Three years since its establishment, Turkey’s Automobile Joint Venture Group (TOGG), a consortium developing Turkey’s first homegrown car, continues its activities at full speed.
The nation’s first domestically produced car project was announced May 15, 1961, and was called Devrim (Revolution).
It took a team of Turkish engineers only 129 days to plan, organize and manufacture four Devrim automobiles ready for public presentation on Oct. 29, 1961, during Republic Day celebrations in Ankara.
However, the project was shelved after inadequate gasoline caused the car to break down leading to negative views.
Seen as the country’s "second automobile revolution" and revived by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, TOGG was officially established on June 25, 2018.
A former executive at tech giant Bosch, Mehmet Gürcan Karakaş, was appointed TOGG’s chief executive officer on Sept. 1, 2018.
Erdoğan on Dec. 27, 2019, unveiled prototypes for a sport utility vehicle (SUV) and a sedan, both fully electric and C-segment models.
A consortium of five major companies, TOGG will produce five different models – an SUV, sedan, C-hatchback, B-SUV and B-MPV – through 2030.
Mass production of the SUV will begin in 2022, with the sedan to follow.
Construction of TOGG’s engineering, design and production facilities began on July 18, 2020. The facility, built on an area of 1.2 million square meters (12.9 million square feet) in the Gemlik district of northwestern Bursa province, is planned for completion in early 2022.
Around 4,300 staff will be employed within TOGG, which will include at least 30% female employees.
As for suppliers, TOGG has reached deals with 10 global corporations – 75% of them from Turkey and the remaining 25% from Europe and Asia.
TOGG named Sergio Rocha – a leading name in the auto industry who managed projects in the U.S., Europe and Asia – its chief operating officer in November 2019.
The former chief designer of global car brands such as Volkswagen and Mercedes, Murat Günak, was appointed as head of design at TOGG in April this year.
Talin Yıldız returned from France to Turkey to become chief marketing officer.
TOGG chose advanced lithium-ion battery technology company Farasis as its business partner for the battery.
The homegrown car will reach 80% charge in under 30 minutes with fast charging. It will have a range of between 300 to 500 kilometers (186-310 miles).
Acceleration from 0 to 100 kph (0 to 62 mph) will be in 7.6 seconds with 200 horsepower, and under 4.8 seconds with a 400 horsepower engine.
TOGG announced in April that its C-SUV model received the iF Design Award 2021, one of the most prestigious design awards in the world and a first for a Turkish brand.