[prelude_prince]

Not experienced in the actual automobile manufacturing but I would have to guess there should be much less assembly in a EV. No transmission and engine. Battery pack is probably outsourced.

And Japan is always known to be more conservative and reserved, porn and hentai aside. I work with some Japanese companies and the stories you hear are actually very heartwarming. They are not all cut-throat and profits-first (usually), they actually think of their employees. One recent story I heard is how this young salesman has a bad leg, so his company actually got him a deskjob instead but with the same paygrade. And oldschool japanese employees still envision themselves as being with that one company till they retire.

True this is probably not best for the future or P&L-wise, but they usually take a more steady road.

Example 1: I'm sure you guys have heard of famous Unagi restaurants in Kyoto dating back to the 1700s, and still the same shop. One might comment why they never furthered their vision and expanded globally. Then on the other hand the polar opposite would be LeTV from China. Within 5 or 6 years of it's establishment this company somehow became the worlds #1 TV maker, only holding the spot for 1 or 2 years before it went boom.

Example 2: Those of you familiar with Shenzhen China, almost all of the taxis there are EVs now. Why? The government had their hand into it, basically forcing taxi drivers to scrap their old cars for EVs. Country policy goes first and they do not think of the little man. Every taxi driver I've met do not want this. The government does not subsidize them enough for the change and the lineups and hassles to charge their car is more time consuming than filling up gas.