EV (electric vehicle) News and Discussion

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#3490300 12-May-2026 20:18

exador:

sen8or:

We sell high end European brand where the pre-delivery / software can be upwards of 20 tech hours per vehicle, our ORCs for that brand aren't as high..... (but then the price isn't as low either so apples/oranges)

It seems unfair that the manufacturer would ship a vehicle with outdated software and then expect the customer to pay for the upgrade.

It was most likely up to date when it was shipped but there's been updates since then. This happens all the time with other goods.

Who should pay? That's a different question.

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#3490301 12-May-2026 20:25

exador:

sen8or:

We sell high end European brand where the pre-delivery / software can be upwards of 20 tech hours per vehicle, our ORCs for that brand aren't as high..... (but then the price isn't as low either so apples/oranges)

It seems unfair that the manufacturer would ship a vehicle with outdated software and then expect the customer to pay for the upgrade.

If the costs are disclosed upfront to the customer prior to purchase it's fair - the customer can choose whether or not to buy based on the information provided.

There's not a shortage of manufacturers from whom to buy cars. If you don't like what one is offering there's plenty of others to choose from.

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#3490317 12-May-2026 22:25

Dingbatt:

Kookoo:

Got a mail from Suzuki about their eVitara launch offer. Base model is $55K+ORC. So, $60K, for a Vitara EV. What am I missing here?

The first thing I would be doing is asking them to justify $5000 ORCs?

Sorry, I should've been clearer - I assumed the awd version would be about $5,000 more expensive, so I guessed it to be $60K. I was off by 3K - apparently it's $63,000. Which begs the question even more - $63,000 for a Vitara EV?!

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#3490347 13-May-2026 08:26

exador:

sen8or:

We sell high end European brand where the pre-delivery / software can be upwards of 20 tech hours per vehicle, our ORCs for that brand aren't as high..... (but then the price isn't as low either so apples/oranges)

It seems unfair that the manufacturer would ship a vehicle with outdated software and then expect the customer to pay for the upgrade.

New Vehicles can be anywhere from 0 - 18 months or so from production date before they are sold to a customer (in some cases, this can be even more if the local importer is overstocked), a lot can happen in that timeframe with software changes. They also have NZ specific software settings not necessarily done at the factory (remember we can be talking about high volume production line where multiple vehicles can be destined for multiple countries, its not feasible for each unit to be manufactured for an individual country).

The software updates is only part of the pre-delivery, usually happens concurrently with other work on the vehicle (WOF & other mechanical checks etc), but its all at a cost.

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#3490520 13-May-2026 13:16

Kookoo:

Sorry, I should've been clearer - I assumed the awd version would be about $5,000 more expensive, so I guessed it to be $60K. I was off by 3K - apparently it's $63,000. Which begs the question even more - $63,000 for a Vitara EV?!

It's the cheapest AWD BEV SUV by some margin, and the only smallish one. Alternatives like the Model Y AWD & Ioniq 5 AWD are much larger and around the $80k mark.

Means for the buyer who wants and AWD BEV SUV for any reason, and either a preference for lower cost or a smaller footprint, the Suzuki eVitara is the obvious pick.

The FWD version is competing in a very crowded spot in the market by comparison.

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#3490644 13-May-2026 18:44

Scott3:

It's the cheapest AWD BEV SUV by some margin, and the only smallish one. Alternatives like the Model Y AWD & Ioniq 5 AWD are much larger and around the $80k mark.

Means for the buyer who wants and AWD BEV SUV for any reason, and either a preference for lower cost or a smaller footprint, the Suzuki eVitara is the obvious pick.

The FWD version is competing in a very crowded spot in the market by comparison.

It’s about 4K cheaper than the awd bz4x, which is significantly better in every way. Other than the 400mm shorter length, I can’t see any reason to buy the Vitara

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#3491189 15-May-2026 11:13

China moves forward on EV K-Cars for rural china and worldwide developing markets:

https://electrek.co/2026/05/14/china-wants-to-build-electric-kei-car-industry-boost-ev-sales/

Surprisingly, the article says 33% of car sales in Japan are K-cars. Makes sense with an aging population and small streets I guess.

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#3491199 15-May-2026 12:30

gzt: China moves forward on EV K-Cars for rural china and worldwide developing markets:

https://electrek.co/2026/05/14/china-wants-to-build-electric-kei-car-industry-boost-ev-sales/

Surprisingly, the article says 33% of car sales in Japan are K-cars. Makes sense with an aging population and small streets I guess.

The cost of owning a "kei" in Japan is a shed load less than a "white plate"... everything from Expressway tolls, to weight tax and cheaper "parking space certificates"

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#3491212 15-May-2026 13:42

wellygary:

gzt: China moves forward on EV K-Cars for rural china and worldwide developing markets:

https://electrek.co/2026/05/14/china-wants-to-build-electric-kei-car-industry-boost-ev-sales/

Surprisingly, the article says 33% of car sales in Japan are K-cars. Makes sense with an aging population and small streets I guess.

The cost of owning a "kei" in Japan is a shed load less than a "white plate"... everything from Expressway tolls, to weight tax and cheaper "parking space certificates"

This.

