Hyundai i10 Electric Variant Not in the Offing

Recently, it has been confirmed that Hyundai won’t be launching an electric variant of the i10 any time soon. This was confirmed by Raf Van Nuffel, Head of Product Management & Pricing, Hyundai (Europe).

`According to Raf Van Nuffel, Hyundai will be taking a “top to bottom” approach, which means that the company will offer any new innovation in the premium end of the spectrum, refine it, and slowly introduce them onto the smaller, more affordable models later. That said, there could be a hybrid version, or at least a mild-hybrid one, in the pipeline.

Hyundai won't be introducing an electric version of the Hyundai i10

The electrification of vehicles is currently largely focussed in the European markets. The EU imposes an overall CO₂ emissions limit for every manufacturer. The mission targets for every carmaker are calculated according to the average weight/mass of their vehicles. Heavy vehicles are allowed higher emissions, while small cars have tighter limits. The law requires the overall emissions of a carmaker to remain below a target level, which is 95g of CO2 per kg of the cars’ mass for 2020. The targets will be stricter in the coming years.

2019 Hyundai Grand i10 Nios Review | IndianAutosBlog

To lower their average emissions and meet the emissions target, many manufacturers are scaling down the production of petrol- and diesel-powered mass-market cars, focusing on electric vehicles instead. A mass-produced vehicle with zero emissions is indeed a smart way to go about it. Previously, automakers were offering an electric version of their regular cars, but with more focus on electric vehicles, some have decided to develop new platforms of EVs. The former, although significantly cheaper, does not produce optimised vehicles. Tesla has already proven that EV-specific platforms create better cars, and consequently lead to better sales.

Hyundai’s sister company, Kia, will be introducing an electric version of the Picanto soon. The Picanto is based on the same platform as the third-gen Hyundai i10. That said, the biggest challenge Kia faces with the Picanto EV is pricing; the electric version is slated to cost more than the petrol-powered one. This would give no incentive to the customers to buy an EV over the regular gasoline model.