“OUR FIRST MAINSTREAM INDIA FOCUS BEV UNDER DEVELOPMENT”

KUNAL BEHL, Vice President - Marketing & Sales, Honda Cars India, shares with UTKARSH AGARWAL the company's plans for an all-new electric SUV, not based on Elevate, a strengthened SUV line-up, and product and technology launches starting 2026. Excerpts

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What role does India play in Honda’s realigned global automobile strategy, particularly as the company shifts towards hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), and will it be a key market for the brand’s next-generation HEV lineup?

India continues to play a vital role in Honda’s global strategy. As the world’s third-largest automotive market and one of the fastest-growing economies, the country presents significant opportunities for future growth. In line with our global direction, India has been identified as one of the top three focus markets for Honda’s 4-wheeler business, alongside the USA and Japan. There is a significant strategic shift aimed to revitalise Honda’s 4W business in India which will be reflected through our future product and technology introductions in India starting from 2026 onwards. As we move towards a stronger focus on hybrid technologies, Honda is developing a new generation of HEVs, with global launches beginning in 2027. India will be an important market for this next-generation HEV lineup, and we will share further details at the appropriate time.

How does the recent realignment affect Honda’s earlier plans for localised EV production or battery value chain development in India?

As stated earlier, we are strengthening our SUV offering in the Indian market and our line-up will comprise of five SUVs by 2030. This will include our first mainstream India focus BEV currently under development. Initially the concept of this BEV was based on Elevate, but that concept has changed and is now being developed as a new Electric SUV different from Elevate. The development and other factory side preparations are on track, and we will launch the BEV in next fiscal as per original schedule.