Honda Cars India says it has an EV coming up in future lineup

Published On 20 Mar 2023 01:23 PM

Honda Cars India is lining up new models or product refreshes every year from 2023 onwards even as it looks to integrate its India business with the global target of getting two-thirds of its sales from electric vehicles by 2030.

Chennai :  Honda Cars India is lining up new models or product refreshes every year from 2023 onwards even as it looks to integrate its India business with the global target of getting two-thirds of its sales by 2030.

“Our second launch after the new City this year will be an ICE SUV  which is a global product, with India as a lead country. we also have an electric vehicle coming up in our future lineup,” said Kunal Behl, senior VP and director of marketing and sales, HCI. Honda’s  decision to phase out its hatchback models is part of this overarching strategy, he added.

“Our global vision – which India is also part of – is that by 2050 we will achieve carbon neutrality and zero traffic fatality so by 2040 100% of our sales will be from electric vehicles,” he added.

HCI is part of this target so we are restructuring our lineup accordingly. City e: HEV is also being expanded by the introduction of a new variant which is at INR 1 lakh lesser price point than the current ZX variant.

“We want to popularize the strong hybrid technology among a larger set of customers,” said Behl.

Also, Honda is expanding the application of the Honda Sensing driver assist system to the petrol model after first introducing it with Honda City e:HEV last year. “This technology will be available in the majority of the variants of Honda City now,” he said.

HCI is focusing extra attention on the Tamil Nadu market because of its growing share in the mid-size sedan market. “It is a critical market for us because we command 37% of the total mid-size sedan market with our City,” said Behl. With 30 outlets, tier 2 and 3 cities like Trichy and Madurai are also pitching in, he added.