Toyota Will Soon Launch A Cheap Electric Car Based On The Corolla Design, But Only In China

JAKARTA - Toyota Motor Corp will launch an all-electric small sedan in China late next year, after turning to local partner BYD for key technology to finally make the ride affordable yet roomy, four sources told Reuters.

Two out of four people familiar with the matter describe the car as an electric holy grail for Toyota, which has struggled for years to produce a cost-competitive small EV in China but has not compromised on comfort.

The source said the breakthrough was mainly due to BYD's not-so-large lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery and its cheaper engineering know-how/ BYD itself is known as the company that made big changes for the Chinese company that developed its popular F3 sedan inspired by Toyota Corolla.

Little known outside China at the time, BYD, or “Build Your Dreams”, made headlines in 2008 when Warren Buffett bought their 10% stake and has since become one of the largest manufacturers of so-called new energy vehicles in the world. Even Blue Bird taxis in Indonesia use them as part of their electric taxi fleet.

Toyota's new EV later seems to be slightly bigger than the Corolla, the world's best-selling car of all time. One source said he thought of it as "a Corolla with a larger rear seat".

The car will be unveiled as a concept car at the Beijing auto show in April and will most likely launch as the second model in Toyota's new bZ series of electric cars, although it will only be on sale in China for now.

"The car was powered by BYD battery technology," one of the sources told Reuters. "This has helped us to more or less overcome the challenges we faced in delivering an affordable, small electric sedan with a roomy interior."

This class of car will be placed below premium EVs like the Tesla Model Y or Nio ES6 but above the ultra-cheap Hong Guang Mini EV, which started at just $4.500 and is now the best-selling electric vehicle in China.

Two of the four sources, who all declined to be named because they are not authorized to speak to the media, said the new Toyota would be priced competitively.

One of the sources said it is likely to sell for under 200.000 yuan (IDR 432 million), aiming to play in the segment of the Chinese market it currently dominates.

"We do not comment on future products," said a Toyota spokesman. "Toyota considers battery electric vehicles as one avenue to help us achieve carbon neutrality and is involved in the development of all kinds of electric vehicle solutions."