TOYOTA REVAMPS EV NAMING SCHEME

Alphanumeric vehicle names are de rigueur these days, particularly with luxury automakers, but Toyota is bucking this trend. Going forward, the Japanese automaker will reportedly begin switching to real names, ones from its extensive back catalog.

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What’s In A Name?

The Capital T has some undeniably cool vehicle names in its current model lineup: 4Runner, Land Cruiser, Supra, and Tundra are just a few that spring to mind. But there are some real misses, too. GR86 hardly rolls off the tongue, RAV4 sounds like some sort of computer processor, and bZ4X, well, is it a vehicle you can drive or the medical billing code for a knee replacement?

Indeed, Toyota’s first dedicated EV has one of the strangest names in the automotive world, and breaking things down does little to improve the situation. Implying zero emissions (technically, zero tailpipe emissions) “bZ stands for “beyond zero. The “4” represents the size of this battery-powered utility vehicle in Toyota parlance and the “X” implies this vehicle is a crossover SUV. Make sense?

KISA: Keep it Simple, Automakers

Toyota’s follow-up to the bZ4X has a much more conventional name. The all-electric Urban Cruiser was on display at the Brussels Motor Show in Belgium last week. This compact, battery-powered SUV is expected to go on sale late summer.

This Japanese automaker’s move to real names was confirmed by Toyota of Europe's director of marketing and product development, Andrea Carlucci. According to Autocar, the company rep said this change of strategy is due to “a clear request from Europe that was very much heard and followed by Japan.” As such, he added that the bZ4X will “remain a bit isolated” in Toyota’s sprawling model range. This strongly suggests the automaker will be using real names going forward.

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Out With The Old, In With The Urban Cruiser

Essentially a rebadged version of the Suzuki e Vitara, Toyota’s redesigned Urban Cruiser will ride atop a new dedicated electric vehicle platform, one that avoids having crossmembers on the floor. This shrewd engineering decision provides more space for both the battery pack and passengers.

The Urban Cruiser will be offered with two battery options, one with a capacity of 49 kilowatt-hours and another that clocks in at 61 kWh. Both packs will feature the lithium-iron phosphate chemistry, which tends to be more durable and cheaper, if slightly less energy-dense than the widely used nickel manganese cobalt chemistry. The former battery will be offered with front-wheel drive and 142 brake horsepower, the latter will be available with either front- or all-wheel drive. Not surprisingly, models with bigger batteries will have more horses under the hood, 172-horsepower in front-drive form, and 182 horses in variants with four driven wheels.

Along with its Suzuki sibling, the Urban Cruiser will be assembled in India. Autocar asked Carlucci whether these vehicles would ever be screwed together in Europe, and the company rep was somewhat noncommittal. He said, “the philosophy of Toyota is to sell where we produce,” though that’s as close as he would come to a confirmation.

2025-01-16T10:32:48Z