Featured Toyota bZ4X Specifications Revealed

A design that:

• maintains an aerodynamic front
• uses empty space efficiently
• the battery is below the floor of the car

It isn't an obsession but efficient use of the space in a well designed EV. But if the lack of a frunk 'cranks your tractor' go for it:

Bob Wilson

 

A frunk allows for an efficient design that also has a large crumple zone for safety.

Mike

 

In what senses do you perceive this design to be more efficient?

What the animations here seem to show under the hood is … a motor? … in the center occupying about 1/3 of the under-hood space with seemingly-wasted, empty space to the right and left of it.

 

Ah. Best I can tell, their only purpose for the steer-by-wire system is to allow a variable ratio steering system for the yoke. While I agree that that’s better than the utterly-pointless, unsafe BS Tesla is pushing, my take is that a yoke like using a pocket knife to tighten a screw; it’s simply the wrong tool for the job!

I don’t see how the steering ratio … tripling? quadrupling? … as you rotate a yoke past 90 degrees can be workable either. Just give me back my freaking round wheel!

Tesla is just making up pointless solutions to systems that never had any problems in the first place! And now Toyota is coming up with a better solution that same pointless non-problem?

 

Ah.

 

Looks like the charger and inverter are there since the charging port is located on the front driver’s fender, which are probably air cooled. One of the reviews indicated there is a small auto-shuttered air intake below the nose cowling.

I’d give up the frunk too if it meant making it easier to maintain the car like adding coolant, or having a 2 gallon windshield cleaner tank (so I don’t have to keep refilling it). Seems to me also an ideal spot to store the charging cable so maybe Toyota and Subaru are making that a defined storage area.


iPad ? Pro

 

The hood looks to be about the same length as the RAV4 — pretty typical, not particularly short.

 

There is that if. I've positive comments about the ID.3's roomy front space, but how much of this is from not having a frunk or from having a longer wheelbase than the comparable ICE model for a bigger battery?

From profile picks, the bZ4X's hood looks as long as the Model Y's based on where the A-pillar meets the hood in relation to the wheel. It might be longer that the Ioniq's. I thought I could stuff a plastic bin into the open space under there of the Electric version. So is the bZ4X not having a frunk going to lead to a more efficient package?

Well, as one of the first new BEVs to the market, Tesla could have turned off buyers going with a design too different from what they were use too. Tesla was also aiming for an upscale market, where aesthetics is more important. The forward trunk was a clever use of what otherwise would have been empty space. From the photos, the bZ4X appears that it might be going for those aesthetics without giving a function to the space.

If the BEV makes use of the space, I don't see the lack of a frunk as a deal killer. In a hatchback or SUV, I would prefer a frunk though. It provides a secure trunk for protecting valuables from opportunistic thieves. It is also a place to store the car's everyday carry items, like emergency supplies, where they won't clutter the back or cabin, and likely won't be buried under a ton of cargo when you need them.

The Toyota yoke could be great in a sports car. Don't see the need in a SUV.

Perhaps they are, but this is supposedly the production model being shown off. having the jack and everything under there wouldn't be a bad use instead of a frunk with the mechanical equipment for FWD there.

For those that like using winter and summer blend washer fluid, 2 gallons could be an issue. Then think of the weight.

 

I don’t see in a sports car either, personally. A yoke in a car (other than possibly an F1 car (since it never takes sharp turns), is plain pointless, disfunctional design. I’m not even convinced that it looks any better, especially Tesla’s design.

 

It does make it easier to see all those screens

Tesla was probably thinking a yoke gives the cabin a more airy feeling. Which wouldn't be a bad thing for when, and if, self driving features are more advanced. I think Tesla is just too optimistic on that time frame.

 

Toyota has always had an obsession with the yoke steering wheel, particularly their Lexus vehicles. It’s in the LF-Z concept as well as many other Toy and Lexus concepts. I’m thinking this is Akio’s passion and the bZ4X is his Trojan horse to sneak this in a production car. That way they get to see how popular it really is and with the bZ4X’s top speed of 99mph and 7.7 second acceleration to 62 mph, they would lose only half of the customers who ordered it. I can see it being useful (ok useful is a strong word) for places with lots of hairpin turns where within a 75 degree twist you can get full cornering capability without removing your hands and without advanced police training. As I said before, I can see myself getting in quite a bit of trouble with this.


iPad ? Pro

 

Yes, Tesla does indeed make the claim that it makes it easier to see the binnacle behind the wheel. I don’t disagree, but lining everything up correctly is a concern we’ve been solving for easily for decades.

What Tesla should have done is turned the binnacle into a HUD.

I’m kinda annoyed at Tesla because they’re the only EV maker with the needed charging infrastructure and good efficiency, but their cockpits are idiotic nonsense.

They had it pretty much perfect on the original Model S, but they just keep getting weirder and weirder for no useful reason whatsoever.

Meanwhile nobody else makes a really good EV. The Mach E is getting there though. The Ionic 5, with its allegedly long-sustained super-fast recharge speeds, may be a good one.

 

Nice marketing! The bZ is designed to look like an electric plug...

 

ID.4 is not that efficient (97 MPGe)
Gen 2 Prius is an efficient design...but as a guess not nearly as safe as a Tesla

Mike

 

I ran across a video recently that unexpectedly mentioned efficiency detail... giving the impression of EPA estimates, like a publish timing slip before an embargo lift. It was just buried within spec compare information. The narrator even stated nothing official has been released from Toyota; nonetheless, these values caught my attention:

200 Miles AWD
230 Miles FWD

106 MPGe Highway
115 MPGe City

They could be initial test results providing ballpark expectations. We've seen that in the past. So, it wouldn't surprise me to find official values later rather close. They seem realistic. Somewhere around an efficiency of 3.1 mi/kWh would be reasonable for the size, weight, and shape.

 

Labeling Model Y as a SUV is quite a stretch. A quick glance at both Ford & GM webpages overwhelmingly confirm Tesla's offering looks nothing like any of them. It is really a very large hatchback, benefiting from the aerodynamics of the smoother shape. Of course, that lack of hard edges (for a more robust look) is exactly what appeals to the Ford & GM customer. In fact, if you compare Corolla Cross to the first Highlander Hybrid you are in for quite a surprise.

Know your audience... which begs the ultimate question of this discussion. Toyota is clearly targeting the legacy shopper with bZ4X. How will Tesla respond? There is nothing from Tesla in that category... something with a rugged appearance that is competitively priced. ID.4 from VW will be the obvious compare to bZ4X. In fact, that's why there is speculation that Toyota will undercut its price. The balance power & range would offset any supposed shortcoming.

In other words, growth beyond early-adopters requires a think reset. It is a very different market than what we all knew in the prior decade. Sedans are vanishing and the basics of range-anxiety have been addressed. This next stage has new challenges.

 

I think you meant to say "best efficiency" not "lowest efficiency."

Bob Wilson

ps. Feel free to nuke this post ... if only I could avoid such mistakes. <GRINS>