Toyota still doesn’t have many electric cars for sale, but it is already thinking about diversifying. The president of Toyota in Thailand confirmed the launch of an electric Hilux for 2025.
In 2022, during the celebrations of Toyota’s 60th anniversary in the country, they presented a prototype of the electric Hilux, still with a simple cabin to signal its vocation for work. Now, it looks like the prototype will actually advance to the production lines.
This week, Toyota Thailand’s Nariaki Yamashita confirmed to Reuters a production version of the electric pickup truck is coming. He also mentioned that before going into production, the electric Hilux will undergo testing in the tourist city of Pattaya in eastern Thailand. The city is expected to receive around a dozen pickup trucks, which will be used as public transport vehicles as a test.
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The brand’s announcement comes shortly after the Thai government announced that its main competitor, also Japanese Isuzu, will have an electric version of the D-MAX pickup truck in Thailand in 2025.
Although Thailand is a crucial market for the Hilux, it is not the only significant market. The pickup holds 30% of the European pickup truck segment and is also the leader among medium pickup trucks in Brazil.
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Emmanuel Beaune, head of the commercial vehicles division in Europe, recently revealed that he was consulted about the possibility of having an electric variant of the pickup truck on the market. In Brazil, despite people’s reluctance with electric models, the pickup would probably do well.
