'Fulfillment of a 60-year dream': Türkiye rolls out first electric car TOGG

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan rolled out the country's first domestically-produced electric car as the country celebrated the 99th anniversary of Republic Day.

"TOGG is the pride of our 85 million citizens," Erdogan said at the opening ceremony of the TOGG Technology Campus, where the car will be mass-produced. 

The country is witnessing the "fulfillment of a 60-year dream," he continued.  

"I hope TOGG will take to roads in many countries around world as prestigious Turkish brand in upcoming period."

TOGG's 1.2 million-square-metre facility is located in the Gemlik district of city of Bursa and was built as a base for the company's engineering, strategy, and production.

When working at full capacity, the factory will produce 175,000 cars per year, employ 4,300 people directly and 20,000 indirectly, Erdogan said, adding that the vehicles are expected to hit the roads in the first quarter of 2023.

Turkiye's Automobile Joint Venture Group, or TOGG, introduced the country's first electric vehicle prototype in December 2019. It aims to produce one million vehicles in five different models by 2030.

The TOGG electric car has become a symbol of the country's high-tech advancement. 

 "We're not competing for the past or today's technology. We're heading towards the technology of the future by making Turkiye's indigenous car electrically powered," Erdogan said of TOGG on Friday, during his 'Century of Turkiye' speech on Friday. 

"With this project's design, battery and recharging stations, we're preparing our country for the future."

Technological breakthrough

TOGG will produce five different models – SUV, sedan, C-hatchback, B-SUV, and B-MPV – until 2030 and own their intellectual and industrial property rights.

In addition to engineering, design and production facilities, Europe's cleanest paint shop will also be located in the Gemlik Campus, where Turkish auto manufacturer TOGG’s electric car will be mass-produced.

The car was designed by Italy’s Pininfarina design company, which has created models for Ferrari and California-based electric carmaker Karma. 

TOGG became the first Turkish brand to receive an iF Design Award in 2021, one of the most prestigious design awards in the world, with its C-SUV model. 

Its new fleet of cars features next-generation lithium-ion batteries that can be charged to 80 percent in around 30 minutes and reach a range of up to 500 kilometres.

The track tests showed it will take the car about 7.6 seconds to speed up from zero to 100 km/h with 200 horsepower, and under 4.8 seconds with a 400-horsepower engine.

The vehicle will be constantly connected to the internet via 4G and 5G.

Türkiye is already among the top 20 carmakers in the world. Manufacturing makes up about 20 percent of its GDP, and with its first indigenously-made cars set to hit the road, the country is hoping to grow its industrial sector even more.

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