JUST as Bob Dylan's move to an electric guitar astounded fans in the 1960s, Toyota has thrown a similar cat among the pigeons with the arrival of the bZ4X, the company's first mainstream full-electric vehicle.
With a strong history in hybrid drive technology, Toyota certainly has plenty of experience to draw on, giving the bZ4X a head start on other manufacturers looking to enter the EV sphere.
WITH one or two exceptions, there seems to be an agreement between manufacturers that EVs need to be 'space age', with a futuristic look, including the deletion of radiator grilles, and the bZ4X is no exception.
Toyota describes the design philosophy as 'hammerhead', continuing the bonnet line down into what would have been the grille area, while the slimmed-down LED headlights are moved outboard, emulating the shark it is named for.
It took a couple of days for the look to grow on me, but I gradually became accustomed to the overall look, aided no doubt by my general love of the angular over the rounded when it comes to vehicle design.
Toyota blended both design looks in the bZ4X, with vertical sides softened slightly by outward curving door bulges, although these are offset by aero-effect scalloping along the flanks, retaining an overall impression of muscularity.
Interestingly, Toyota has bucked the trend toward flush-mount door handles, despite the aero advantage, instead staying with rounded exterior handles that allow the hand to wrap around when opening the doors.
The external mirrors are a big step for Toyota, moving away from the traditional integrated housing into a more futuristic aero pod on a stalk, although, to be fair, it looks right on the
Toyota makes plenty out of the 'wheel at each corner' design, citing both ride and handling benefit, from having the longest possible wheelbase in a small/medium car, as well as maximising interior space by placing cabin fully within wheelbase, with no wheel arches intruding into the passenger space.
This also allows the track, or the width between each wheel, to be made as wide as possible, again to the benefit of handling and cabin space.
The exterior finish is a blend of painted panels and black moulded plastics for the front and rear guards, while this helps reduce the centre of gravity by placing as much weight as possible low in the car, it does draw attention, and leaves the car feeling a little 'unfinished'.
INSIDE, the bZ4X is comfortable, but somewhat sterile.
Everything works, as you would expect from the big T, but the car doesn't engage the driver.
You flip a switch, or turn a knob, and the airconditioning runs, or the stereo turns on, but it was a bit like being in a simulation, everything feels like it is one step removed from the occupants, I was almost expecting a HAL 9000-type response from the car.
I have noticed this in other 'first generation' Toyota cars, it is almost as though they are more interested in making it work, rather than making it work with the driver.
The seats are broad, a little flat, but not uncomfortable, just not welcoming, more like being a guest, instead of the owner.
Our AWD test vehicle got the upgraded Premium Softex material, a hard-wearing, fabric-style, material, with heating and cooling for the front seats, as well as a heated steering wheel.
The driver's seat gets 8-way power adjustment, where the passenger gets fore and aft, up and down and back rest adjustment only.
Other nice touches included an open space in the centre console, Toyota says it is good for a pair of shoes or a small bag, we found it handy to drop keys and odds and ends in there, but I am not really a bag kind of guy.
One thing Toyota does well is clear, simple, dash displays, and the bZ4X maintains the tradition, especially the huge display on top of the central stack, above the ventilation system outlets and controls.
A downside to this massive display, with big icons and plenty to catch the eye, is the temptation to reach over and make changes 'on the fly'.
Driver distraction is a genuine problem, and with a screen this big and visible, it becomes a real challenge for the driver to leave things alone.
Seriously, either make all the changes before you drive off, if you are on your own, or leave it to the co-driver, you can ask them to make a specific change, but don't try to do it yourself.
The steering column is adjustable for height and reach, I found I was setting it lower than normal, to get a clear view of the instrument panel.
Like the centre display it is a clear, easy to read display, but I found myself looking over the steering wheel, rather than through it, like I would normally.
Toyota says the instrument binnacle is shaped and placed to help the driver align the car in its lane, perhaps my viewpoints are different to most, but I wasn't using it in that way, I was watching further down the bonnet line.
One complaint raised by the co-driver in this regard was the sloping bonnet line falling away and out of sight, which she said made it harder to for her to pick where the front of the car was, especially when parking.
Another interesting feature of the bZ4X cabin was the use of fabric coverings on the dash and a lot of soft, padded, coverings on the door trims, they certainly took away a feeling of being surrounded by a sea of plastic and vinyl, and I think helped with in-cabin noise absorption.
While we don't have any hard data to back this up, fabric does have a tendency to soak up sound, where hard materials will tend to reflect it back into the cabin, plus, it did look nice as well.
