Toyota bZ4X 2WD 2026 Review

As overhauls go the 2026 Toyota bZ4X is a darn good one. The 2WD we’re testing here drops a massive $10,010 in price to $55,990 plus on-road costs (+ORCs). The dual motor bZ4X AWD (all-wheel drive) decreases $6910 to $67,990 (+ORCs). You can knock a further $5000 off the 2WD and $7500 off the AWD if you finance through Toyota.

But this is not just a price cut. Toyota has added power, range and extra standard equipment to the line-up to make the bZ4X even more tempting.

First that pricing of the bZ4X 2WD. There’s no Toyota tax compared to other mid-sized electric SUVs. Most crucially, it now undercuts the cheapest Tesla Model Y ($58,900 +ORCs) as well as the Kia EV5 ($56,770 +ORCs), Zeekr 7X ($57,900 +ORCs) and many others.

It’s also right in the battle against the BYD Sealion 7 ($54,990 +ORCs) and XPeng G6 ($54,800 +ORCs), both of which we rate highly.

To be fair to Toyota, the launch pricing was competitive with Tesla back when the bZ4X launched in 2024. But it hung on to that pricing too long as others discounted.

Other improvements include a new 74.7kWh lithium-ion battery pack (up from 71.4kWh) and a retuned electric motor that's 15kW more powerful (now 165kW)driving the front wheels. Torque is unchanged at 266.3Nm.

The claimed range for the 2WD increases a massive 155km to 591km on the WLTP cycle (the Model Y RWD claims 466km), while claimed consumption drops from 16.89kWh/100km to 13.8kWh/100km.

Meanwhile, maximum AC charging doubles from 11kW to 22kW (via 32A three-phase power). As the bZ4X is powered by a 400v system, DC charging remains 150kW maximum.

Paddle shifters providing four different levels of regenerative braking have been added to the steering wheel, replacing a regen boost button.

Externally the 2WD model swaps to newly designed 18-inch alloy wheels (down from the old cars 20s) with two-tone aero covers, roof rails, puddle lamps, headlamp cleaners and gloss black wheel arches.

Inside, there’s a larger 14.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system (up from 12.3-inches), two front wireless smartphone chargers, heated steering wheel, ‘nanoeX’ cabin air ionisation, a powered tailgate with kick sensor, and a 1500W vehicle-to-load inverter in the luggage area which can be used to remotely power smaller appliances.

Safety equipment added to the 2WD alongside autonomous emergency braking and various forms of lane monitoring includes blind-spot monitoring with safe exit assist, rear cross-traffic alert, driver monitor camera, panoramic view monitor and an additional driver’s knee airbag, bringing the total number of airbags to eight. The cruise control can be adaptive or passive depending on how you want to set it.

The five star ANCAP rating based on 2022 protocols carries over.

Also carrying over are LED headlights, dual-zone climate control, heated front seats, an eight-way powered driver’s seat, six-speaker audio, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, AM/FM and DAB radio and embedded satellite-navigation.

The bZ4X comes with various forms of Toyota Connected Services and a Jetcharge freeby that offers a 7kW wall charger or a voucher worth 625kWh of public fast charging. There continues to be no spare tyre. Boo, hiss.

There are five colour options, of which only black doesn’t incur a $600 charge. One of them is our test car’s Saturn Blue, which drew plenty of compliments.

The bZ4X comes protected by a five-year/unlimited km warranty. The battery is covered for up to 10 years with annual checks.

Service intervals are 12 months/15,000km and there is capped price servicing that is charged at an affordable $180 per visit over the first five visits. Roadside assist is available, but you have to pay for it.

We won’t bang on about it too much more, but that price reduction for the 2026 bZ4X 2WD in concert with those other updates really is a game-changer. It allows the positive aspects of the bZ4X to shine brighter. And there are a bunch of them.

For a start, it drives very nicely. There’s no adaptive element to the independent suspension or different steering modes and it doesn’t need it.

The handling is nicely balanced between body control and ride comfort, the electric-assist steering is well-weighted and accurate and the whole dynamic equation melds together in a cogent, safe and secure way typical of Toyota’s TNGA, or e-TNGA in this case, architecture.

A shout-out to the sensible 18-inch tyres with plenty of absorbent tyre wall. Lovely. The LandCruiser-long 2850mm wheelbase helps with ride as well.

The dynamics are aligned with a powertrain that provides typically strong EV tip-in throttle response from a standstill and whirs along happily up to highway speed. It will then provide brisk overtaking power as well.

Toyota claims a 7.4 sec 0-100km/h time, 0.1s down from the old car’s 7.5. It feels faster than that.

And what of economy? Over the course of a three-week test period, the bZ4X 2WD’s average settled in at 14.9kWh/100km, which is above the claimed average but still very impressive in the real world.

