This is an unusual collaboration between motorcycle manufacturers over a moped. Honda has announced that it will supply electric mopeds to Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. under an OEM contract.
Honda and Yamaha Motor announced that they have agreed to supply motorcycles based on Honda’s electric scooter “EM1e:” and “BENLYe:I” to Yamaha for the Japanese market on an OEM basis. The two companies will continue to consider concluding a contract.
Honda Chief Engineer Yusuke Muto
“Currently, the number of electric vehicles that can be produced is quite limited, so in that sense, we can expect an effect on the number of units produced by both companies combined.”
Regarding mopeds, due to stricter exhaust gas regulations, it will no longer be possible to produce new mopeds with the current engine performance from November next year.
New investments are needed to meet exhaust gas regulations, and it is difficult to make a profit on mopeds, which are popular due to their low price. As a result, Honda and Suzuki are considering ending production and are rushing to shift to electric vehicles.
Source: Japanese