Yamaha’s All-New Electric Two-Wheeler Platform For India And Global Markets

According to Autocar Professional, Yamaha Motor Research and Development India (YMRI) and Yamaha Motor Corporation (YMC), Japan are together working on the development of new electric two wheeler platforms.

According to reports, around 100 engineers from teams in Japan, India and other locations are together contributing towards the development of new electric two-wheelers. The teams have also identified and contacted a few global component suppliers that can help with supply of parts for the new electric vehicles.

Yamaha already manufactures and sells electric vehicles in the Japanese market. The E-Vino is an electric scooter launched in the Japanese domestic market. It was launched in 2014 and priced similar to petrol-powered scooters in the market to compete well.

Yamaha also retails electric wheelchairs and more recently launched electric power assisted bicycles in Japan. The E-Vino does not make sense for the Indian market and other global markets as it has a retro design based on the Yamaha Vino Molfe which is a popular 50cc Japanese scooter.

Indian consumers have a lot in common with those in the European market when it comes to design preferences. Yamaha also would want to spawn several new electric two-wheelers from this new platform for different markets.

Hence, it makes complete sense even in terms of profitability for Yamaha to start from scratch and build an all-new electric vehicle platform. Yamaha Motor Research and Development India had conducted a feasibility study across India.

It gauged consumer requirements, Indian market conditions and even the environment across India to help develop an electric two-wheeler for our market. On September 11, Yamaha entered into a partnership with Gogoro, a Taiwanese electric scooter and battery infrastructure manufacturer.

Yamaha hence expanded its electric vehicle business into Taiwan and at the same time gained access to Gogoro's battery swapping infrastructure. Yamaha is betting big on battery swapping technology as the next big thing in the electric vehicle industry.

The first electric two-wheeler from Yamaha's new platform is expected to come out around in 2021 or 2022. Suzuki Motorcycles too recently announced that their electric two-wheeler will be launched in India around the same time period,

Bajaj Auto too had announced the launch of an electric scooter, and we also have electric scooters coming from Hero MotoCorp, TVS Motors, Honda and Mahindra as well.

Thoughts On Yamaha Developing A New EV Platform

The age of electric vehicles is already here and mainstream manufacturers are embracing the change. The Indian market will witness an influx of electric vehicles in the upcoming years and competition is set to heat up. Yamaha definitely seems to be taking the right approach to developing a new electric two-wheeler at an opportune time.