That number was recorded over all sorts of different driving conditions and means you should safely get more than 400km from a ‘tank’ and even threaten 500km if you’re predominantly doing slow-speed urban work.

These are the sorts of numbers that make the bZ4X truly competitive against the obvious competition.

Power saving is aided by an economy mode (there’s no sport mode; doesn’t need it)  that dulls down throttle response and the new four-stage regen flaps that do make an obvious difference to friction. They can be used almost like orthodox gear changers in and out of corners.

Yes, you do start thinking about such sporty things on a winding road in a bZ4X. It’s just a nicely resolved drive.

Given the balance of the chassis and the response of the powertrain it’s hard to argue that you need to spend the extra money on the bZ4X AWD upgrade and its shorter range.

Maybe towing? The AWD will drag 1500kg and the 2WD only 750kg. But really, for that stuff, neither is great.

The bZ4X 2WD provides significant interior space in both the front and rear seats. The cloth trim is a speckled combination of light and dark that alleviates what is a predominantly gloomy – and sometimes hard-to-the-touch – overall presentation.

The front seats are large, soft and mildly supportive and set up for a long stay. The overall ambience is Japanese-built solid.

The rear seat is only compromised by the high flat-floor to fit the battery, otherwise it comes well equipped with dual map pockets, adjustable air-con vents, USB ports, door bins, a fold down armrest and dual cupholders and the backrest reclines.

The boot offers a modest 421 litres of space expanding substantially (no number given) with the rear seat split folded. But you do get enough space to fit a large mountain bike without having to take out the front wheel. There aren’t a lot of features back here apart from that inverter plug.

The new big screen provides excellent graphic quality. Seriously, camera views are a multi-generational leap over some of the fuzzy miniscule stuff Toyota’s lobbed at us in the past.

The shortcut menu in the screen is appreciated as well to help avoid drilling down into the layers of the screen. And hooray, physical audio and air-con controls.

Nor are its driver aids overly intrusive, unlike so many vehicles in this segment. You don’t have to put up with gearchanges in the touchscreen (hi Tesla) either.

While its interior and practicality are well done in most ways, there are a couple of issues for the 2026 Toyota bZ4X. There’s no frunk because that’s where the e-motor sits and no glovebox because a radiant heater takes up that space.

There are other storage opportunities (and three USB ports) up-front, including a bridge-type centre console with lower storage area, door bins and a large centre bin that actually flips open sideways (towards passenger or driver) rather than fore-aft. Curious but not objectionable.

Speaking of curious and objectionable the bZ4X has quite a strange seating position for the driver. It’s Peugeot-esque in the way the steering wheel rim blocks the far-set and tiny instrument cluster.

I like to sit low, which compounded the issue, and therefore had to have the small reach and rake adjustable steering wheel set lower than I’d like to see most of the cluster unimpeded.

In some markets Toyota has homologated the bZ4X with a yoke that looks like the control a fighter pilot might use. With its flat top it would work much better with the cluster than a round steering wheel. Or can the cluster and just go with a proper head up display.

Speaking of the steering wheel, it is the weirdest looking things with its downward sloping boss and pronounced ears. It’s one of the rare styling ventures from the conservative in this car.

Otherwise, apart from the beaky ‘hammerhead’ nose and headlights the bZ4X’s exterior shape (which stays unchanged in terms of measurements) is not memorable. I mistook both a Mazda CX-30 and a Chery C5 for a bZ4X at different times.

The usually quiet interior of the bZ4X is rudely awakened by coarse chip surfaces that created something of a din via the 225/60 Yokohama Advan rubber.

And thanks Toyota for the 240V charging cable, but could you actually add a few metres to its length please? Very frustrating to have to jam the car into a hedge to ensure the plug would reach

Also, please add a windscreen wiper to the rear window. It is quite hard to see out of in wet weather.

What a joy to drive a Toyota that doesn’t instantly annoy because it’s priced too greedily. Now, instead of having its positives hidden or undermined by its excessive price tag, the 2026 bZ4X 2WD’s fundamental goodness is allowed to shine.

This is a comfortable, enjoyable, efficient and practical vehicle that is a dead-set rival to the Tesla Model Y and the other fashionista in the segment.

Yep, it has a few issues like its strange seating position and smaller than average boot, but the work that’s been done on the pricing and powertrain fundamentally change its place in the pecking order. Not to forget the laudable addition of more safety gear too.

Essentially, the bZ4X 2WD represents the Toyota I remember from days before success went to its head. It’s a decent car at a decent price and highly recommended.

2026 Toyota bZ4X 2WD at a glance:
Price: $55,990 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Powertrain: Single permanent magnet synchronous motor
Output: 165kW/266.3Nm
Transmission: Single-speed reduction gear
Battery: 74.7kWh lithium-ion
Range: 591km (WLTP)
Energy consumption: 13.8kWh/100km (WLTP)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2022)

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