BZ4X review Part I- my decision process
I believe a review is due as I’m one the first outside of Toyota staff to see this 2026 car in Singapore and possibly the first one to purchase it so I guess you can surmise the conclusion of this review.
Firstly a little about my driving habits and preferences..
I mainly do frequent but short trips with one or two longer trips over the weekend.
We usually do one big trip to KL but but my mileage barely touches 10k annually.
The recent turn of events have taken the whole local car ownership experience and radically transformed our choices and also our ability to drive. A car is worthless less now with the reduction of the PARF. Previously you could try some car with nice features, then sell it when gremlins appear or repair cost escalate.
For those with large amounts of disposable income and are willing to pay and continue changing cars, the loss of PARF is simply a speed bump and inconsequential.
However for those who have watched how the local car scene has kept evolving over the past few years, it has been a trying time. Every year for the past four or five years policy changes have meant prices and the availability of different cars have kept changing.
Just three years ago you may have a typical totally internal combustion engine or ICE car, a year later it would have to be a hybrid with an additional component and complexity.
Then just less than five years ago electric vehicles or EVs have emerged and now they are the main sellers in the market. But it’s not just the engine or motor that has changed. Now cars often have dispensed with the typical grab handles that have been around for decades and many EV cars have flush handles. Some even require a motor to push the handle out and you can’t grab it, instead you can only reach in with your fingertips to pull the handles. Other cars use a push button to electronically open the doors. Very fancy and stylish but personally I feel it adds a certain layer of complexity that complicates things.
With the current times, one of the most popular search terms will be “what is the best car to renew COE”
In the past, you may choose based on features and what kind of fascia is presented.
Whilst some makes were chosen for their reliability but as times progressed, and just relying on plain hard plastics, which may last longer, don’t give the same satisfaction as soft materials and the dearth of modern features become more glaring and made these reliable yet seemingly primitive or retro designs less desirable.
Enter the modern Chinese automobile. Made with almost all the mod cons that you used to pay a premium for with more expensive conti makes and with materials that feel soft to the touch and nice bright interiors that deliver the same quality at a significantly lower price tag.
The interior of the modern car is a mile away from my decade old car. Soft touch surfaces abound with many of the new cars covered in leather or leatherette with foam padding underneath. Bright colors, literally bells and whistles surround you and work in concert with AI to create a cocoon of personality and preference.
However perhaps you are still what some might call a conservative person, maybe a boomer even? Do you still wear an analogue watch and prefer dials, buttons and switches to touchscreens and captive buttons ?
The piece de resistance is the central console and the prominent touchscreen that now dominates it. This is the hive of the car and some instances you can only control it with the screen or voice commands.
Or like Bruce Willis in Die Hard - “Timex in a digital age”
Maybe you are someone who likes stability and reliability but also wants to embrace the new technology, in a more transitional and progressive fashion? Or perhaps the typical Porsche Cayenne lookalike bubbly look is not your cup of tea?
Is there any way to get with the times but keep some of the old?
Enter the Toyota bz4x aka bz in USA. For 2026 it’s undergone a facelift and many under the surface improvements that go deeper than just the hammerhead front. It is as unChinese an EV as you can get. Even so it has the BYD sealion 7 firmly in its sights.
Internally it’s got new softer touch materials and a new touchscreen that’s basically lifted off the Lexus and higher end Toyotas such as the Alphard.
Beyond that, the most important improvement lies in the heart of the car. The battery is larger and so more efficient resulting in longer range and more power.
This isn’t a sports car but will propel you to 100 kph in 7.1 seconds. In addition Subaru has provided this car with its input that gives it a 210 mm ground clearance which gives it some ability to go off road and a wading depth of 5-600 mm. That’s enough to tackle those floods along B Timah Road and small streams with ease.
This car aims to shortens adoption to EV, with the interior modernized with many of those safety features and mod cons whilst still retaining key functionality and components that appeal to the same boomer generation.
So you have all the modern safety features including surround cameras and even an undercarriage view. Voice command and level two autonomous driving. For the boomer, there are proper old school door handles, temperature dials and volume knobs as well as buttons for window demisters and heaters. The cabin has materials which are softer than before but retain a certain firmness that may not be as appealing as those found in Chinese EV car. However most of these materials will likely last ten years or more. Others have taken apart the car and also examined the undercarriage and have shown that the important structures are well made and solid. Access to serviceable areas is not hard and you don’t need much maintenance for EVs anyway. The cabin is more dark and drab but the sunroof does help unless it’s really sunny then it will heat up fast. Things are made to last rather than impress. A case in point: the rear armrest cupholders are simple, built into the armrest, rather than popping up or out with any buttons and are integral to the armrest. This design might not impress but will last longer than the lifespan of the car. Similarly, the door and dash materials are softer than before, but are made of durable materials that aim to last a long time.
Forward and side visibility is good but it’s not as good rearward as the RAV or Subaru forester which is my gold standard. You can get very comfortable in the front seats and
switches plus screens are mostly sensibly placed apart from that instrument cluster which is a bit divisive. People of a certain body type or length will find it harder to see the whole screen so do try it. Also the rear bench floor is more raised like many EV cars, so try before you buy.
