At the moment, it’s the Chinese who have the majority of the affordable electric vehicle market in the Philippines. There are the mini-evs such as Jetour Ice Cream, as well as subcompact models like the Dongfeng Nanobox and the recently launched BYD Seagull. Of course, let's not forget the Vietnamese with VinFast.
However, there could be competition from Japan soon. But that’s if Malaysian automaker Perodua makes that happen first. As reported by PaulTan.org, the company hinted at an electric vehicle that could be based on its Axia subcompact hatchback. The Perodua Axia also known as the Toyota Wigo or Agya and Daihatsu Ayla in other parts of Southeast Asia.
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Perodua is aiming for a sub-RM100k EV down the line in a bid to offer more electric car options for its customers. At current conversion rates, RM 100,000 is roughly P1,300,000. Perodua is would like to sell an EV at much lower than that.
Given that the Axia uses the Daihatsu DNGA platform, it does open up the possibility of a battery-powered Toyota Wigo. That said, it’s not the first time that idea has been floated around. Two years ago, Daihatsu rolled out the Ayla EV concept alongside an electric Lite Ace.
With that, Toyota, along with affiliates Daihatsu and Perodua, could be putting a more serious effort in the affordable EV market. That said, there are reports that Perodua might embark on the low-price EV journey alone, but that doesn’t completely eliminate the chances of any input from its partners.
Of course, the question now is if the market will have a positive reception to an electric subcompact hatchback. It’s difficult to say for now, but for as long as it offers good range and relatively short charging times, an electric Wigo could find some success in the market.
