I’m still convinced that most car models will become electric at some point, but some might take longer than others. For example, there will be an electric Toyota Yaris, Toyota Europe product and marketing boss Andrea Carlucci told Autocar. But not right now.
“This is the idea, but now it is not something we talk about,” Carlucci said. “We have deliberately decided to start [our electric car sales] in the fastest-growing segments [C, D and E]. The right moment will arrive, but this is not quite now.”
That doesn’t mean an electric Yaris is too far off, though. We could see one as early as 2030. But Toyota has three new EVs coming by 2026, which are said to be a pickup truck, an SUV, and a “fastback,” and they should come first, per Autocar. When it does arrive, though, it should keep the Yaris name, rather than a jumble of letters and numbers, like “bZ4X.”
“There will come a time and a place,” said Toyota UK boss Scott Thompson. “For us, it is all about the right car, the right place at the right time, it really is. And at the moment, the expansion you’re seeing are the right segments for Europe for us right now.”
Toyota’s desire to start with bigger EVs is understandable. EV investment is expensive, and larger vehicles have higher profit margins. It’s also easier to stuff batteries into bigger vehicles with taller ride heights. This generation of Yaris is still fairly new, having debuted in 2020, so Toyota could stretch its life cycle out until it’s time for a new Yaris, which could then be electric.
How this affects North American markets is unknown. The U.S. doesn’t even get the regular Yaris, as our customers don’t buy enough supermini hatchbacks to make it worthwhile, so an electric version seems unlikely. But if the electric Yaris is successful elsewhere, it could spur Toyota to make an electric Corolla, which we’d likely get.
The real question isn’t when the electric Yaris will happen or which markets will get it, though. The question enthusiasts want to know is: Will there be an electric GR Yaris? And my sincere hope is that there will be. Because even if we don’t get the electric GR Yaris in North America, we might get an electric GR Corolla, just as the gas-powered GRolla followed the GR Yaris. And that’s something I think we can all agree would be awesome.
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