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Toyota is getting serious about electric cars.
The Japanese maker has been slow to start the rollout of EVs but now it is planning to have six electric vehicles on sale by next year, including a ute and potentially a 4WD.
The vehicles were confirmed in a teaser image by Toyota Europe during a presentation promoting the maker’s multi-pathway approach and its plan to have six electric cars on sale by 2026.
The two silhouettes could be the production version of the electric LandCruiser Se and EPU ute concepts shown at the 2023 Tokyo motor show.
At the unveiling back in 2023, Toyota Australia Head of Sales and Marketing Sean Hanley said the local division would put their hand up if they were available. If they make it to production, the chances of Australia getting them would be “extremely good”.
The apparent green lighting of the two electric models backs up Toyota global boss Koji Sato’s statement at the 2023 Tokyo motor show, when he said the company aimed to have a diverse product range that meet its diverse range of customers around the world.
Toyota has previously shown its intent to build an electric ute with its HiLux Revo BEV concept back in 2023.
The electric ute was brought to Australia for evaluation and was going to be part of a small taxi trial in Thailand.
Executive Vice President of Toyota Motor Asia Pras Ganesh might have let slip the electric ute news last year when he told Reuters the company will build a production version of the Revo BEV in Thailand by the end of 2025.
Thailand is a major hub for ute manufacturing with most of the utes sold in Australia built there.
The electric 4WD is less clear in the teaser image, but it loosely matches the look of the LandCruiser Se concept from the Tokyo motor show.
No details of the future vehicles were revealed.
The announcement of the future models came as Toyota announced the electric C-HR+ for Europe.
That model hasn’t been confirmed for Australia, but the likelihood of it making it here is strengthened by the federal government's New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES).
The NVES penalises carmakers for selling high-polluting vehicles, which they can offset with sales of electric vehicles.
When asked about the C-HR a Toyota Australia spokesperson said: “Toyota Australia is committed to our multi-pathway approach to decarbonisation, and we are always looking for ways to expand our electrification line-up, however, we have nothing to announce today.”
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