Toyota president unveils EV double-cab ute

Toyota Motor Corporation (TMC) says it is planning to have 30 new battery electric vehicles (BEVs) in production by 2030 including passenger cars, SUVs, and commercial vehicles.

Most importantly for the Australian and New Zealand markets one of the first tranche of 16 BEVs unveiled by TMC president Akio Toyoda at the company’s Megaweb showroom in Tokyo was a futuristic-looking double cab EV ute.

It was one of the seven “lifestyle” models presented by Toyoda. In addition there were five future Toyota bZ (beyond Zero) vehicles which were the bZ4X, a small, a mid-size and a large SUV, as well as a mid-size sedan and four future Lexus EV models.  Toyoda also announced the group’s new BEV sales target of 3.5 million a year by 2030 – which is an increase of 75% on the previous annual sales projection of 2 million BEVs, issued in May this year.

Half of the investment funds will be devoted to research and development and capital expenditure for BEVs, while the other half will be dedicated to hybrid-electric (HEV), plug-in hybrid-electric (PHEV) and fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEV).

The total includes 2 trillion yen to accelerate the development of more-advanced and affordable batteries, an amount that is one-third higher than the 1.5 trillion yen announced earlier in September, says the manufacturer.

“We will not only add battery EV options to existing vehicle models but will also offer a full line-up of reasonably priced mass-production models, such as the bZ series, to meet the needs of all kinds of customers,” Toyoda says.

“We can position batteries and electric motors to bring more freedom to battery EVs. This freedom will allow us to be more attuned to our customers, such as by meeting the various needs of different regions, the various lifestyles of our customers, and, when it comes to commercial vehicles, everything from long-distance transport to last-mile delivery,” he says.

“Energy plays a critical role in achieving carbon neutrality and, at this stage, the energy situation varies greatly from region to region.

“That is exactly why Toyota is committed to providing a diversified range of carbon-neutral options to meet whatever might be the needs and situations in every country and region. It is not us but local markets and our customers who decide which options to choose.”