A Japanese startup has developed a tiny electric car that is rapidly becoming a threat to vehicle manufacturing giant Toyota. Priced at just $7,000, the tiny electric vehicle from KG Motors, a startup based in Higashihiroshima, Japan, is quickly gaining enough popularity to rival electric offerings from Toyota. Dubbed the ‘Mibot,’ the tiny EV is a single-seat vehicle with a top speed of 37 miles per hour and a range of 62 miles.
While these specs may seem quite diminutive, most drivers don’t purchase tiny electric cars like the Mibot for their performance. Such vehicles typically thrive in urban regions where drivers have small daily commutes and access to a greater density of public charging stations. Asian countries in particular have really taken to tiny electric cars, partly due to the abundance of different tiny EV models in the Asian market. In Japan, the $7,000 Mibot has already been pre-sold to 3,300 drivers who can expect delivery by March 2027.
This surpasses the over 2,000 electric vehicles Toyota has sold in Japan, Bloomberg reports, a notable achievement from a company that hasn’t even begun delivering vehicles. According to KG Motors, the Mibot can easily traverse narrow roads, making short, everyday commutes manageable. The tiny electric car features a small trunk, air conditioning, and will receive over-the-air updates. At just half the price of the Nissan Sakura, the most popular electric car in Japan, the Mibot is now one of the cheapest electric vehicles in the country.
KG Motors says the tiny electric car will take up to 5 hours to charge using a conventional 100V outlet, eliminating the need for specialized charging equipment. While a 5-hour charging time is quite long, Mibot drivers don’t have to buy charging equipment and can simply leave their cars charging overnight.
Kazunari Kusunoki, the founder and CEO of KG Motors, says cars are becoming too large. He was encouraged to begin developing small electric cars after he saw an increasing number of large cars driving through the narrow streets of Japan.
Although Japan hasn’t been quick to embrace electric vehicles, there are more hybrid vehicles than internal combustion engine (ICE) cars on Japanese roads. 2023 data shows that hybrids accounted for 55% of new vehicle sales, while 35% were internal combustion engine (ICE) cars. Electric vehicle adoption was at just 2% of new vehicle sales compared to 8% in the United States and over 20% EV adoption in Europe and China.
Affordable and practical EVs like the Mibot could be key to jumpstarting electric vehicle adoption in Japan. Their low cost, ease of charging, and suitability for urban environments make them especially attractive in a country known for its dense cities and narrow streets.
Will the success of the Mibot spur other electric vehicle makers like Mullen Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: MULN) to, at some point in the future, also commercialize a tiny car? Target market dynamics for different brands vary, so we can only watch and wait.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Mullen Automotive Inc. (NASDAQ: MULN) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/MULN
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