2024 Toyota bZ4X review

October 25, 2024 Matt Allan

We find out if recent updates can help Toyota’s family EV catch up with the competition

It’s no secret that Toyota isn’t totally sold on an all-electric future. The brand continues to refine and promote its hybrid powertrains and invest in making hydrogen a viable option.

But it is also electrifying its van fleet, working on a broad line-up of EV passenger models for 2026, and this year updated its bZ4X electric SUV to make it more competitive.

The bz4X was given a tough time when it launched, especially regarding its range and comfort, so the engineers have had a tinker and Toyota says it’s now more efficient, has a more predictable range and improved refinement.

But is that enough to help Toyota catch up with the big players in the segment such as Skoda, Volkswagen, Renault and Kia?

Design, interior and technology

Toyota isn’t generally known for outlandish-looking cars, which makes the bZ4X all the more surprising. Its exterior is a riot of angles and sharp edges, with massive black wheel arches that stand out boldly against most body colours. From some angles it’s sharp and futuristic, from others it’s a bit awkward and odd.

The interior also breaks from Toyota’s usual mould but it’s more successful than the exterior.

The first thing that strikes you from the driver’s seat is the low-set dash. Not only does this have an interesting fabric finish but there’s no traditional instrument cowl. Instead there’s an angled open channel that draws your eye to the digital instrument panel, almost like an old computer game. Not only does this give great visibility but even in bright light the instrument screen remains bright and clear.

Alongside that seven-inch display is a 12.3-inch central touchscreen. This is a massive improvement over older Toyota systems, with a sharp, responsive interface that features big intuitive controls and clear menus. Most of the car’s functions can be controlled from there but there are also still a lot of buttons for everything from drive modes and parking assist to heater controls. These are definitely welcome but the busy central console does prove how tricky it is to get the balance between cluttered button-fest and unfussy but unusable touchscreen hell.

If the cabin clutter is less than perfect, there’s no faulting the build quality. Like every Toyota, everything feels rock solid and built to last a lifetime. It’s just a shame the materials are an uninspiring mixture of light grey, dark grey and gloss black plastic.

Cabin space is a slightly mixed bag. The car feels surprisingly wide for the class and there’s impressive space in the back for passengers but that comes at the expense of legroom for those in the front. Taller drivers will find that the seat just doesn’t go back quite far enough, but those behind them will be perfectly happy. Behind the rear seats there’s a 452 litre boot – decent for the class and, says Toyota, big enough for two mountain bikes or three 82-litre suitcases.

Battery, motor and performance

There are two powertrain options in the bZ4X – an all-wheel drive twin motor and a front-drive, single motor one.

Both use the same 71.4kWh battery and, predictably, the single motor one offers the best range and efficiency. The updates mean the front-wheel-drive model has a WLTP range of up to 318 miles, compared with 286 miles for the two-motor version. Toyota claims energy consumption of 4.4m/kWh but our test drive returned 3.5m/kWh, which is in keeping with the real-world performance of most rivals.

Among the 2024 updates are improvements to the car’s charging speed thanks to better battery temperature management. The 150kW DC charging should allow a 10-80% refill in 32 minutes. That’s not as quick as many rivals but, in typical Toyota fashion, the bZ4X’s battery warranty trumps most alternatives, stretching to 10 years rather than the more usual seven or eight.

With 201bhp and 196lb ft of torque, the single-motor bZ4X is on a rough par with cars such as the basic ID.4 and Vauxhall Grandland, although the Ford Explorer packs more punch.

The Toyota’s performance has the usual initial pick-up you expect from an EV but runs out of puff at higher speeds. It’s perfectly adequate for a family SUV but if you want sportier performance you’ll need to look elsewhere.

Sporty driving isn’t what the bZ4X is about anyway. It grips keenly enough but a high seating position and some dubious body control means there’s a noticeable amount of lean in corners. That’s largely excused by a pretty smooth ride, although tyre noise is still an issue on some rough surfaces.

Price and specification

The bZ4X range starts at £42,860 for the Pure trim, which puts it halfway between a Grandland and an Explorer with roughly comparable powertrains. Jump up to the top-spec Vision model we drove and it’s a shade under £50,000.

That gets you a decent array of fancy features, such as 20-inch alloy wheels, cooled front seats, synthetic leather upholstery, energy-saving radiant foot heaters and rear parking sensors with auto-brake. However, the mid-spec Motion trim still packs heated seats and steering wheel, the 12.3-inch central screen and a powered tailgate, along with the same full suite of Toyota Safety Sense systems, which makes it an appealing middle ground.

Sensibly, every trim level comes with a heat pump as standard, as well as a reversing camera, dual-zone climate control and keyless entry.

Verdict

While Toyota isn’t totally committed to an all-EV future, its updates have improved the bZ4X and it now feels like more of a contender in the segment.

It’s not particularly exciting but it has the solid build quality and sensible user-friendly and well-equipped interior that you’d expect from Toyota. While handling isn’t its strong suit, the refinements to the powertrain means that it’s now more efficient too and able to compete with key rivals.

It might not be good enough to steal buyers away from Skoda or Kia but the familiar Toyota traits could well help convince brand loyalists to make the move from their hybrids to all-electric.