Toyota bZ4X review

This is the bZ4X, Toyota’s first attempt at a pure electric vehicle, and mild irritant for fast typers. It’s a car that’s been co-developed between Toyota and Subaru, with Toyota doing most of the hardware. Subaru's sister car is the Solterra, but the Toyota prices begin lower because it offers front-wheel drive as well as four-wheel drive. The Subaru is 4WD, twin-motor only.

In basic terms this is yet another pure electric, five-seat, mid-sized SUV that sticks its pointy nose into one of the biggest market segments; you’re looking at stiff competition like the Skoda Enyaq, Kia EV6, Hyundai Ioniq 5, Renault Scenic, Tesla Model Y and Peugeot e-3008, not to mention the Audi Q4 e-tron and Ford Mustang Mach-E.

It's based on Toyota's eTNGA platform of manufacturer Meccano. It's the company's first serious adventure in electric after the half-hearted Lexus UX300e. The bZ bit stands for ‘beyond zero’. And yep, that includes hydrogen too.

It's been around for a while now. Any changes to speak of?

Someone's on the ball. Toyota has facelifted the bZ4X for 2026, giving the car a smoother, aero-friendly profile and a new headlight signature for an altogether sterner appearance. Kinda looks like RoboCop's just got a parking ticket.

It's also fiddled with the suspension to help lower noise levels inside (which gets a larger 14in touchscreen as standard) and slightly bigger batteries unlock some 40-ish miles of range.

Oh yeah, how much range can it manage exactly?

The entry-level, FWD-only bZ4X gets a 57.7kWh battery for 275 miles of range on paper, while the 73.1kWh model tops out at 352 miles WLTP.

The latter of those can be had either as a 221bhp single motor capable of 0-62mph in 7.4 seconds, or as a dual motor AWD packing 338bhp (!) that knocks 2.3s off that time. Strewth.

The smaller batteried car is far more sedate with a modest 168bhp.

Toyota employs permanent-magnet motors, which use rare-earth metals but if well designed are good for efficiency at low to medium speeds versus the all-coil motors preferred by some rivals.

What’s surprising?

Other than the hot hatch-troubling version? The looks, perhaps. It's really very striking styling, with lots of angles and funky plastic wheel-arches that add some visual drama to what is, after all, a fairly normal set of exterior dimensions.

There’s only so far you can go with the basic shape of a mid-sized SUV, but Toyota/Subaru have done a decent job of making it look at least a little bit different.

Of particular note is the fact that all the forward-facing sensors have been concealed away into the little black plastic moustache at the front; it’s neat and effective. After all, some cars look like they’ve run over a set of security cameras and got them stuck fast in their lower grilles.

Beyond that, few shocks. The bZ4X seems to be a bit of a box-ticker in terms of hitting all the right notes without hitting any high ones. The range is competitive, the space on offer generous but not startling, the performance adequate. It rides and steers with competence and precision. The interior is nice, and operates quickly and efficiently, although the touchscreen is far from perfect. There's loads of active-safety kit.

Million dollar question, how much is it?

Not a million dollars, thankfully. The entry car slips under £40k while the all singing, all dancing AWD version is £51k. That's about on par with its main rivals, so what it really comes down to is whether you like the Toyota the most.

Toyota's also thrown in a stupendous 1,000,000km (620,000 mile) battery warranty to calm any nervous nellies. They did learn something from making long-life batteries in all those Uber Priuses then.

There’s a lot to like about the bZ4X. It’s an extremely competent, well-built example of the breed that looks really quite striking. Not pretty, but purposeful.

It's decently roomy, and decent to drive, and goes a decent distance thanks to its impressive efficiency. But that's the thing: it's good, but in most ways not outstanding. The thing that might sway you is trust in Toyota to make a reliable, durable car, and to stand by it.

Otherwise, there's lots of talented competition that goes further, faster and with more aplomb than this. Hmm.