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Suzuki officially withdrew from Grand Prix road racing at the end of the 2022 season. In a statement released at the time, company president Toshihiro Suzuki explained that eliminating the factory MotoGP team allowed the brand “to reallocate resources [to] other initiatives for sustainability.” Apparently, that shift toward sustainability includes producing “flying cars” with Japanese startup SkyDrive.
Suzuki initially partnered with SkyDrive in March 2022. The collaboration extended beyond investments, with the Hamamatsu house helping develop the startup’s technology. Suzuki will go one step further under the latest agreement, supporting the first production run of SkyDrive’s electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft.
Commonly referred to as “flying cars,” eVTOL vehicles primarily function as personal air taxis, operating at lower altitudes in urban and suburban areas. As such, many Urban Air Mobility (UAM) proponents position the battery-powered aircraft as quieter, cleaner, and cheaper alternatives to helicopters.
SkyDrive conducted the first manned flights of its SD-03 prototype in 2020. The firm’s SD-05 concept debuted less than two years later, adding passenger accommodations to the design. SkyDrive’s latest eVTOL not only updates the model’s technical specifications but also includes room for three occupants.
To bring the “flying car” to market, SkyDrive will begin production at Suzuki’s Shizuoka Prefecture factory in Spring 2024. Suzuki will assist with “securing human resources” and manufacturing preparations, though both entities continue to hammer out the official terms and conditions.
The startup hopes to hold the maiden flights of the three-seater at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan. Following that high-profile launch, SkyDrive will seek type certification — including Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) authorization in the United States — before moving on to mass production and deliveries.
Suzuki’s involvement may legitimize SkyDrive’s ambitious plans, but the announcement raises questions about Suzuki's direction. According to company President Toshihiro Suzuki, the project will “contribute to the realization of a world where people use the sky for their daily transportations.” In the United States, the FAA is currently working on new regulations for pilot certification and rules governing the new kinds of aircraft being developed. Given the costs and obstacles, it's difficult to imagine that those "daily transportations" will be anything more in the near future than a quieter and perhaps more efficient alternative to helicopters as air taxi services for the wealthy.
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