Erdogan receives Turkey’s first domestically produced electric car

The T10X is one of five models built by Turkish brand Togg

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine receive a Togg T10X, the country's first domestically-produced electric car, in Ankara. All photos: AFP

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine Erdogan (R) receive their Togg T10X, Turkey's first domestically-produced electric car, at the Presidential Complex in Ankara, on April 3, 2023. (Photo by Adem ALTAN / AFP)

Turkey's Industry and Technology Minister Mustafa Varank, right, joins the couple for a spin

The car costs between $50,200 and $55,600 for a range of 314 kilometres

Ms Erdogan poses with her new car

A longer range model, which has an estimated 520km between charges, is priced at around $64,000

Mr Erdogan says he expects to see the cars worldwide, not just in Turkey

Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan took delivery of his nation's first domestically produced electric vehicle on Tuesday.

A Togg model T10X was dropped off at the Presidential Palace in Ankara, as Mr Erdogan said: "we're starting to see Togg on the roads," from today.

He added he was expecting to see the cars worldwide, not just in Turkey.

He and wife Emine took the maroon compact SUV for a spin around the presidential complex after a small ceremony in which Mr Erdogan lauded Turkey's technological advancement.

Togg was founded in 2018 as a five-company joint venture. Its name is an acronym for Türkiye'nin Otomobili Girişim Grubu — Turkey's Automobile Joint Venture Group Inc. The group plans to produce 17,000 to 18,000 electric cars at its headquarters in Gemlik in Turkey's north-west.

The T10X, one of five models being produced by the brand, costs between $50,200 and $55,600 for a range of 314 kilometres. A longer range model, which has an estimated 520km between charges, is priced at around $64,000.

It offers a small degree of autonomous driving, including a rush hour mode that allows drivers to remove their hands from the wheel under 15km/h, electric car magazine Electrive reported.

An all-wheel drive version will be on the market by the end of October. Export to Europe should begin at the end of 2024.

The car can be taken from 20 per cent charge to 80 per cent charge in less than 28 minutes, Togg says.