Kia mulls EV plant in Thailand to take on Toyota and BYD with affordable electric cars
Can Kia challenge Toyota, which has dominated the market in Thailand, with affordable EVs? Chinese automakers like BYD are already stealing market share, but Kia is in talks over a new EV plant in Thailand that could help position itself as an early leader.
Affordable electric cars are coming
Kia has already revamped the brand as the industry transitions to electric with a new logo and design.
The Korean automaker is also seeing early success with its first three-row electric SUV, the EV9. Meanwhile, Kia has bigger (or, smaller and more affordable) plans.
Kia revealed a new EV lineup at its first EV Day in October. It confirmed that the EV5 electric SUV, a Volvo EX30 rival, will start at $35,000.
Two new concepts were unveiled at the event: the Kia EV3 and EV4. The EV3 is an electric crossover influenced that essentially shrinks the EV9 into a more compact and affordable package.
According to Kia, the EV4 is “an entirely new type of sedan.” Although its four doors suggest it is a sedan, the design stands as a symbol of innovation.
The new EVs are part of Kia’s plans to launch a wide-ranging EV lineup with prices from $30,000 to $80,000. Kia’s smaller EV5, EV4, and EV3 will be priced below $50,000 to promote widespread adoption of EVs.
Kia to take on Toyota, BYD with new EV plant in Thailand
Kia may bring these low-cost EVs to overseas markets like Thailand, where legacy automakers like Toyota have traditionally dominated sales.
According to two government sources (via Reuters), Kia is in talks to build an EV plant in Thailand to gain an early lead in the Southeast Asian nation.
The sources, who wished to remain anonymous, said the discussions were ongoing and incentive-based. “They have a serious proposal that they’ve come with,” one of the sources said. “The ball is in their court.”
Kia and Thailand’s Board of Investment (BOI) have yet to confirm. However, Thailand’s BOI said Kia was considering investing in the nation after media reports suggested the automaker moved in another direction.
Thailand is Asia’s largest car maker and exporter. The nation is seeing a surge in EV sales with hefty incentives, tax breaks, and other measures to promote domestic production. Thailand wants 30% of the vehicles built in the country to be electric by 2030.
Tesla is also in talks with Thailand over a new plant that could involve EV and battery production, according to an official earlier this week.
Although legacy automakers like Toyota and Honda have long dominated the market, Chinese automakers have committed to over $1.44 billion in EV investments.
BYD, the global EV leader, was Thailand’s best-selling electric car brand last year. Its Atto 3 electric SUV was the top-selling EV, with over 19,200 models handed over. The company’s first plant in the region is expected to begin production this year. Once up and running, BYD aims to produce 150,000 EVs a year.
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LiveWire, the electric motorcycle brand spun out of Harley-Davidson, has just announced its latest electric motorcycle model. The new LiveWire S2 Alpanista is built on the same platform as the brand’s last two models, leveraging the Arrow platform as a versatile foundation for several diverse bikes.
The Arrow platform first received its debut with the LiveWire S2 Del Mar, which was then followed by the S2 Mulholland.
LiveWire announced that a high-performance electric maxi-scooter would be produced on the Arrow platform, but not before the company rolled out the S2 Alpinista. “The Alpinista is LiveWire’s first sport standard,” explained the company, “equipped with 17” wheels and tires, blending the best of street, sport, and hyper-tourer characteristics.”
The recently unveiled S2 Alpinista is mechanically quite similar to the two previous models sharing the platform. The 10.5 kWh battery that serves as the main structure of the bike will offer a maximum range of 120 miles (193 km) per charge under city riding conditions. It can be recharged with a Level 2 charger from 20-80% in just 1 hour and 20 minutes.
The 433 lb (196 kg) bike can achieve a 0-60 mph (0-96 km/h) time of just 3.0 seconds, thanks to its powerful 63 kW (84 hp) motor. The S2 Alpinista can also reach an electronically limited top speed of 99 mph (159 km/h).
Priced at US $15,999 and already available at LiveWire dealerships in North America and Europe, the S2 Alpinista officially becomes the most affordable LiveWire electric motorcycle available to date, undercutting the $16,249 S2 Del Mar electric street tracker and the $16,499 Mulholland electric sport cruiser.
“Alpinista reimagines the S2 by combining the urban agility of a supermoto with the do-it-all nature of a touring bike, creating a practical and thrilling sport standard,” explained the brand.
The smaller 17″ wheels help reduce the seat height of the bike, and combined with the Dunlop Roadsmart IV tires, the street-optimized bike is ideal for “both daily commutes and spirited rides through winding roads.”
The S2 Alpinista comes with 6-axis IMU from Bosch providing cornering-enhanced antilock braking and cornering-enhanced traction control systems, in addition to four preset ride modes and two custom modes.
Now the third model launched on the Arrow platform, the S2 Alpanista underscores the versatility of LiveWire’s workhorse. The approach was intended to allow the e-motorcycle offshoot to quickly innovate with multiple styles of motorcycles all sharing key structural and drivetrain components. The move has largely been seen as an engineering success, with three models hitting the road in under three years. However, sales have yet to reach targets set by LiveWire as the more premium electric motorcycle industry has experienced a rocky few years.
As a LiveWire S2 Del Mar owner myself, I can attest to both the performance and enjoyable experience of bikes built on the platform, though I do find myself in a somewhat smaller community than LiveWire had likely hoped for. With the backing of its powerful older brother H-D, which retains a controlling stake in the company, LiveWire has enjoyed the relative freedom to cruise for its first few years and focus on motorcycle development and rollouts, with profitability hopefully coming over the horizon in due time.
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