Electric car 'civil war'

Last week, Nikkei Asia reported that Japanese automaker Nissan announced it would focus on producing PHEV vehicles and consider partnering with Mitsubishi to provide the PHEV platform to Honda.

Too soon?

Explaining the above decision, Nissan assessed that BEV sales have shown signs of slowing down due to high prices and many limitations such as battery charging for the vehicle. Meanwhile, PHEVs have high profits and many factors suitable for the actual situation for the transition to BEV, which is said to last quite a long time. Having a gasoline engine in parallel with an electric motor gives PHEVs the advantage of being able to travel long distances without worrying about battery charging infrastructure.

Toyota's Prius PHEV and BZ4X BEV models are displayed at an auto show in Indonesia in July.

Not only that, companies are gradually producing PHEV models with longer electric motor ranges, such as the Toyota Prius PHEV model with a battery that allows running up to 105 km, expected to be increased to 200 km. Toyota is also rushing to develop new PHEV models. BYD (China) recently introduced a PHEV model that can reach a continuous running distance of up to 2,100 km with just one full battery charge and a full tank of gas.

It is estimated that if the PHEV battery can run 140 km in Japan or 200 km in the US, it will be enough to meet daily travel needs. Therefore, some people think that focusing on developing BEV now is too early compared to current infrastructure conditions.

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In fact, sales figures are showing that PHEVs are showing signs of improvement. According to statistics, in July, China - the world's largest electric car market today - sold 991,000 electric vehicles (EVs in general, including PHEVs and BEVs and other types), down 5.5% compared to June but still up 27% compared to July 2023. Of these, BEV sales reached 551,000 vehicles, down 10% compared to June, up 2.6% compared to July 2023. However, PHEV sales reached 438,000 vehicles, up 0.5% compared to June and up 86% compared to July 2023. By August, also in the Chinese market, PHEVs had a growth rate of 96.9% compared to the same period in 2023.

The "turnaround" of many companies

This reality has led many automakers around the world to shift their electric vehicle strategies. Some European automakers are once again pivoting to focus more on PHEVs. Specifically, Jaguar Land Rover is increasing PHEV production, Volvo is giving more "love and care" to PHEV models like the XC60, and BMW said it could push PHEVs more in sales.

In July, media reports said that Audi was adjusting its electrification strategy by expanding its PHEV lineup while predicting a delay in the transition to BEVs. This is also the general strategy of Volkswagen, the group that owns Audi. Similarly, General Motors (GM) was also recently informed that it would focus on developing PHEVs rather than BEVs.

The developments above show that Mr. Akio Toyoda, President of Toyota Corporation, does not seem to have made a wrong analysis. Mr. Toyoda had previously resigned as CEO of Toyota under pressure to criticize the company for not investing enough in BEVs.

After stepping down as CEO and remaining only as president, Toyoda maintained that there were ways to achieve the car emissions reduction target without necessarily focusing on BEVs immediately. He noted that BEVs would not eventually exceed 30% of global sales. He said PHEVs were a suitable path.

In fact, PHEVs and hybrids (HEVs, which cannot be plugged in) are increasingly playing an important role and significantly growing Toyota's business results, helping the company maintain its position as the world's largest automaker. According to The New York Times , in 2023, Toyota will sell 11.8 million vehicles, nearly 6 times the sales of Tesla (which only produces BEVs).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/noi-chien-o-to-dien-185240928214104568.htm