Tata Motors has teased three new EVs that will be showcased at the upcoming Auto Expo 2023. Although the teaser reveals very little, the silhouette of the models seen in the video suggests that they will be electric versions of the Tiago hatchback, and Harrier and Safari SUVs. Along with this, Tata will also showcase the Curvv and Avinya electric concepts at the motor show.
- No technical details of Harrier and Safari EV are known currently
- Tata Tiago EV could see a new special edition
- Tata to also showcase Punch CNG
Electric Tata Harrier, Safari SUVs at Auto Expo 2023
Likely to debut in concept guise, an electric version of the Harrier and Safari SUVs certainly come across as a surprise. While Tata already has a slew of EVs up its sleeve, the Harrier and Safari EV will be the company’s largest EVs yet, and will therefore require larger batteries than its existing range of EVs.
Also see: Carmakers at Auto Expo 2023: Complete A-Z guide
No technical details are known currently, so it remains to be seen if it’s a direct ICE to electric conversion, or if it's based on Tata’s Gen 2 electric architecture that uses ICE platform but is heavily re-engineered for electrification. Tata Motors has previously confirmed that the Tiago EV was the last direct ICE-to-electric conversion (Gen 1 architecture), so this suggests that the Harrier and Safari EVs could indeed be based on the Gen 2 platform.
In that case, they will be heavily modified from their ICE counterparts to feature a flat floor with the deletion of the transmission tunnel. It will also see modifications to its fuel tank area, will be made lighter and more energy efficient. The teasers also reveal a silhouette that’s pretty identical to the ICE counterparts, although the production-spec models will likely come with more EV-specific design cues. The concepts could also preview the long-awaited facelifts on both SUVs.
Importantly, the Harrier and Safari EVs will be branded under Tata’s newly constituted ‘.EV’ brand. Still, a lot of this is speculation at the moment until the company official takes the wraps off the upcoming electric SUVs at the motor show.
Tata Tiago EV also teased
What’s also interesting is that Tata has once again teased the Tiago EV despite having completely revealed it a few months ago. Tata has even revealed prices for the Tiago EV, and is slated for deliveries commencing this month.
Tata could then showcase a special edition version of the Tiago EV, perhaps an NRG EV edition or even a Dark Edition that will mostly be limited to cosmetic updates. This, too, is quite speculative till Tata officially reveals the electric hatchback at the motor show.
Tata Punch CNG to be showcased
A CNG version of the Punch has long been in the works, and has also been spied testing several times on our roads. Tata will finally take this opportunity at the Auto Expo to officially introduce the Punch CNG. Like Tata’s existing iCNG range, the Punch will use the same 1.2-litre engine, likely producing 73hp and 95Nm. It will also likely be offered on the higher-spec trim which means it will be reasonably well equipped.
Apart from this, Tata will also have the Curvv and the Avinya Concepts on display for the public for the first time. The former is based on Gen 2 of the Nexon EV platform, while the latter is underpinned by a grounds-up EV skateboard architecture.
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