Next Toyota HiLux imagined

There’s a lot riding on the next-generation Toyota HiLux, which will bring a number of firsts for the ‘unbreakable’ ute, potentially including turbocharged and hybrid V6 petrol powertrains.

When it arrives here around 2024, the all-new ninth-generation ute – which will replace Australia’s most popular new vehicle for the past five years – will also debut an all-new look inspired by the hard-to-get Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series and this render from KDesign shows one possible design direction.

However, it’s unlikely the new HiLux’s front-end design will be an 80 per cent copy of the new LandCruiser’s, as suggested by this design, which features the same grille and headlights as the 300 Series plus a redesigned lower bumper.

According to one insider, the new HiLux design will likely be a blend of Toyota Tundra and LandCruiser optics.

“The HiLux facelift from 2020 had a significant input from the Australian styling team, aligning the design with the more American truck-like aesthetic,” said the source.

“Expect that to be the case going forward [with the new HiLux],” he added, noting that more Australian design input for the all-new HiLux was “not completely out of the question”.

As Toyota Australia’s best-selling model, there’s a lot riding on the new HiLux, which is set to be slightly larger and more capable both on- and off-road than the current model.

Riding a new ladder-frame platform adapted from the TNGA-F architecture that also underpins the new full-size Toyota Tundra pick-up and the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series, it will usher in improved levels of technology, safety, refinement and luxury.

Understandably at this early stage, Toyota is keeping technical details of the new ute close to its chest, but it’s understood the next HiLux will undergo significant testing and some engineering in Australia – a key market on this list of 140-plus countries in which it will again be sold.

Workhorse engines are set to include a replacement for the current 2.8-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel (150kW/500Nm), whose chequered past and middle-of-the-road performance will be put to bed.

It’s not yet clear what engine will replace it, but it’s likely to remain a four-cylinder and could form the basis of Toyota’s first diesel-electric hybrid powertrain.

Aldo doing duty in the Toyota Prado and Fortuner, the current 2.8 diesel was introduced in 2014, so by the time the next HiLux launches it will be 10 years old and well past its use-by date in terms of performance and efficiency.

Toyota is also considering a pair of V6 engines for top-spec models, including the same stump-pulling 3.3-litre twin-turbo diesel six (227kW/700Nm) that made its debut in the new LandCruiser.

That engine could be rolled out on the first Toyota GR HiLux and sources have told carsales the 3.5-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 (305kW/650Nm) available in the 300 Series in other markets can’t be ruled out either.

Toyota is also entertaining the idea of a hydrogen fuel-cell electric (FCEV) version of both the HiLux and LandCruiser, but neither is expected to emerge until at least late this decade.