TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Hotai Motor, the distributor of Toyota and Lexus, expects around 40,000 new EV registrations next year in Taiwan, with the two brands aiming to capture a 10% share of the country’s EV market.
Wang Shih-hao (王世豪), director of Toyota’s sales division at Hotai Motor, said Taiwan’s EV market is continuing to grow. Between January and September, EV sales reached about 22,485 units, accounting for around 7.6% of total vehicle registrations, per CNA. As of September, more than 50 EV models are available in Taiwan, and total EV registrations for this year are projected to hit 32,000 units.
Hotai Motor on Monday held the launch event for the upgraded version of Toyota’s bZ4X EV. The car’s price was reduced from NT$1.67 million (US$52,000) for the previous model to NT$1.28 million for the new version. The company noted the bZ4X’s main competitors in Taiwan are Tesla’s Model Y and Luxgen’s n7.
The upgraded bZ4X can drive up to 743 kilometers on a single charge and can reach an 80% battery charge in approximately 30 minutes due to improvements to the vehicle’s motors and battery. The enhancements also increase the car’s power to about 224 horsepower and 198 pound-feet of torque and include upgraded brakes for improved stopping performance.
Inside the cabin, the bZ4X features a 14-inch touchscreen, two wireless phone chargers, four USB-C charging ports, and a new 110V power outlet for the rear seats.
Wang said the company aims to sell up to 500 units of the bZ4X between November and December, with a sales target of 4,000 units next year. On the first day of launch, the model had received 300 orders.
Sales of Toyota and Lexus electrified models, including hybrids and fully electric vehicles, account for about 37% of Hotai’s total vehicle sales. The company expects the bZ4X to help push the share of electrified models to more than half of total sales next year.
To promote vehicle sales in Taiwan, the Ministry of Finance announced the NT$50,000 tax reduction for trading in old cars will be extended until 2030. The ministry also plans to extend exemptions from vehicle license and commodity taxes for electric cars and electric scooters until 2030, pending approval by the Legislative Yuan.
In September, new car sales in Taiwan reached 32,227 units, up 9.4% from the previous month. Overall sales for the year are expected to reach 297,000 units, down 14.2% compared with the same period last year.
