Turkey is set to be the latest player in the realm of electric vehicles with the unveiling of SUV and sedan prototypes from the country’s Automobile Joint Venture Group (Togg, which stands for Türkiye’nin Otomobili Girisim Grubu). Togg is a consortium made of five industrial groups, comprising Anadolu Group, BMC, Kok Group, mobile phone operator Turkcell and Zorlu Holding, according to Electrek.
The first of two EV models to come from the state-supported enterprise is a compact SUV dubbed C-SUV, which is estimated to arrive in 2022. An investment of US$3.7 billion (RM15.2 billion) will go towards the production of around 175,000 electric vehicles annually, the report said. Dimensions of the SUV model have not been revealed, though Car and Driver estimates this to be around the size of a Mercedes-Benz GLC or BMW X3.
The EV models are to be offered with two powertrain options – the first is a base, 200 hp model with a single motor driving the rear wheels with 300 km of range, and the second is a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive setup with 400 hp and more than 500 km of battery range. The platform used is fully developed in-house by Togg engineers, the brand says, with intellectual property rights 100% owned by Togg.
According to Togg, the SUV will accommodate DC fast-charging at 150 kW for its liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery pack, which can reach 80% charge in 30 minutes. Safety is ensured by a ‘novel crash structure’, complemented by seven airbags as standard along with comprehensive active and passive safety features. Thus equipped, the electric SUV will be eligible for a five-star Euro NCAP rating when it is launched.
The 200 hp RWD base model C-SUV will accelerate from a standstill to 100 km/h in 7.6 seconds, while the 400 hp AWD dual-motor is estimated to do the same in 4.8 seconds. Suspension is comprised on MacPherson struts in front and integral-link independent suspension at the rear, with ventilated disc brakes on both axles.
Advanced driver assistance systems on the C-SUV will give the vehicle Level 2 autonomous driving capabilities, says Togg, and this will include a Slow Traffic Pilot function. The vehicle’s flexible architecture will enable seamless transitions to more advanced stages of autonomous driving of ‘Level 3 and beyond’, which will be applied via over-the-air technology.
The vehicle’s connected architecture will enable it to be permanently connected to the internet without external device support, and the EV will be in communication with ” all smart devices, homes, buildings, infrastructure including the electricity grid” and smart cities as a whole, says Togg.
The consortium behind the electric vehicles intends to make the EVs available for sale in Turkey, and it also plans to become an international brand. Production of the vehicles will be at a manufacturing hub in Bursa, Turkey, and the factory is expected to be complete next year with a total of 4,300 staff in its employment.
The sum invested for Togg’s electric vehicle programme could be spent over a period of 13 years, according to Electrek. President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan also plans to construct electric vehicle charging infrastrucure in the country with completion slated for 2022; in time for the release of the brand’s compact SUV, which will be the first electric model.
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5 seater Aruz..Lolz
This makes Turkey the 2nd Islamic country to have its own automotive corporation.
Anyways, this car looks gorgeous and very promising. The future is electric and it is nice to see Turkey jumping in with a luxurious looking electric car.
Meanwhile Malaysia, which has been making cars for 30+ years, are making cheap quality tin kosong cars like the Perodua Bezza and Proton Persona. Heaven for cheap plastic!
Malaysia is one of the 12 countries in the world that can fully design, develop, and manufacture its own cars. The fact that it makes such lousy hone grown cars is very sad.
You have to consider what TOGG is made up of, and that the nation of Turkey is considerably wealthier than Malaysia. TOGG supported by five billion-dollar companies, in a country with a PPP more than twice as ours. Just read the article and see how much they invested for just this one car. VW easily spends that much just to upgrade a factory to prepare for the next gen Golf. Meanwhile, I have never seen any of our car makers spend even 10% of that value. We just don’t have the cash.
In the automotive industry, money beats experience every time. Technology and expertise can be bought.
Right on spot
And no one notice the similarity of the design with Nissan X-Trail? Wheel arch, back window, the curve into the body along the doors, … basically the whole silhouette.
Take an X-trail, slap a XC90 grille. Job done.
story sounds so familiar…like vinfast…one sedan + one suv