Toyota has unveiled the bZ Compact SUV, a very appropriately named concept that looks to preview a possible entry into the hotly-contested compact electric SUV segment. The study that doesn’t look too far away from production aims to show what a zero-emissions vehicle represents from an environmental standpoint, delivered in a fun-to-drive, attractive package. Should it make it to production, it would likely sit below the bZ4X in the Japanese automaker’s lineup.
On the outside, Toyota managed to design
an aggressive and athletic exterior for the bZ Compact SUV while still staying
true to what we’ve come to expect from the all-electric models we’ve seen
from them before. Certain elements, like the hook-shaped headlights connected
by a full-width front light bar, are quite familiar, but most of the design is
fresh in the best way possible.
When it comes to EVs, you’re always going
to want to keep air resistance to a minimum to maximize range, so Toyota went
through the trouble of slickening the bZ Compact SUV to allow it to better cut
through the air. This was done through the use of a heavily raked greenhouse as
well as a narrowed cabin among other things, and while the exact effects of
these efforts is unknown, Toyota says it affords the SUV with a “low”
coefficient of drag.
To stay in line with the automaker’s
eco-friendly “Beyond Zero” mission, the concept’s cabin features components
made from plant-based and recyclable materials, namely the seats. The interior
as a whole also maintains that same sort of tweaked familiarity, with the
overall layout bearing a strong resemblance to the bZ4X. Taking center stage
are the curved infotainment screen and gauge cluster, which work alongside a
digital assistant named Yui to deliver information to occupants in the form of
lighting and audio cues that move around the cabin. There’s also a yoke
steering wheel, which may or not make it to production along with the rest of
the concept. That being said, the Lexus RZ, which rides on the same platform as
the bZ4X, offers a yoke as an option, so it might not be entirely off the
cards.
In all likelihood, this bZ Compact SUV
concept will spawn a production model at some point, seeing as it bears a very
strong resemblance to the existing bZ4X SUV and Chinese-market-only bZ3 sedan.
Even Toyota’s own executives are hinting at a production version of the
vehicle, with Toyota group vice president and general manager David Christ
saying how they’ve “only just begun to scratch the surface of the Beyond Zero
moniker,” and that “the bZ Concept showcases another possible vision of the
very near future with [their] battery electric vehicles.”
