“I just don’t think the Australian market wants an EV,” Australian boss of major car company slams EVs and NVES – but is he right?
Suzuki is being unfairly punished by the government’s new NVES emissions laws, and Australians are being forced into EVs as a result.
That’s the claim made by the general manager of Suzuki Queensland, which is responsible for distribution of the small Japanese brand’s models in the Sunshine State.
Speaking at the Queensland reveal of Suzuki’s new Fronx Hybrid small SUV, Paul Dillon said the Japanese brand – which currently has no EVs or plug-in hybrids in its Australian line-up – will be paying fines due to the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES), despite its range being made up of small, lightweight, and relatively low emissions vehicles.
The NVES regulation has been designed to encourage manufacturers to offer and sell a greater number of low emission vehicles like EVs and PHEVs. Brands face financial penalties if increasingly strict targets aren’t met.
Suzuki’s renowned for affordable, simple, and small-engined compact cars and SUVs. They’re typically quite fuel efficient and not very CO2 polluting due to their size – it has no performance model nor large, hyper-polluting big SUV or diesel ute in its range.
READ MORE: Details revealed on Suzuki’s first mass production EV, the Vitara SUV, due here in 2026.
READ MORE: Mild hybrid Fronx SUV to join Suzuki Australia’s electrified line-up.
“Most would consider a Suzuki to be a reasonably efficient car,” Dillon said. “But consider in 2026 there’ll be penalties on cars like the Fronx hybrid.” He suggested next year’s NVES penalties for each Fronx sold would be “north of $500.”
Lighter vehicles – a Suzuki trait – have stricter CO2 emissions targets before fines kick in. “Our CO2 target is lower because the car is lighter, so penalties are different,” said Dillon. “It seems counter to what the whole NVES is trying to achieve.
“We build a lighter car, it meets the headline CO2 target, but then we’ve got to go better because it’s lighter. If we added, say, 300kg to our car, we might be better off with an emissions target. It doesn’t make sense.”
Suzuki Queensland is a separate distributor to Suzuki Australia, making its own product decisions. Suzuki Australia has confirmed the brand’s first full EV – the eVitara – will be in its showrooms in 2026, but it’s not yet locked in for Queensland.
Dillon wouldn’t confirm the EV would definitely go on sale in Queensland, only that they’d ordered pilot vehicles. “It’s certainly our intention (to distribute the eVitara) assuming the numbers (i.e. price) from Japan stack up,” he said.
Muddying the waters, Suzuki Queensland won’t sell the incoming Vitara Hybrid, unlike Suzuki Australia. Suzuki Queensland has already phased out the S-Cross and Vitara SUVs, while Suzuki Australia continues with them for now.
It’d be fair to say Dillon – who’s been with Suzuki Queensland for 38 years – is something of an EV sceptic.
Discussing emissions and EVs, Dillon suggested: “It’s not a big concern for a lot of people in Australia, otherwise the number one selling car here wouldn’t be a 4×4 pickup.
“I just don’t think the Australian market wants an EV, but we’re being forced on it with NVES, so we haven’t got much choice, have we? Certainly if you go up to North Queensland, nobody’s much interested at all. And a lot of dealers we talk to won’t trade an electric car.”
“I think it’ll be a small market for EVs, and unfortunately I don’t think the government’s fully considered that, and I think there are issues with the NVES. They haven’t put enough thought into it.
“I don’t think it’s treating the (car) industry fairly, and how many people does the industry in Australia employ and has done so for a long period of time?”
So would Suzuki Queensland’s NVES fines be passed on to customers? “I can’t see any way around it,” Dillon said. “I can’t see anybody (other car brands) having a way around it.”
Beside NVES challenges, a greater threat to the budget end of the market – where Suzuki plays – is the influx of cheap Chinese vehicles.
“They’re undoubtedly a threat,” said Dillon, “and the legislation has almost leaned towards (helping) it.
“There’ll definitely be brands that don’t make it (survive in Australia), and there’ll be brands in China that won’t last as they’re cutting each other’s throats over there are the moment.”
Suzuki, like all the other Japanese brands, was slow off the mark with EVs vs Chinese and some of the Europeans. Now they’re crying foul…
Take responsibility folks.