There is a strong regularity incentive towards Kei class cars in Japan, that are largely responsible for Kei class car's popularity.

Note how basically every Kei car maxes out (or close to it) on Length, width, and engine displacement (if petrol). This is not a natural outcome. Franky some of the rules are a bit stupid. I can't see the point of a 660cc engine limit. means everybody has a 660 turbo to meet the power limit. I can't think of any reason to mandate this over say a 1 or 1.2L naturally aspirated engine. Also the weight limit is difficult for EV's (with not really any gain to society, light vehicles do negligible road wear anyway).

| Dimension | Maximum |
| ------------------- | ----------------------- |
| Length | 3.4 m |
| Width | 1.48 m |
| Height | 2.0 m |
| Engine displacement | 660 cc |
| Unladen weight | 660 kg |
| Power output | ~63 hp (regulatory cap) |

If China want's to play in the Japan auto market, given a third of sales are Kei cars, they do need an offering to fit the Japan Kei rules.

But I must stress what a massive challenge this is going to be. 95% of new car sales in Japan are from Japanese Brands. Ford, GM, Opel, Hyundai, Dodge & Chrysler all tried and gave up on the Japanese market.

Also Japan, China & Korea are not friends. Between Japan and China the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands dispute continues.

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#3491216 15-May-2026 13:48

shk292:

Scott3:

It's the cheapest AWD BEV SUV by some margin, and the only smallish one. Alternatives like the Model Y AWD & Ioniq 5 AWD are much larger and around the $80k mark.

Means for the buyer who wants and AWD BEV SUV for any reason, and either a preference for lower cost or a smaller footprint, the Suzuki eVitara is the obvious pick.

The FWD version is competing in a very crowded spot in the market by comparison.

It’s about 4K cheaper than the awd bz4x, which is significantly better in every way. Other than the 400mm shorter length, I can’t see any reason to buy the Vitara

I had forgotten how the BZ4X has swung from not being worth considering, to being a compelling offering in the recent refresh & Price drop.

Still, a market remains for those that want a physically small AWD EV SUV

And while the BZ4X wins on range, fast charging, power, space etc, there are still buyers who won't want to spring the extra $4k (or simply don't realise it exists).

gzt

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#3491264 15-May-2026 15:47

If China want's to play in the Japan auto market, given a third of sales are Kei cars, they do need an offering to fit the Japan Kei rules.

As mentioned in the article the primary motivation is to serve the China market for older rural people who apparently like the convenience and low cost of electric golf cart type things and are currently driving all kinds of non-road-compliant low cost electric vehicles to get around town. It's not 100% clear if China is considering copying the K model or coming up with something new. Imo people paying sub-$500 for a cart are not in a position to buy something like a K car standard. It may need to be significantly downspeceed from that.

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#3491283 15-May-2026 17:02

Scott3:

I had forgotten how the BZ4X has swung from not being worth considering, to being a compelling offering in the recent refresh & Price drop.

Still, a market remains for those that want a physically small AWD EV SUV

And while the BZ4X wins on range, fast charging, power, space etc, there are still buyers who won't want to spring the extra $4k (or simply don't realise it exists).

that seems quite a niche market for Suzuki, those with small garages and those without the nous to see what Toyota has.

I predict the Vitara will see a significant price drop before too long

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#3491287 15-May-2026 17:55

shk292:

Scott3:

I had forgotten how the BZ4X has swung from not being worth considering, to being a compelling offering in the recent refresh & Price drop.

Still, a market remains for those that want a physically small AWD EV SUV

And while the BZ4X wins on range, fast charging, power, space etc, there are still buyers who won't want to spring the extra $4k (or simply don't realise it exists).

that seems quite a niche market for Suzuki, those with small garages and those without the nous to see what Toyota has.

I predict the Vitara will see a significant price drop before too long

If you have $60k to start with, the additional $4k shouldn’t be a major issue. And you would have to have rocks in your head to not say the $4k is not outstanding additional value for money … or, as suggested, not know the Toyota exists. Fair enough for trying to find first up buyers willing (or gullible enough) to pay a premium, but they don’t have a hope of selling any sustainable volume at that price.

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#3491289 15-May-2026 17:59

One of those things that makes sense for trade-ins and similar relationship things.

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#3491529 16-May-2026 16:33

Scott3:

wellygary:

gzt: China moves forward on EV K-Cars for rural china and worldwide developing markets:

https://electrek.co/2026/05/14/china-wants-to-build-electric-kei-car-industry-boost-ev-sales/

Surprisingly, the article says 33% of car sales in Japan are K-cars. Makes sense with an aging population and small streets I guess.

The cost of owning a "kei" in Japan is a shed load less than a "white plate"... everything from Expressway tolls, to weight tax and cheaper "parking space certificates"

But I must stress what a massive challenge this is going to be. 95% of new car sales in Japan are from Japanese Brands. Ford, GM, Opel, Hyundai, Dodge & Chrysler all tried and gave up on the Japanese market.

Also Japan, China & Korea are not friends. Between Japan and China the Senkaku/Diaoyu Islands dispute continues.

And most of the remaining 5% is from premium Euro brands. American land yachts are taxed in Japan as much as Japanese land yachts (which do exist and are mainly exported) are.

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