Toyota launched its first mass-produced pure electric vehicle bz4x SUV in Japan on Thursday for rental use only The company said the strategy would help ease drivers' concerns about battery life and resale value, but surprised analysts. According to industry data, in Japan, Toyota's local market, hybrid electric vehicles are still far more popular than electric vehicles. Last year, electric vehicles accounted for only 1% of passenger car sales in Japan.
Nevertheless, Japan's electric vehicle market is still growing rapidly, and foreign electric vehicle brands, including Tesla, are becoming more and more common on the streets of cities such as Tokyo.
Toyota will lease the bz4x sport utility vehicle (SUV) at a price equivalent to $39000 in the first four years. The agreement also includes insurance, maintenance costs and battery warranty costs. Customers will bear additional costs if they cancel the agreement in the first 48 months.
Christopher Richter, an analyst at CLSA, said that although the Japanese market has a low acceptance of electric vehicles, this situation will change and Toyota may lose market share by focusing on leasing rather than buying.
"Anything you do that makes it more difficult to buy may not be a good thing," he said
Toyota said in December that it would invest 8 trillion yen ($62 billion) in electrification by 2030.
Toyota's goal is to lease 5000 bz4xs in this fiscal year, roughly the same number of electric vehicles Tesla sold in Japan last year as analysts estimated.
The company plans to start selling bz4x in other markets later this year, and bookings in some European countries have begun.