Japan's small brands get big electrification assist

Smaller Japanese automakers have become more integrated into — and thus more reliant on — their larger partners in their home country, and nowhere is that more evident than in their product plans.

Subaru, for example, said this year that it would rely on Toyota as it plans to hybridize its lineup by the middle of the decade, using the larger automaker's pioneering work in the fuel-saving technology to underpin its transition with the boxer engine.

Joint projects help the smaller automakers defray development costs and allow them to expand their offerings using shared technology. A good example is Mazda's new CX-50 compact crossover as well as its upcoming CX-70 five-seater and three-row CX-90, which are expected to have optional hybrid powertrains.

Yet that reliance can carry unforeseen costs: Subaru's launch this year of its first electric vehicle, the Toyota-built Solterra, has been suspended before the first U.S. delivery after Toyota issued a recall and stop-sale for its sister vehicle, the 2023 Toyota bZ4X, over concerns that the wheels could come off.

In fact, the road to electrification has not been easy for any of the smaller Japanese automakers. Mitsubishi helped pioneer the EV market more than a decade ago with the now-discontinued i-MiEV minicar, but now it isn't expected to launch another EV in the U.S. until mid-decade. Meanwhile, Mazda's single EV entry, the MX-30, which it will sell in very limited numbers in California only, offers just 100 miles of range. The automaker's remaining EV plans remain murky.