[Aika Car Test Drive Original]
In recent years, Toyota in the Chinese market can be described as a day in the sky, where new cars will be popular. Looking at China, few joint venture brands can achieve "double high volume and price" without much effort like Toyota. On the one hand, sales are rising, and on the other hand, terminal prices are firm. However, North and South Toyota's performance in the field of pure electricity is sluggish, and it lacks truly competitive products. The Yize E-Jinqing and C-HR EV markets performed dismally, in stark contrast to TNGA fuel vehicles.
Seeing the rise of new forces and the collapse of German car companies, Toyota finally began to fight back. This year, Toyota plans to bring authentic Japanese materials to Chinese consumers , the bZ series of electric vehicles. This bZ series of appetizers is long overdue, but it is extremely exciting. Curious, I took the keys to the Toyota bZ4X.
For Toyota, the bZ series is undoubtedly an unconventional one. Manufacturers even wrote "breakthrough" in the model name: bZ means Beyond Zero, that is, "beyond zero emissions". According to the plan, the domestic bZ4X will be unveiled at the Beijing Auto Show in April this year and will be put on the market within the year. Before the car was domestically produced, we were invited by FAW Toyota to preemptively test drive the bZ4X overseas version. On the first four pages of the article, readers and friends will see the static experience and test drive experience of the bZ4X overseas version. At the end of the article, we will combine the information we currently have to talk about the domestic bZ4X.
Toyota bZ4X is based on the e-TNGA architecture, which is completely different from the former TNGA "oil to electricity". Earlier this year, we interpreted the technical features and development background of the Toyota bZ4X. Readers can click on the links below to view the original text.
In Toyota's discourse system, the bZ4X is a "C-High SUV", where the C corresponds to the compact version of the European standard. However, the all-electric platform brings a 2850mm wheelbase, blurring the class boundaries. According to the domestic grading convention, the bZ4X is classified as a medium-sized SUV, and the positioning (excluding the energy type) is somewhat similar to that of the Lingfang HARRIER.
In the exterior part, toyota bZ4X has innovation and inheritance, and has found a balance between tradition and future. For those consumers who don't want to be out of the ordinary, but are tired of seeing traditional SUVs, the bZ4X's crossover style is worth trying.
Appearance | Pure electric platform + cross-border design
The interior is clearly more innovative than the exterior. The Toyota bZ4X has moved away from the old-school interior layout in favor of a more technologically technical, futuristic design. In the center console area, the bZ4X uses a large area of fabric material, which is visually warm and highlights the concept of environmental protection. Somewhat regrettably, the One Motion Grip cockpit (steer-by-wire + special-shaped steering wheel) is still in the certification stage, and the introduction time has not yet been determined.
Some people say that Toyota pays attention to the essence of the car and does not like to "play with flowers". The bZ4X proves this with actions, many details are inconspicuous, but reflect the people-oriented product concept. For example, the bZ4X is equipped with both heat pump air conditioning and PTC components, which can quickly heat up the cabin in extremely cold environments. For some new power models, the priority of battery life and energy consumption is higher than that of temperature comfort, and the user experience is not ideal.
Interior | The alien steering wheel is absent
Toyota bZ4X is a sword to the mid-size SUV market, and its spatial performance has received a lot of attention. The e-TNGA architecture features a four-cornered wheel design with short front and rear overhangs and a correspondingly long wheelbase, which is undoubtedly good news for the ride space. According to official data, the distance between front/rear passengers (hips to hips) reaches 1000mm. From the actual experience, there is considerable room margin on the head and legs, and the seat comfort has reached a high level. Unfortunately, the rear seats have low knee points, and the cushion support is not perfect.
In terms of storage, the Toyota bZ4X performed as expected, but there are a few details that need attention. As mentioned earlier, the bZ4X does not have a glove box, which gives the co-pilot's knee space in exchange. As compensation, the bZ4X designed a storage compartment under the central platform. Compared to the competitors, the current storage space of the bZ4X is comparable. As Toyota, it has reason to do better.
The interior of the luggage compartment is highly satisfied, which is a great advantage in real use scenarios. The test drive vehicle uses air-out tires and is not equipped with spare tires. This frees up extra storage space under the trunk lid for items such as vehicle tools and household charging guns.
Space | Mid-size SUVs live up to their name
The overseas version of bZ4X only provides 71.4kWh battery packs, and the battery cell supplier is Panasonic. Under WLTC conditions, the bZ4X overseas version has a cruising range of 500km (front drive) and 460km (4WD). After domestic production, bZ4X will use the Ningde era battery, and the battery capacity and mileage have not been announced.
In the chassis part, the Toyota bZ4X feels familiar, and the overall performance is very balanced. Happily, the bZ4X takes the Toyota-style balance to new heights. For example, if the equilibrium used to be 80 points for comfort and 75 points for control, the current equilibrium is 85 points for control and 85 points for comfort. In everyday driving, the bZ4X provides a good sense of isolation and satisfactory vibration damping comfort. Shuttling through the traffic, the brisk steering response makes people's mouths slightly raised.
Driving | Familiarity outweighs unfamiliarity
With the advent of the bZ4X, Toyota has made a real move in the pure electric business. The e-TNGA architecture has reshaped the layout of the vehicle, the spatial layout is more reasonable, and the driving experience has been comprehensively improved. Referring to the performance of the overseas version, the domestic bZ4X is expected to enter the mainstream echelon of new energy and bid farewell to marginalized roles. At present, FAW Toyota is intensively planning the localization of the bZ4X. After domestic production, what are the changes of bZ4X? According to the information obtained at the event site, we conducted a brief combing.
What do we get towards electrification? Judging from the performance of bZ4X, the e-TNGA platform has great expectations. The mechanical quality is still balanced, but today's equilibrium is clearly in a higher range. Compared with the same level of fuel SUV, the bZ4X has a sense of superiority in driving quality. This sense of transgression stems not only from better tranquility, but also from the performance of the chassis. It should be said that bZ4X has made gratifying progress in both comfort and handling dimensions, and similar situations have also appeared in the Volkswagen ID series. Embracing pure electricity didn't seem as bad as the old guns thought.
Editor's note: The bZ4X is toyota first, followed by electric vehicles. In today's smart cockpit and driver assistance, Toyota still adheres to the original intention of building cars, and puts practicality and reliability in a priority position. It is not as fun as "Wei Xiaoli", nor does it have the violent power and sharp steering like Tesla, and it seems to be less exciting. Calm down and think about it, plain and down-to-earth is the top character of the family car. In my opinion, sublimating in the ordinary is more worthy of respect than playing with gimmicks. However, equilibrium is destined not to impress everyone. Although sake is fragrant, it is afraid of the depth of the alley. To quickly increase its visibility, bZ4X also has to arm itself with new toys. Don't worry, in-wire steering on the road.
Outlook | A must-read for bZ4X