Toyota’s electric spark

Toyota joined the electric bandwagon with the launch of the bZ4X. On paper it’s not the catchiest of car names, but bZ stands for Beyond Zero, 4 for mid-size and X means crossover. Simples. We got our hands on one earlier this year to find out if it is an electric company car crossover challenger. Andrew Walker reports...

What is it?

Size-wise, the bZ4X is slightly longer and lower than a RAV4. On the road it competes with the Skoda Enyaq, VW ID4, Nissan Ariya, Ford Mustang Mach E and Hyundai IONIQ 5, all of which are a similar size. In addition, it’s been co-developed with Subaru taking advantage of Subaru’s 4×4 expertise, making it, claims Toyota, “more of an off-roader” than its rivals.

Outside

Toyota doesn’t do boring and the bZ4X features plenty of angular edges . We particularly liked the front end profile, the aggressive high wheel arches and the slim LED lights front and rear. The back end also highlights the car’s aerodynamics, with a rear roof spoiler that’s split with a small wing on each side. There’s no rear wiper though.

Inside

As with the exterior, the interior contains some of Toyota’s quirky signatures. For starters, there isn’t a glove box and the dash front features a sofa-like cloth finish. More interestingly, the TFT panel and information display are set back, so as with Peugeot’s i-Cockpit, you have to look over the steering wheel to see the screen. It’s also surrounded by what looks like a running machine set-up, with two grab handles, one on each side. It’s certainly different!

Our test car featured a 12.3″ touchscreen that uses the latest Toyota Smart Connect infotainment system, allowing access to connected Apps, the air-con and DAB. With four USBs, two up front, two in the rear, all passengers can connect their smart phones.

Toyota’s graphics and touch reaction speed is excellent and frankly, is light years ahead of where the company was just 12 months ago.

Below the touchscreen is the centre console. Here you will find the gear selector. Push down and twist right or left to engage. You’ll also find the electric handbrake, a covered phone charger as well as the main car function buttons, including those for Eco mode, the Camera and Brake Regeneration.

Overall, the quality of the materials used in the cabin are high.

Practicality bZ4X comes with a roomy, light and airy cabin. Up front, there’s good leg and head room, and rear passengers won’t complain either. The two front door pockets are generous, although the small ones in the rear aren’t that useful. Up front you get two ‘C’ USBs; one located on the lower dash and one within the covered phone charger, with two more in the rear. There are centre twin cup holders, a lift-up arm rest with space beneath and a hidden storage cubby under the gear selector in lieu of a glove box. It all means that the BZ4X offers plenty of storage solutions.

There’s also a generous 452-litre boot, 60/40 split rear seats and a lightweight luggage cover. The boot floor lifts up with room below to store two charging cables and it’s flat so for easy loading or unloading.

Model range

Three specs are available: Pure, Motion and Vision, with a choice of a 2WD or an AWD model. The two-wheel drive model is powered by a single 204PS motor, while the AWD versions have a motor on each axle to producing up to 218PS.

Battery and charging

The charging port is on the front left-hand side of the car. The range features a 71kWh battery on the 2WD version, with a WLTP range of up to 317 miles. This falls to 286 miles for AWD models. Both versions come with a 150kW DC on-board charger, which means fast charging to 80% in 30 minutes at a suitable charge point.

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All new 2023 models also have an onboard 11kWh on-board AC charger. Roadside charging is very expensive, so get yourself on a specialist EV electricity tariff, plug-in at home between 00.30 and 04.30 am for rates as low as 7.5p a kWh. We were adding 30kWh per night at a cost of £2.10 a pop.

On the road

The model on test was the AWD model, which features hill-descent control, low-speed crawl control and a 500mm wade depth. Despite a wet January week, however, we didn’t face anything more challenging other than a few flooded roads, which is most likely to be all your bZ4X has to tackle.

Start up and the bZ4X is quiet and smooth from the get-go. This is aided by thicker glass in the side windows and a wider gap between the external door mirrors and front three-quarter panel, which reduces wind noise.

The steering is well weighted and you don’t notice the car’s heavy battery, which is always a good thing.

Acceleration is very good, with a 0-62mph time of 6.9 seconds. It feels quicker with 337Nm’s of torque on offer. The bZ’s low centre of gravity, coupled with its excellent suspension set up, make for very enjoyable driving.

On the motorway the usual suite of ADAS aids, including autonomous driving and cruise control, encourage stress-free progress. We found that when travelling at 70mph in the wet the 18″ wheels and tyres did let some road noise in, otherwise it’s business as usual, with the large, heavy, bZ4X handling broken road surfaces with aplomb.

Real world range

As most readers will know, real world electric range and claimed can often be as far apart as John O’ Groats and Land’s End. On a cold January, that difference is usually amplified – and here the bZ4X is no different from its rivals.

When fully charged our test car, the 160kW Motion AWD, offered a range of 182 miles. We found that by turning the heating off, the car recalibrates this up to, in our case, 238 miles – a big difference. The problem is, of course, that turning off the climate is fine in April, but not so great in January – or at the height of summer.

A couple of 80-mile motorway round trips saw the battery range reduce by 100 miles each time, so from 182 to 82, about a 20% loss.

Charging up at night on our Rolec Smart Charger was cheap enough –30kWh per night cost just £2.10 – but, with only a 182-mile range unless the heating is off, any journeys of more than 150 miles would make me decidedly nervous.

Overall we achieved 2.8 miles a kWh, some way shy of the 4-4.4 miles claimed by Toyota. As ever, if you want to get decent range in any electric car, drive under 70mph in Eco mode, utilise the regeneration where offered and be selective with the climate control.

Pros

Very different inside and out from its competitors. It’s electric so only 2% BIK. Comfortable and practical. Quick and great fun to drive.

Cons

Our AWD model would set you back £52,110, so far better to lease. Real world range in winter is likely to be up to 20% lower than claimed. In torrential rain we missed having a rear wiper.

Conclusion

Forget about the bZ4X being electric, first and foremost it’s the best Toyota car yet! Toyota has always lagged behind for infotainment but the system on board the bZ4X is up there with the best. The ride is excellent with handling that makes you smile and four adults get loads of room to relax within the spacious cabin.

On the downside, as with all BEVs, real world range takes a hit in winter, and the AWD versions are expensive. Better to look at an entry level 2WD which loses the large infotainment screen and AWD capabilities, but at £44,929 for the Pure model, is the cheapest way into the range.

Is it a challenger? We think so, especially when you add in Toyota’s famed reliability.

CC&V VERDICT

This is a great first electric car from Toyota. On drive, ride and handling alone it gets our vote – though the range makes it imperative you think about the type of journeys you make