√Top-secret Toyota HiLux hybrid plan revealed, with a shock twist

A Toyota HiLux hybrid is coming sooner than expected, but it’s only a ‘mild-hybrid’ system with minimal fuel savings – and insiders are concerned it could dent the brand’s image.

Australia’s top-selling vehicle – the Toyota HiLux ute – is poised to receive the option of hybrid power, however company insiders are concerned it could dent the brand’s image because it is an inferior “mild-hybrid” system with minimal fuel savings.

A Toyota HiLux diesel hybrid is coming sooner than expected with the current model – rather than waiting until 2025 for the next generation – top-secret plans unearthed by Drive have found.

However, Toyota Australia is going to extra-ordinary lengths to keep the rollout of a Toyota HiLux diesel hybrid under wraps because insiders are concerned it won’t deliver the same fuel savings as petrol-electric hybrid cars in the Toyota line-up.

Toyota has sold more than 315,000 petrol-electric hybrid cars in Australia over the past 20 years, in the process establishing the benchmark for the technology by halving fuel consumption and emissions.

Over the past two decades, rival car manufacturers have struggled to match Toyota hybrid technology that delivers real-world fuel savings of up to 50 per cent.

Testing by Drive has shown hybrid cars from Subaru and Mazda deliver negligible – if any – fuel economy savings, and China’s GWM Haval hybrid system only trims fuel consumption by about 25 per cent.

While Toyota is up to its fifth generation of petrol-electric hybrid technology, the system planned for the HiLux ute is a “mild-hybrid” power unit attached to the gearbox.

Toyota Australia insiders have told Drive the company is nervous about rolling out the mild-hybrid technology on the Toyota HiLux because it delivers only a marginal real-world benefit.

For now it is unclear whether Toyota Australia will use the hybrid name when describing the new “mild-hybrid” diesel option for the HiLux.

It is also unclear whether the Toyota HiLux “mild-hybrid” diesel will have enough electric grunt to move the vehicle from rest – a capability of all petrol-electric Toyota hybrids – or whether it will only provide an energy boost once the vehicle is already on the move.

The secret plans unearthed by Drive explain why Toyota Australia has been especially coy about the rollout of the new technology for the Toyota HiLux.

In media interviews late last year and earlier this year, Toyota Australia sales and marketing boss Sean Hanley hinted about “electrification” of the HiLux in the near future, but would not be drawn on any detail.

Earlier this month, Mr Hanley said the Toyota HiLux will have “some form” of electrification by the end of the decade, but the executive would not indicate whether it would be hybrid, hydrogen, or electric power.

“We are considering all of (types of electric technology) for HiLux. Obviously hybrid is the easy solution for us, because we’re already doing it on other cars, but we don’t discount other technologies that may be more suitable for that car,” said Mr Hanley.

“We have a number of really exciting things happening on HiLux. There are electrification prototypes we’re looking at.

“So whilst I wouldn’t confirm or deny anything on the current HiLux, I’ll never rule out any potential going forward of further electrification being accelerated. We’re always looking at ways to improve HiLux for our customers.”

Toyota has experimented with diesel hybrid technology since 2005 in trucks and buses. However, the Toyota HiLux is understood to be the first application of a new “mild-hybrid” diesel system.

Drive understands the technology could also be applied to other Toyota vehicles that use the HiLux ute’s 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo diesel, such as the Toyota HiAce van, Toyota Fortuner 4WD and Toyota Prado 4WD. However, such plans are yet to be confirmed.

As previously reported, there are currently no hybrid double-cab utes – in the same size category as the Toyota HiLux and Ford Ranger – on sale in Australia.

However the new Ford Ranger is expected to add the option of a plug-in hybrid petrol variant within the next two years. And Mitsubishi has also foreshadowed a plug-in hybrid variant of the next-generation Triton ute, due to be introduced from 2024.

The only electric ute on sale in Australia today is the LDV eT60 from China – but it has a price tag of close to $100,000.

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