Speaker 1: Today, we're taking a ride in the all new Toyota, be Z four X, not the automaker's first, fully electric crossover. That honor belongs to the first and then second generation RAV4, EV but this is the first one [00:00:30] that's gonna be available nationwide. Whereas the previous ones were only really available in select markets on the west coast. So we're taking it for a spin today and seeing how it stacks up against the
Speaker 1: Now for scale, the BZ four X is around the same size as Toyota's RAV4, though from nose detail, it's 3.7 inches longer and more interestingly it's wheel base is 6.3 inches longer. Now pushing [00:01:00] the wheels out to the corner, like make this look like a more squat and planted vehicle despite its roof height and ride height being around the same as its gasoline powered cousin. Now it's built on Toyota's new electric vehicle platform, but Toyota, hasn't made room under the hood for a front like you'd get on the Mustang Mae. You think if you're building electric vehicle from the ground up, you take advantage of that, but they didn't. Of course the elephant of the room is the aesthetic. Now it looks a little bit better in this dark color where those fender flares aren't emphasized [00:01:30] as much, but the hammerhead style front end and the equally wild style rear end are not gonna be everybody's cup of tea.
Speaker 1: Let's get back on the road. Now, before we hit the road, we've gotta talk about the interior here, starting with this very odd steering wheel and steering column combo. You've got about this much range of motion, but because of the positioning of the seven inch digital instrument cluster, you've gotta keep the wheel nice and low so that you can see over it rather than through it like you would with most other vehicles. And that leads [00:02:00] to what looks like, uh, very awkward looking seat position, particularly with the design of this wheel. Now in the middle, we've got either an eight inch or in this case, a 12.3 inch version of Toyota's infotainment system. We've seen this system previously in the new Tundra, except for here. We don't have a volume knob. We've got volume buttons and that's annoying me too. No small in further down, we've got our knob type shifter. You push in into the right for drive, click back to the left for reverse. And then there's [00:02:30] a button for park and flanking it. We've got our button for drive modes, which will come back to in a moment.
Speaker 1: Now Toyota, BZ four X is available with two different powertrain options. Today we're in the all-wheel drive version with a 72.8 kilo Lu hour battery pack. It's dual motors combined to output 214 horsepower and 248 pound feet of torque. And it can sprint from zero to 60 in around six and a half seconds. In this configuration, you're looking at around 228 miles of range for the lighter XLE model [00:03:00] or 222 miles for the more heavily equipped limited. Now the difference between the BZ four X and its mechanically identical twin, the Subaru Soldera is that the BZ four X is also available with front wheel drive where the Subaru is an all-wheel drive only affair here. You're looking at a 71 point kilowatt hour battery with a different battery chemistry from the all-wheel drive version. Now we'll get into the nitty gritty details of why that is in our full first drive review over on CNET, but its single motor is good for 201 [00:03:30] horsepower and 196 pound feet of torque. And it can still sprint to 60 and a respectable 7.1 seconds. In this configuration, you're looking at 252 miles for the XLE or 242 miles for limited. Now there's also a difference between the charging speeds for these two different battery packs because their chemistry is different. All wheel drive versions can charge it up to a hundred kilowats front wheel drive versions can go a little bit faster at 150 kilowats, but either way, you're looking at around an hour for a 20 to 80% charge at a DC [00:04:00] fast charging station.
Speaker 1: Now on paper, the performance in the rain, maybe aren't as impressive as some of the best in this class, like the Kia E B six or the Mustang Maki, but on the road, it's still a pretty competent feeling vehicle. You're not gonna feel like they're not enough grunt when you're just driving around on city streets. The ride is also a touch softer than a lot of the competition, which makes it, um, a little bit [00:04:30] more of a comfortable ride actually. So that's not exactly a bad thing for a commuter style vehicle. And we also shouldn't overlook the extra ground clearance that around eight inches it's in line with the likes of Subaru's Forester or Toyota's own RAV4 making this potentially a better pick for drivers who occasionally have to drive on dirt roads or in snow than the low slung electric crossover, as it competes with
Speaker 1: A further boosting the off-road advantage [00:05:00] when you have the all wheel drive version of this vehicle are the ex mode driving modes. These are gonna be borrowed from the Subaru Saulter this vehicle's mechanical twin, and they're gonna add bespoke modes for, uh, dirt and snow and deep snow and mud that are gonna give it a little bit more sure. Footedness when you go off of the pavement. And finally there is a one pedaled driving mode, not a true one pedal driving mode that brings it to a complete stop, but enough that you get maximum region. When you lift off of the pedal
Speaker 1: [00:05:30] Y'all new Toyota BZ four X starts at 43,215 bucks, including destination charges. Now, if you want all wheel drive, like we've got today, go ahead and add $2,000 to that bottom line. Now the top spec with all the bells and whistles, the limited all wheel drive is around the $50,000 mark. Now in that price range, it's not a bad deal. It's nicely equipped and the performance is pretty good. The problem is that it's got some pretty stiff competition from the ionic five, [00:06:00] the EV six and the Mustang ma all compact electric crossovers that I think I'd rather be driving than this.
