imho, there's not much game to be behind in since EVs are still such an insignificant part of the global market and in reality, the "EV game" is literally in its infancy and has barely even started. That's why perspective is sooo important. Practically 100% of the EV story has yet to be written.

10 years from now, when Tesla is just a footnote (probably they'll give Tesla a nod for being a good PR person for EVs), they'll mark the RZ450e as the watershed product when Toyota took EVs into primetime and out of the kiddie pool that Tesla was dabbling in.

I'll give Tesla its due, it was the flawed prototype product that needed to be made before mainstream refinements were made by Toyota.

 

I wouldn't call EV adoption insignificant. California hit 9 percent, or about 59,000 EV's and the US totalled 131,240. In countries like Norway, Iceland, and Sweden the numbers are 74.8%, 45% and 32.2% respectively. It is still definitely in its infancy, but the fact that major car manufacture's like GM, Ford, Hyundai, VW etc are spending billions re-tooling and on battery technology is a sign that it's going to be an exploding industry probably in the next 5 years

 

That's my question. Toyota/Lexus already had the technology to at least put out one or two fully electric models. They gave up pretty quickly on the RAV4 EV. They probably could have made a fully electric version of the Prius, which is very popular in California. They were probably betting more on hydrogen as you can relatively fast fillup and long range, but the problem is hydrogen is highly explosive and they have to place the tank in a more protected area, like the middle of the car. In the Morai its placed in the area where the drivetrain would normally be so there is a hump on back floor area

 

Not to mention performance is a joke. A BEV has minimal refueling costs also. If you get recharging times down on long trips, it's the better technology solution.

 

reminder, this thread is not about tesla. any posts solely about tesla will be deleted.

 

182 hp LOL. I was driving behind one on my last trip to SoCal, and I was getting a free window wash every time they accelerated! It does make sense in a large Van, SUV or truck, as you can have large hydrogen tanks that are well protected. BEV is definitely a better option for smaller to mid-sized EV's

 

this thread is not about the hydrogen based mirai either.

 

Got it. No more T or H talk. I've already made my complaint about Toyota/Lexus being late to the game, I'm hoping by the time I get off the lease I'm about to get into, Toyota/Lexus will have EV's like the 450e ready for prime time, as I know the one thing they would bring is high quality to this market

 

Toyota/Lexus definitely have EV's on their mind with these concepts:

 

Because the compact RAV4 is the best selling Toyota, while the midsize RX is the best selling Lexus, the first proper e-TNGA Toyota and Lexii would be the bZ compact CUV and the RZ450e midsize SUV coupe.

 

 

As I read it, the bZ and RZ are based on the same exact platform, just with different motor options. Nevertheless, can't wait for the RZ intro, as it's supposed to be a good performer (at least vs the anemic bZ).

 

RAV4 & RX share the same platform, but RAV4 still compact while RX is midsize.
I’d expect the same of bZ and RZ450e too, and indeed, RZ dimensions are said to be indicative of midsize.
RAV4 is Toyota’s best seller, while RX is Lexus’s biggest seller.

 

While I do agree that cars can be the same platform and different size, I don't believe what you posted is correct.

I believe the 2013-2018 RAV4 was on the New MC Platform, while the 2019 RAV4 is TNGA-K.

The RX has been on the K Platform since something like 2010 and continues to be on that platform.

 

these pretty toyota/lexus concept pictures are all interesting but not that interesting to me at all until they're actually available.

what is the expected availability of either new soonest models?