First look at the Suzuki e-Sky: a sub-£20,000 electric vehicle coming to the UK next year

Suzuki has unveiled its e-Sky, a new electric city car that will arrive in the UK next year as a rival to the Renault Twingo and Honda Super-N.

It is Suzuki’s first electric kei car, meaning it has been developed in accordance with the strict size limits of the Japanese class. This has resulted in a vertical, square shape, designed to maximize occupant space in a minimum footprint.

The car features few changes compared to the concept version presented at last year’s Tokyo Motor Show. The most notable visual revision is a change from the concept’s futuristic LED lighting to a more robust and conventional setup.

Technical details will remain under wraps until autumn but, in keeping with kei convention, it is likely to use a single front-mounted engine with a power output of 63 hp.

Japanese media have reported a range of 193 miles, which would put the e-Sky ahead of its Super-N rival (128 miles). However, the Super-N is not actually a kei car: it is based on the Honda N-One E, but modified to suit export markets such as the United Kingdom with a more powerful 94 HP engine and a wider, more aggressive body. It remains to be seen whether Suzuki will follow in Honda’s footsteps and modify the e-Sky with extra power to suit the preferences of UK buyers.

Regardless, this model will form a crucial part of the brand’s future plans in the UK. Suzuki UK boss David Kateley previously told Autocar that “the A-segment BEV is vitally important” and that he was “very excited about its prospects”.

To that end, pricing is expected to start below £20,000, around the same money as the combustion-engined Suzuki Swift supermini.

The e-Sky will arrive next spring and its sales will provide the Japanese brand with a useful boost towards its qualification for the UK’s zero-emission vehicle mandate.

It will be followed a year later by Suzuki’s third electric vehicle, which Kateley says “definitely won’t be an electric Swift.”