Toyota will be unveiling 10 battery electric vehicle (BEV) models across the luxury, SUV, compact and sedan, commercial and MPV as well as sports segments by 2026, the manufacturer has announced at its 2023 financial results press briefing presentation this week.

Among these will be compact models for emerging markets – which could include Malaysia – as denoted in the middle row of the table during the speech by CEO Koji Sato. That there are no silhouettes in the compact/sedan segment as with the other product segments in the table suggests that the product for emerging markets is still very much in its early stages.

The 10-model rollout was initially revealed by its vice president Hiroki Nakajima in April, when it also announced that the manufacturer will create a special unit for the development of next-generation EVs.

These new models scheduled for launch from 2026 will collectively built on three new platforms, namely for the body and chassis, the electronics platform and the software platform, according to Sato’s address. These will go towards Toyota’s target of reaching a sales volume of 1.6 million BEVs by 2026.

The Japanese manufacturing giant also announced earlier this week that it will restructure its battery-electric vehicle business through abolishing its current zero-emissions vehicle (ZEV) outfit for the establishing of BEV Factory, a new, dedicated organisation that will expedite EV development and business growth.

Locally, several units of the bZ4X fully electric SUV has been deployed for testing on Malaysian roads prior to its official launch later this year, with several having been registered for this purpose.

Put on display at the UMW Toyota Motor office in Shah Alam, Selangor, the two examples of the bZ4X are front-wheel-drive units powered by a single 204 PS/266 Nm electric motor.

This is fed by a 71.4 kWh lithium-ion battery pack that offers up to 500 km of range according to the WLTP test cycle. Charging is either AC via a Type 2 connection up to 6.6 kW, or DC via a CCS2 connection up to 150 kW, the latter enabling a 0-80% charge in 30 minutes.