This is exactly it. Toyota execs said similar things when they didn’t have an EV on offer. And while they fluffed around for years they kept promising some magic market winning new battery – we’re still waiting! And now the NVES is doing what it’s meant to do, to transition towards zero emission vehicles. If the Japanese automakers hadn’t had their heads in the sand for so long maybe they’d have a better offering. And Queenslanders would be crazy not to adopt EVs with their abundant sunshine they can charge their cars for free most of the time.
No worries. We’ll go elsewhere to replace our petrol vitara. Farewell.
What I don’t want is the worst of both worlds… PHEV. Small ICE engine, with all the same maintenance and repair issues and a small battery. Just give us usable full EV vehicles.
It really is the worst. Straight EVs are relatively simple, but Hybrids take that, and add an ICE, plus the complexity of integrating the two systems.
If only they were able to make cars that were compliant in other markets that have an even higher emission standard, then they could bring those here.
It’s a pity that Australia is Suzuki’s only car market left in the world.
Heard of India?
Lost the plot there pal. It’s not a matter of what the tiny car market in Australia wants, it’s what the WORLD needs to do to survive.
Short term greed got you into this mess, time to pay the piper.
Love it mate couldn’t say it any better
So eVs are suitable for Australian roads? Even a lot of newer ICE cars are not – the reason is not supplying a full sized spare tyre.
In cities, eVs are better suited but in the country there are lots of rougher roads with little or no phone signal to call for help, let alone get a tow truck out there. Yes a spare tyre takes up space & adds to the vehicle’s weight but that is far better than having to wait until someone comes along who might be able to assist. That time could be hours or far more & could have disastrous consequences!
Agree, at least have the room for a full size tyre so I can buy one if I want and safely carry it around.
spot on, many Aussies not thinking ahead about our trash road condition and poor mobile coverage
I only look at EVs when considering a new car
Yea Iam like you but with a twist I only look at new cars when I need one and that’s a diesel car. ESPECIALLY WHEN 90 percent of my driving is in the out back .That’s your choice this my choice.
What I see him actually saying is “We’re a state full of backwards redneck yokels who are frightened of technology”. Congratulations.
So AUSTRALIANS are backwards and rednecks .well petrol and diesel cars have come a long way with the emissions.need to research. For electric cars 🚗 not interested happy with my diesel engine. People’s choice not you or governments or anybody choice to tell AUSTRALIANS WHAT TO BUY.LOVE MY DIESEL CAR.
If you buy a petrol car you are actually damaging your own health and others. You’re making a decision that affects other people’s health. There are pollution issues with EVs but on a much smaller scale. So saying it is your choice isn’t the whole story, you are also affecting others.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/clinical/vehicle-related-air-pollution-may-cause-in-excess
No one’s forcing you to do anything mate. Quit the whining.
Sorry Suzuki Dillon we don’t want the same old thing you’ve been flogging us for the last 40 years, maybe stop complaining like all the other Japanese manufacturers who have been promising us for the last 15 years that they are working on 1000km / 5 min charge solid state batteries which are coming out in 3 years and say literally the same thing every year. You delayed, dug in your heals, lobbied against EVs and now you’ve missed the boat and China are actually delivering us the cheap, clean energy EVs that you promised 15 years ago. It’s hard to feel sorry for you after that behaviour, try innovating and actually giving us what we want not what is cheap for you to build.
I don’t get it, Australia has taken the moral high ground with government policy & we’re paying dearly for it. Frankly, the numbers don’t stack up. Just recently the US relaxed their Fuel Standard mandate (CAFE). Our population is dwarfed by China, India & Africa (including Nigeria) as a continent. The local LPG market has vaporised & flex fuel cars are unheard of. I’m not against EVs except we don’t even have a cottage industry like NZ. Since their adoption of the early Nissan Leaf & Toyota Prius they are ahead in terms of remanufacturing & overhauling LiPo batteries. There’s an existential crisis looming in Au when the EVs sold in the last 3 years or so will need major overhauls in say 12 years time. Or, what about accident damage now not to mention fire issues? Talk about jumping out of the frying pan into the fire! Well, at least it will be a clean burn & not much smoke. The world will be sticking with ICE transport in one form or another for the foreseeable future. *Now what’s with the low ANCAP rating for the Swift Hybrid? I had to recheck it was true. Come on Suzi execs get your act together. Or, do I need to go back to one of your motorbikes?
I would happily pay the $500 extra at time of purchase to avoid driving a yangwang ev that would last 4 years and 70,000km before it is unfit for purpose.