The use of leatherette won’t be to everyone’s taste but the materials seem built to last. And I feel that’s their main attraction- durability. You may like rotating screens, captive buttons and automatic doors, but what happens when all of these fail and requirement replacement? Will there be spares, or will the company be around, and how long will spares take to come?
Now the initial versions pre 2026 had some issues, even wheels falling off due to nuts and a range much less than expected. The interior is made to last rather than impress and won’t be as lux feeling as some of the Chinese competition. However most of the features you find in it’s rivals are here, but the texture and tactile feel might feel a little less lux than the Chinese rivals and there are no bonus features such as a fridge or massage chair.
With the 2026 model you can get a purported 478 km with the 73.1 kw battery and those 20” rims. This range has been reached and even exceeded by reviewers doing their independent tests. Forget that NEDC 746 km range - the EPA one of 514 km sounds more doable. That also means you can drive to KL on a single charge or drive more spiritedly and make one lunch stop cum recharge.
Coefficient of drag has been reduced to 0.27 and more efficient motors are used. All this improves range and keeps it in the middle but not outstanding.
Electricity charges are definitely lower than fuel costs and even lower if you can charge at home.
Will the buyers who have now become enamoured with the cabins of the new EV take to this model?
So is this car a rare thing? Actually no, outside of Singapore it is being used as a taxi , a police car in UK and in terms of sales, it’s the best selling EV in Japan and the top four in Scandinavia. In USA it’s also one of the top sellers. Even the pre improved version was actually well received by those who did demo it.
However here currently it sells for 214k which puts it right up against the best seller - BYD sealion 7.
The BYD is larger, with the all new cabin with very nice soft touch materials and all the mod cons you can desire. Also, the local version has no V2L, and there’s no charging cable supplied. The black lacquer wheel surrounds are a matter of taste. Matt or perhaps car coloured will be nicer. The OBU will block the right side dash speaker. No glove box is odd. I also wished it has a rear windscreen wiper. I wish they gave the 18” rims instead, and offer the V2L and maybe the JBL sound system.
There are also alternatives from other Chinese EV brands and also conti ones which means this late comer is no longer the prime option and now we have to consider if a reliability moniker and last repute is worth sinking your funds into.
Even in its own Toyota stable there’s the indomitable RAV 4, also new for 2026. In our context I did do up an excel file and taking into account the selling price plus the cost of maintenance and fuel, you’ll save anything from 20-40k with the bz4x.
So what else did I consider? The RAV 4 of course, the model of reliability and frugality. The new Subaru strong hybrid forester and even the Honda ZRV. The RAV was rugged and roomy but rather plain. The Subaru was actually better built and had nice plastic but the multimedia system was slower and repairs might be more tricky. Also the depreciation was higher with a much lower OMV. The Honda was the most conventional and lowest hip point. Ultimately the running costs of the bz was the lowest and will cost the least over the decade whilst retaining easy service and reliability. You get free service for ten years plus battery warranty for ten. Each service will also be faster and simpler. That’s important because the downtime is less. One more thing was that a hybrid has both ICE and battery EV technology so you have to take care of both components. But these three cars are chosen for the reliability and requiring the least amount of maintenance. Something important as the downtime is rather inconvenient. I had also thought of the BMW x1 and even Mercedes GLB but the overhanging concern was reliability.
So will there be hordes of buyers in Singapore? I don’t think it will be as ubiquitous as the Corolla but it will give a good account of itself if you are willing to give it a try. But it has to fight against the hordes of sleek, rounded Cayenne wannabe styled Chinese EVs and each one has pretty much the same set of features, some even have a fridge and massage seat. In terms of features, not too many cars can compete in this sense against the Chinese wave. The Japanese motoring industry has had a hard time, with their attempts to go EV not always successful, see Honda, Nissan and others, and the tariff situation not helping, but Toyota seems to have found a way to carve out a bridgehead for their first EV, albeit a revised version that takes into account the issues with the first iteration of this car. Other countries have taken well to this car, with over 150 000 sold worldwide.
Who might be keen ?
This car threads a line between appealing to those who want to embrace tech and EV but like a more traditional approach with a gentle transition. Buttons and hard touch steering controls help ease the transition. Plus, the brand does matter and in a situation where cars are called to last the decade it might be good to go with a big old brand.
As for the idea of EV, with a hard stop when the COE ends, you don’t worry about a twenty year cycle but Toyota actually offers a million km in Japan and Europe as a warranty. Other countries do not have this ten year deadline, but here it is a good place to reassess ownership and up to this mark, I believe this car will give you reliable motoring during this time.
Also for parents, the wide rear doors and also the minimal service will appeal. Right now there’s a full ten year warranty on the battery plus free service so that should help.
The Car Nut Guy had an apt description of the Toyota Brand: ‘Everyone needs an appliance’ - Toyota does not represent the coolest, but something you can rely on to do the job and do it well, so let’s hope this is another successful and reliable Toyota.
I owned the famed Corolla before, the last generation that was made in Japan, and it was reliable, capable and a pleasure to own. With this new car, the future ahead is going to be interesting, with the first EV I own, and many things to consider such as charging, bids and more which I hope to share more soon.
Comments
Post a Comment