An interesting point was the ride height of our test car, the AWD version, it offers 212mm of clearance, 30mm higher than the front-drive version's 182mm, but both cars have the same overall height of 1650mm, meaning the twin-motor version has 30mm less internal headroom than the single-motor front wheel drive.
In terms of build quality and fit and finish, the bZ4X is Toyota through and through, the company is a benchmark for putting motor vehicles together efficiently and accurately, and this new model is no exception.
IT IS said the proof is in the pudding, and up to this point, the bZ4X was good, without being outstanding, but fingers crossed, the driving experience would change all that.
Sadly, it didn't.
Don't get me wrong, it was good, it just didn't engage with me the way I had hoped, given Toyota's decades of experience at building EVs.
The best description I can offer was it was like Toyota had stepped back in time 20 years, to an era of soulless Taragos, Camrys and Corollas, rather than the fun and engaging cars modern Camrys, Corollas and Yaris' have evolved into.
You pushed the start button, everything lights up, there is a green light telling you it is good to go, but not much else happens, pretty much like every other EV we have tested.
Engage DRIVE by pushing and turning on the central rotary selector, release the Park Brake, and away you go, not surprises there.
Being the AWD version, our car had 80 kilowatt motors on each axke, for a total of 160kW and 337 Newton-metres of getaway power (Wacky Racers fans of the 1970s know what I mean).
Pushing a kerb weight of 2055kg - which is a little lighter than other similar size EVs - this was enough to launch the bZ4X to 100km/h in short order, not as quick as some, but certainly quicker than an equivalent ICE-powered vehicle.
There is a lack of feedback from the vehicle when driving that reinforces the simulation comparison, you are controlling it, but remotely, rather than being integrated into the experience.
You turn the steering wheel, the car goes around a corner, but without really telling you what is happening at street level.
One upside was the lack of body roll, the bZ4X sat flat on the road, but with only limited driver engagement, you didn't really enjoy it quite as much as could otherwise be expected.
The suspension worked well, there was good bump absorption, the layout is fairly conventional, with a McPherson Strut front and multi-link rear, again, it was competent, without being spectacular.
The bZ4X felt well planted on the road, the 235/50 tyres no doubt helping, providing a wide platform for the car to sit, while the 20" rims are almost minimum size for EVs, Toyota trying to get a generous rolling diameter for maximum efficiency.
Another benefit was isolating the cabin interior from outside road noise, one of my sons said this is one area he notices EVs sometimes suffer, without engine and driveline noises, he tends to notice outside sounds more, but the bZ4X was able to mute much of the external noise.
Braking was another area where I expected more, while the car certainly pulls up well, no mean feat given you are talking about over 2,000kg at 100km/h, but again, there was a feeling Toyota has disguised the full capability of the system.
The associated energy capture from the regeneration system in the brakes seemed less than expected, while there was no specific number on the amount generated, it did not cause significant increases in battery levels or 'distance to empty'.
This was particularly noteworthy, given Toyota's massive experience in hybrid and electric, stretching back more than 20 years, they have otherwise mastered the art of enery capture and regeneration, so I expected more from the bZ4X.
An odd choice was the deletion of the rear wiper from the tailgate, where pretty much every other hatch or wagon, not just Toyota, has a rear wiper, the bZ4X went without.
This caused water to sit in the sloping rear window, especially after rain when parked, while the window slope invoked memories of 1970s Ford Falcon coupes, with a restricted rear view from the internal mirror, making the door mirrors a vital part of seeing what is behind you.
More than anything, I expected more from Toyota, given the company has decades of electric vehicle and hybrid experience to draw from, across the full range of passenger cars, trucks and buses.
Would I own one? On balance, probably not. But not because of an aversion to electric vehicles, I like them, generally, but I am just not quite in love with this one.
There will be plenty who are, and as of June 30, Toyota had already sold over 550 of them nationally.
The pros are simple, it is, after all, a Toyota, which means it has the standard Toyota attributes of reliability and functionality.
But, on the down side, it is maybe just a little too much Toyota. I have been fortunate enough to drive a variety of EVs, including some outstanding models that really set you back on your heels.
Unfortunately, this is not one of them.
It starts, it stops, the doors open and close, it delivers as promised. It just doesn't make me want to go and buy one.
I thought the first full-electric Toyota would provide a greater driving experience, because of years of practice, the bZ4X feels like it is 'just enough', as though it has been pulled up short, almost as if Toyota is keeping something up their sleeves - maybe there is a GR version in the offing?
But, if you are in the market for an EV, then this should be on your shopping list, if only to understand the full range of options available in the market place.
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