Toyota Australia affirms its expectation to market approximately 1500 bZ4X electric SUVs this year and will not cut prices to stimulate sales like competitors such as Tesla and Ford have chosen to do.
Sean Hanley, Vice President for Sales, Marketing, and Franchise Operations at Toyota Australia, remarked, “No adjustments to prices, I’ll leave that to others – best of luck!”
He added, “We have no intention to reduce the price of that vehicle.”
“We don’t feel pressure regarding that vehicle. It is what it is. It signifies our entry into the EV market.”
“We anticipate it will play a role, a substantial one in the future. However, drawing on the learnings from our hybrid journey back in October 2001, we understand it requires time.”
“The advantage of having a multifaceted strategy is that we believe time is on our side to establish the vehicle, prove its worth in the market – which it’s accomplishing. Over time, we will progressively expand our EV sales in harmony with market demand.”
Toyota had earlier projected in August 2023 that they would deliver several thousand bZ4Xs in 2024 but subsequently revised their official target earlier this year to just 1500 units.
Since commencing deliveries in February 2024, Toyota has so far managed to sell 555 units, surpassing the sales of its Subaru Solterra sibling (278 sales).
Currently, the bZ4X is achieving an average of approximately 111 sales monthly, indicating that, at this pace, it may fall short of its sales target.
The pricing for bZ4X starts at $66,000 before on-road costs for the front-wheel-drive version and $74,900 before on-road expenses for the all-wheel-drive variant.
In addition to outright purchase, Toyota is offering the bZ4X through a subscription-style full-service lease via Toyota Finance.
Prior to the local pricing announcement for bZ4X, Subaru had reduced prices for the related Solterra by up to $8000. The all-wheel-drive Solterra range initiation price is $69,990 before on-road costs.
Ford recently decreased prices for its competitor, the Mustang Mach-E, by a maximum of $8000 in May, following price cuts of up to $7000 announced before deliveries started last year.
The Tesla Model Y dominates this segment, not only being Australia’s top-selling electric SUV but also the best-selling electric vehicle overall. Tesla has slashed Model Y prices three times since March 2024.
The base rear-wheel-drive (RWD) version of the Model Y now starts at $55,900 before on-road expenses – a $5000 reduction from its previous update and a $9500 drop since the slightly revised SUV was introduced in April.
MORE: Everything about Toyota bZ4X
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