New Toyota HiLux needs to go hybrid – executive

The Toyota HiLux risks falling foul of new emissions regulations unless it embraces some kind of electrification in next-generation form, Toyota Australia has conceded.

Toyota is well advanced on the development of a new Hilux, which is already being tested covertly in Australia, but a recent report suggests the ‘all-new’ model now not due until 2026 will simply be a rehash of the current iteration released in 2015, including a carryover four-cylinder diesel engine.

Unlike rivals such as the Isuzu D-Max, Ford Ranger and Mitsubishi Triton – which were given new ladder-frame platforms for their releases in 2020, 2022 and 2024, respectively – the next HiLux will reportedly stay on a revised version of its current architecture.

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The new HiLux had been expected to migrate to the newer TNGA-F platform that debuted in 2021 under the LandCruiser 300 Series, followed by its Lexus LX sister model and the full-sized Tundra pickup.

The IMV ladder-frame platform that underpins the existing HiLux debuted way back in 2004 and was heavily revised in 2015 when the current model launched.

The much newer TNGA-F platform also underpins the new Toyota Prado 250 Series and Lexus GX, as well as the Tacoma pickup, the front-end of which appears on the 2025 HiLux render you see here. The Tacoma has traditionally been the HiLux’s US sister model and was revealed in fourth-generation form in mid-2023.

Speaking with CarExpert this week, Toyota Australia vice-president of sales, marketing and franchise operations, Sean Hanley, agreed the new HiLux would need to move with the times.

“HiLux is such a popular nameplate, and every other week I read different stories. It’s all speculation at this stage,” Mr Hanley commented.

Asked whether the federal government’s new NVES emissions regulations would necessitate the release of a hybrid HiLux, Mr Hanley replied: “For sure, in the future.

“One hundred per cent, there will need to be some sort of electrified solution for all our cars.”

Indeed, Toyota has previously promised to release hybrid versions of all its models excluding the GR sports cars.

“Let me be very clear. We will not be dropping LandCruiser, we will not be dropping Prado, we will not be dropping HiLux,” said Mr Hanley.

“What we will be trying to do is offset any penalties we get with EVs, hybrids and any technologies we have on the horizon.”

However, even with the recent adoption of 48-volt mild-hybrid power, the current HiLux’s CO2 average of 189g/km (ADR combined) means it is only safeguarded for the first year of the NVES CO2 targets (2025), falling behind the proposed 2026 threshold of 180g/km for light commercial vehicles.

Despite being almost a decade old, the existing HiLux still managed to find 50,000 new homes in Australia last year, although it was outsold for the first time ever by the RAV4 in 2024.

Of course, after ending the HiLux’s seven-year reign as Australia’s most popular new vehicle in 2023, the Ford Ranger remained the nation’s best-seller in 2024.

Mr Hanley defended the current HiLux and insisted it would hold its own against a host of fresher competitors including the plug-in hybrid Ranger and BYD Shark 6, and the diesel-powered Kia Tasman, all of which arrive this year.

“It’s certainly getting towards the end of this model’s lifecycle. But it’s not long in the tooth: it’s still a remarkably good car and this model still sold over 50,000 examples in 2024,” Mr Hanley said of HiLux.

“It’s still a really important car in our line-up and we’ll continue to focus on it.

“It’s doing the job we expect and it will be very interesting to watch that ute segment with all these new entrants. If the HiLux can maintain 50,000-plus sales in a crowded market then I’d be pretty happy.”