Demand for the Toyota bZ4X has well exceeded expectations in Thailand. Having opened the order books for the all-electric crossover shortly before its official launch on November 10, Toyota Motor Thailand had to stop accepting bookings just 24 hours later due to the large number of orders coming through.
According to the company, 1,064 pre-orders for the EV had been placed online within the first hour of the order books being opened, which was at 8pm on November 9, and this had swelled to 3,356 by 8pm the next day. The automaker said this was much higher than it had anticipated, and decided to cease taking pre-orders for the time being, the Bangkok Post reports.
Thailand, along with Indonesia, are the first ASEAN markets to introduce the bZ4X, with the brand’s e-TNGA-based electric vehicle retailing for 1.836 million baht (RM232,400) in the Kingdom. The price factors in the government’s financial incentives for EVs, which includes a 150,000 baht (RM18,900) subsidy for EVs with a battery size of over 30 kWh as well as lower customs duties.
The bZ4X comes with a five-year or 150,000 km vehicle warranty and an eight-year/160,000 km battery warranty as well as free labour for periodic maintenance and five years of roadside service. Aside from the retail route, the EV can also be obtained via the company’s Kinto car subscription service, with maintenance, consumables, insurance and road tax covered under its leasing programme.
A sole all-wheel drive variant is available for the market, and this features a 71.4-kWh lithium-ion battery, which offers the car a travel range of up to 411 km following the WLTP standard. The EV supports AC charging (Type 2 connection) at up to 6.6 kW as well as DC fast charging (CCS2 connection) at up to 150 kW, which allows the battery to get from zero to an 80% state of charge in just 30 minutes.
The battery provides the juice for a pair of electric motors, with each one rated at 109 PS (107 hp or 80 kW) for a total system output of 218 PS (215 hp or 160 kW) and 337 Nm of torque. This setup enables a 0-100 km/h time of 6.9 seconds as well as access to an X-Mode for slippery situations.
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