Toyota is pressing forward with two new electric SUVs, and both will be built in America. The automaker recently told Reuters that it would build the upcoming three-row models at its facility in Kentucky, giving it a domestic production base as trade policies remain uncertain.
The new EVs will be based on the RAV4 and Land Cruiser, but both will ride on Toyota’s e-TNGA EV platform instead of sharing with their gas-powered counterparts. Toyota will kick off production next year, which will absorb the capacity left by the Lexus ES’ move back to Japan.
We don’t know much about either vehicle yet, other than the renderings Toyota shared back in 2023, which are almost certainly too radical to make it into production. The Land Cruiser SE seen then looked more like a sleek on-road-oriented vehicle rather than a beefy off-roader, so it will be interesting to see how Toyota configures the vehicles when they arrive. Given the options offered for other models, it wouldn’t be surprising to see both on- and off-road variants of both SUVs.
Toyota’s EV portfolio is expanding after a slow start. It recently updated the bZ4x, renaming it as the bZ, and a new bZ Woodland trim is due by 2026. We’ll also likely see an electric C-HR crossover at some point, following its introduction in other countries earlier this year.
[Images: Toyota]
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