports.
The Tapukara production plant still has available capacity to accommodate a new model line, but Honda aims to increase the production capacity. The company could also look at the second plant to meet the rising demand. The report reveals that the Honda Elevate based EV is expected to be a global model and will be exported to many more markets than the City and Amaze are.
Honda aims to double its exports from India by 2025. With the addition of the ACE project, the share of overseas volumes from India could move to about 30-40 percent of the total output. The ICE version of the Honda Elevate will also go on sale in Japan under the brand name WR-V.
Source – AutoCarIndia
