Foxconn unveils three new EVs, including a kei truck for Japan

Foxconn, the company best known for assembling iPhones, used its annual Hon Hai Tech Day (HHTD26) in Taipei on 30 October to show three new electric vehicles: two SUVs called the MODEL A+ and MODEL K+, and a small commercial truck called the MODEL K. With them, Foxconn now has 12 reference EVs in its catalogue.

Not a car brand, a car factory for hire

The models are reference designs, not cars that Foxconn plans to sell to drivers. The group pitches them to other carmakers through what it calls its contract design and manufacturing service (CDMS). A brand can take one of the platforms, change the styling, cabin, range and electronics, and sell the result under its own badge. Foxconn's EV strategy chief Jun Seki said the new models are meant to speed up "time-to-market, time-to-cost and time-to-technology" for customers.

The three new models

• MODEL A+: a premium SUV in the B segment, which Foxconn calls the fastest-growing SUV class. It uses in-wheel motors and a choice of electrical architectures. Foxconn says the cabin is designed for camping trips, as temporary living space and as a source of backup power, the idea behind bidirectional charging.
• MODEL K+: a cheaper lifestyle SUV for younger buyers, styled after Japan's "city pop" era of the 1970s and 1980s. It also uses in-wheel motors. Partners can change the exterior, interior, driving range and architecture.
• MODEL K: a compact kei truck, the tiny commercial vehicle class popular in Japan. Its design borrows from Foxconn's MODEL T electric bus. It is aimed at last-mile delivery and mobility services, with a lower, longer cargo bed and a promise of lower running and maintenance costs.

What Foxconn did not say

The press release has no prices, battery capacities, range figures or production dates for any of the three. It also does not name a carmaker that has signed up to build them. Foxconn's earlier designs have found partners: on the same stage, Honda R&D and Mitsubishi Electric Mobility spoke about their electromobility work with Foxconn, and a right-hand-drive MODEL B was on show as an example of a CDMS project. The exhibition also included Foxconn's battery work, from materials and cells to packs and battery management systems made in Taiwan.

Why it matters

Contract manufacturing has long shaped phones and laptops: many well-known brands do not build their own devices. Foxconn wants the same model to work for cars, especially for companies that want an EV in a niche, such as a kei truck for Japan, without paying for a full platform of their own. Whether that works will depend on signed customers, which so far are few. Battery chemistry will also decide how affordable these cars can be; our LFP vs NMC battery guide explains the trade-offs.