Others : Golf Cars

Product Profile

Golf cars have become popular on golf courses today because they save labor, let golfers transport their own clubs, lighten work for caddies, and encourage smoother, more enjoyable rounds. Various specifications are available based on market and consumer (golf clubs and resorts) needs. Options include passenger capacity (2 or 5 passengers), the power unit (gasoline engine or electric motor) and the operating system (electromagnetic guidance or manual).

Background of the Business

In 1972, Yamaha Motor began developing a land car for use at a resort owned and operated by Nippon Gakki (presently Yamaha Corporation), later segueing into the development of golf cars, which the Company released for the first time in 1975 with its YG292 model. Subsequently, as the business has grown, in addition to production at our factory in Japan, we commenced production at a factory in the United States in 1988 followed by Thailand in 2015, and have now produced more than one million golf cars in total.

Current Business and Market Conditions

In Japan, demand is highest for five-passenger models, which also carry caddies, and in the U.S., where caddies are often not used, demand is highest for t wo-passenger models. O ur ongoing efforts to provide customers with even greater value have included the introduction in 1996 of an electromagnetic guidance model that can operate autonomously using mounted sensors to trace electric cables buried underground or be operated by remote control, as well as a more environmentally friendly model with a quieter electric motor in 2000, and a new series in 2018 that is equipped with a driving support system that can remember routes.

Efforts toward Level-4 Autonomous Driving

With land cars becoming authorized for use on public roads in Japan in 2014 among other changes, interest in using Green Slow Mobility (GSM)^* among government ministries and municipalities has grown. Having brought to market a golf car capable of automated driving via electromagnetic guidance in 1996, Yamaha has long had the technical foundations for developing automated driving systems. We are proactively developing low-speed automated vehicles based on our Land Car models, and are currently conducting field tests toward making them a means of transportation that can contribute toward solving the transit issues regions around Japan face. We plan to provide vehicles capable of navigating public roads through level-4 autonomous driving in the future.

* Electric vehicles that travel under 20 km/h, seat four or more passengers and are permitted for use on public roads. Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism and Ministry of the Environment are promoting their proliferation as vehicles highly convenient for running tours and as a means of transportation for the elderly.

Production