Compact Toyota electric pickup project revealed: Is it US-bound?

Toyota is planning to check a fleet of all-electric pickups—not in pickup-obsessed America, or its house Japan, however in Thailand, the place variations of the Toyota HiLux pickup are constructed for a lot of areas of the world. 

Improvement of the electrical HiLux was finished in Thailand, however faucets into a long time of Toyota EV tech.

Referred to as the HiLux Revo BEV Idea, however removed from an idea car, this electrical HiLiux conversion has its motor on the rear wheels, with a DeDion rear axle and leaf springs—a structure that enables some higher journey and dealing with than a reside axle alone. The battery pack is tucked between the body rails. 

Toyota HiLux Revo BEV Idea car

Toyota HiLux Revo BEV Idea car

Output numbers and specs for the battery pack or propulsion system haven’t been launched. The truck reportedly has a spread of simply 124 to143 miles (200-230 km)—which could show simply nice for its meant metropolis and suburban fleet use. 

In a press launch, Sean Hanley, a high Toyota Australia government, known as it a “city-focused HiLux BEV,” and whereas it’s formally an idea car, he mentioned it “seems to be, feels, and drives like a manufacturing mannequin.”

Toyota HiLux Revo BEV Idea car

Prior to now a number of days, a couple of choose Australian shops had been allowed to drive the electrical truck and located it to be loads perky—although 0-60 mph acceleration is someplace within the 10-second vary—in addition to quiet in a approach different variations of this compact truck household seemingly aren’t. It is no Ludicrous-mode rocket, nevertheless it’s a modest, intriguing, tailpipe-emissions-free approach so as to add equipment or upfits and get work finished.

Nevertheless, this truck is sort of actually not U.S.-bound. The HiLux was associated to the U.S. Tacoma, however the two vans now not have any key dimensions in frequent and journey on completely different platforms. A 2024 Toyota Tacoma hybrid is on the best way as a part of a brand new 2024 Tacoma lineup to be constructed quickly in Mexico, with the hybrid getting i-Power Max badging and configured to be the workhorse of the lineup with robust functionality for towing and hauling. 

Toyota HiLux Revo BEV Idea car

Inside, the HiLux BEV seems to be fairly primary, however subs in a rotary shift selector like that within the BZ4X, together with an electrical parking brake and an EV-focused gauge cluster.

In accordance with Carsales, an Australian web site that offered a very good summation of this primary electrical truck, the HiLux BEV was dropped at Australia as a part of a supplier convention. The HiLux is the bestselling car in Australia, in keeping with Toyota.

Toyota HiLux Revo BEV Idea car

Whereas this won’t be Toyota’s U.S.-bound electric pickup, there will likely be one. In 2021, Toyota Motor Gross sales U.S.A. clearly laid out: “Toyota intends to deliver electrification to its pickup truck lineup within the close to future, together with hybrid and BEV powertrains.” 

Within the U.S., Toyota maintained, up till 2019 or later, that its dealerships had been merely not asking for EVs. And extra not too long ago, it’s mentioned that U.S.-bound Toyota EVs will aim for affordability above different priorities. 

That mentioned, it might be lacking one thing in not bringing an electrical pickup to the U.S. quickly, whether or not it takes the type of this primary HiLux EV or a extra succesful Tacoma EV. A November 2022 Autolist examine discovered that the Tacoma EV—a truck that doesn’t exist—was named the top electric pickup among Millennials in a cohort that included the Tesla Cybertruck, Rivian R1T, Ford F-150 Lightning and a number of other others.