Toyota Kluger, LandCruiser EV? Toyota is Launching Two Seven-seat Electric SUVs

Toyota had already confirmed that a new, three-row electric SUV would be built in the USA – and has now announced the construction of another.

The Japanese giant is investing another $1.4 billion (AU$2.16 billion) in its Princeton, Indiana, factory, where it will build the new, unspecified three-row electric SUV (which is rumored to be a different vehicle than the one previously announced). .

The plant will also receive a battery pack assembly line that will use lithium-ion batteries from the US$13.9 billion (A$21.48 billion) Toyota Battery Manufacturing plant in North Carolina, which begins production in 2025 should.

The Indiana plant currently produces the Highlander, known here as the Kluger, as well as the associated Toyota Grand Highlander and Lexus TX crossovers and the Toyota Sienna people mover.

Toyota said in February it would invest $1.3 billion (A$2 billion) in its Georgetown, Kentucky, factory, which currently makes the Camry, to produce a new three-row electric SUV.

This facility will also use batteries sourced from the North Carolina plant.

Toyota says it has announced new investments totaling US$18.6 billion (A$28.75 billion) in electrification efforts at its US manufacturing operations since 2021.

The company hasn’t said when these two separate three-row SUVs will be introduced, nor what they will be called.

Automotive News reports that the Kentucky-built vehicle will enter production in 2026 and will be called the bZ5X.

According to Tim Hollander, president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing Indiana, it will not feature a skateboard design like many electric vehicles, where the battery becomes a structural element of the body.

This suggests that it may be an electric version of an existing combustion engine vehicle. Given that the Grand Highlander didn’t arrive until 2023 (along with the closely related Lexus TX), it seems the most likely candidate for electric power.

Another recent report from CarBuzz suggested that one of the upcoming SUVs will replace the current Kluger/Highlander, although this is still a top seller for the brand.

In the U.S. last year, it was the seventh best-selling vehicle in its popular segment, while here it was the fifth best-selling vehicle in the large SUV segment.

Last year, Toyota introduced a three-row electric SUV concept called the LandCruiser Se.

It is 5150 mm long, 1990 mm wide and 1705 mm high and has a wheelbase of 3050 mm.

Unlike other LandCruiser models, this one features a unibody architecture rather than body-on-frame architecture, suggesting a more road-oriented focus than more robust ‘cruisers’ such as the Prado.

In 2021, a separate large SUV was among the numerous electric concepts unveiled by the brand, which also included a seemingly closely related Lexus version.

As Toyota expands its bZ range of electric vehicles, only one – the bZ4X – is a global model.

The bZ3 sedan, as well as the bZ3X and bZ3C crossover models recently unveiled at the Beijing Motor Show, are expected to continue to be available exclusively in China.