Durga PrabhuAs the electric vehicle (EV) market is seeing a steady and constant rise all over the over, companies are now trying their best to bring latest and most sustainable models into the market. The companies who were traditionally known for making cars running on fossil fuel are now trying their best to be a part of the electric vehicle (EV) market too.
Video Credits: Toyota Motor Corporation
Amongst the major companies who are now trying to make it to the electric vehicle (EV) is Toyota. The company has decided to introduce first SUV (Sport Utility Vehicle) which is built on a new EV platform. The company has now joined in this competition along with auto giant Volkswagen.
Toyota is considered as the world’s largest car maker. The company has decided to preview its ‘bZ4X’ which is an electric Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV). The car was previewed at the Shanghai Auto Show 2021 on its new ‘e-TNGA’ platform. The ‘bZ’ in ‘bZ4X’ stands for beyond zero or a car which gives out zero emissions, as per the company Toyota.
Tatsuo Yoshida, a Bloomberg Intelligence analyst said, “Toyota isn’t behind Volkswagen and others when it comes to EV development, it just hasn’t been as vocal as others. The ambitious announcement for new models was a surprise, but it was just Toyota finally revealing what it’s been working on for some time.”
Image Credits: auto.hindustantimes.com
This electric vehicle is a compact SUV. This model looks similar to the Rav-4 which is a popular model from Toyota. This vehicle is equipped with a system which can recharge the cars battery using solar power. This car is built on an entirely new platform and instead of traditional steering wheel; this car features a distinctive yoke.
Toyota plans on introducing 15 new electric vehicles by the year 2025. And by mid 2022 the company plans to produce ‘bZ4X’ models in Japan and China and sell it worldwide. According to Masahiko Maeda the chief technology officer at Toyota, the company is also planning to introduce seven new ‘bZ’ series globally.
Masahiko Maeda said, “In the years since we first introduced the Prius, we’ve not pushed forward with any single technology, instead preparing numerous options including fuel cell, hybrid, plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles.” The company is expected to increase the amount of electric vehicles that it will produce. Toyota is planning to introduce more 70 models of electric vehicles including hybrids by 2025 in the market.
The company said that its e-TNGA platform will prove to be extremely useful to speed up the deployment of its new electric vehicles. This platform will be able to reduce the development time and will also facilitate different models of electric vehicles to be developed simultaneously.
This platform can be fitted into a broad range of vehicle sizes. This will allow the most expensive parts of the electric vehicles such as the battery and the motor to be adjusted based on the model. However it will not be able to change certain key elements of the model.
The e-TNGA platform by Toyota is similar to the Volkswagen MEB car platform. The MEB car platform is used by Volkswagen and its subsidiaries in order to develop electric cars. With the help of this platform, Toyota will be able to develop electric vehicles of different sizes and with different prices. It will be helpful for the company to gain a younger consumer base.