Suzuki – General Director talks about the motorcycles of the future

The director-general of Suzuki responsible for motorcycle sales, Akira Kyuji, confirmed to MCN that the Japanese company is on track to unveil its first two-wheeled electric vehicle next year, with more investments being directed towards alternative and sustainable fuels. “Unless something drastically changes in the future… the development plan is as we planned,” Kyuji told MCN during an exclusive interview.

“They are coming,” he added. “They will mainly be small commuting vehicles, like a 125, because the space for motorcycle and scooter batteries is very limited. “Even with the best quality battery, the range we can achieve is obviously very limited, which means we will start with users in urban commutes.”

In January 2023, Suzuki announced its first steps towards a greener future, stating that it would introduce its first electric motorcycle in 2024 and launch eight EV models by 2030. The company also revealed that it would invest €14.40 million in R&D during this period and an additional €15.500 million in capital expenditures across its operations sector, with €3.100 million to be used for battery-related investments. Despite these investments, the brand remains committed to internal combustion engines – believing that electric technology still has a long way to go to be viable for larger displacement models.

Kyuji explained: “Electric manufacturers like Harley-Davidson [now LiveWire], or Zero… their sales volumes are not that high. They are doing well, but the volume is very limited. This means that the price and specifications that customers want are not matching up at all at this time.” “I think it’s probably better to focus on alternative solutions like hydrogen, electric fuels, or even biofuels,” he added. “If there is a breakthrough in technology, battery capacity, price, and space, then we can move in that direction.”

“But unless there is a breakthrough in this direction, it is quite difficult, so we would probably give higher priority to alternative solutions,” he continued.

These alternative directions include hydrogen – a solution that has already been strongly criticized by some industry experts. Undeterred, Suzuki unveiled a prototype of the Burgman 400 this year that uses a 70 MPa hydrogen tank and a hydrogen engine.

“The Burgman we showed at the Japan Mobility Show works. But, once again, like a battery, the hydrogen we need for longer distances [means] we need more space,” added the Suzuki director. “Once again, we are battling the storage space issue. It is feasible, but there are still many technological advancements that we need.”

Source: https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/2023/december/suzuki-boss-discusses-future-of-motorcycling/