2024 Toyota HiLux and Prado: 48-volt system is 'not a hybrid'

The 48-volt system coming to the 2024 Toyota HiLux and 2024 Toyota Prado should not be called ‘mild-hybrid’, said Toyota Australia.

“Most of you have called it a mild-hybrid. We don’t,” said Toyota Australia vice president for sales and marketing, Sean Hanley.

Toyota Australia will refer to the battery-assist system in the HiLux and Prado as ‘48-Volt Technology’, not ‘mild-hybrid’, because the small electric motor does not directly power the vehicle.

This is in contrast to Toyota’s series-parallel-hybrid vehicles, including the popular RAV4, where the electric motor and internal-combustion engine can “propel the vehicle either together or independently”.

Other brands, such as Mazda and Subaru, refer to similar electrified technology in 24- or 48-volt form as a 'mild-hybrid', although some systems can power a vehicle at low speeds.

Toyota has confirmed the mild-hybrid system will not impact the 3500-kilogram braked towing capacity for the HiLux and Prado.

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The additional 48-volt battery underneath a Toyota HiLux rear seat

The addition of 48-volt technology is said to help improve drivability and reduce the engine’s noise, vibration and harshness.

“Having said that, the system really does hit the sweet spot by assisting the diesel engine. It can power the car’s steering pumps and fans and it supports the fuel-saving stop/start operation, keeping the electrics firing and handling the load of the climate control,” added Hanley.

“The system recharges while you’re driving, recovering and storing kinetic energy from braking and it facilitates smoother and quicker startup and take off once the brake pedal is released.”

Hanley said "three years of local development” was conducted on the 48-volt system to ensure it is “100 per cent suited to Australia’s harsh conditions and customer demands, dust, mud, water, heat, heavy towing, and the high power load drawn by accessories”.

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The updated 2024 Toyota HiLux is due in Australia in the first quarter of next year, while the all-new LandCruiser Prado will follow mid-year.

It will be standard for the HiLux SR5 and Rogue 4x4 dual-cab variants, optional for the SR 4x4 dual cab, and fitted across the new Prado line-up. Toyota has yet to confirm if the Fortuner off-road large SUV will receive its 48-volt system.

As previously announced, Toyota Australia plans to offer an electrified version of every model in its range by 2030 – including HiLux, LandCruiser and HiAce – but not GR performance cars.

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Earlier this year, Hanley said Toyota is also evaluating other forms of electrification for the HiLux, including full-electric and hydrogen.

"Well, there's hybrid. You know, plug-in hybrid, there's all sorts of variants. We've been looking at H2 (hydrogen) conversions, we're looking at [battery-electric vehicles], we're looking at everything. This is exactly what we're saying, that Toyota won't put all of its eggs in one basket," he said.

A series-parallel hybrid is likely for the next-generation HiLux, due around 2025.