Battery electric vehicles make up about 20 per cent of the auto market, despite the hullabaloo about relative newcomers like Tesla and even Dyson. Europe remains ahead of the U.S. and Japan in the move toward electric.
And so is it unfair to categorize the Japanese automakers as green laggards?
For one, the scarcity of certain components like lithium could drive up the prices of EVs, and consumers may stick with hybrids, says Matthias Schmidt, chief auto analyst at Schmidt Automotive Research.
"If this was 2025, and you asked that same question, I would say the Japanese OEMs have missed the boat. But seeing it's 2023, and the likes of Toyota are beginning their BEV roll-out, their timing is likely bang on schedule," he said.