Towards the end of 2021, Toyota is taking the world by storm with a plethora of concept vehicles that showcase its electric future. One of them was called the Small SU EV, and it’s basically faded from memory to this day. Now, our spy photographers in Europe have captured a camouflaged test vehicle on a public road that matches the shape of the SU EV.
It’s important to note that at this time, we have no clue as to her name. We do not think about the production model will be called the SU EV, but again, we have the bZ4x and C-HR already in the lineup so Toyota is no stranger to odd branding. Anyway, our first look shows the concept’s many styling cues going into production. Even though it’s heavily covered, we can see the lower fascia is different from the concept. The honeycomb pattern is barely visible through the openings for the integrated driving lights, neither of which are present on the vehicles we saw in 2021.
The pattern shows some sort of ventilation or grille behind the camouflage, and there is also a square mesh on the outside that is clearly visible. That could be a red herring, designed to make us think it’s a pure electric model. However, a closer look at the back reveals something that resembles an exhaust pipe under the fascia on the right side. Though EV In the name of the concept, it is very likely that Toyota will offer its production model as either an EV or a plug-in hybrid. As such, it could take advantage of Toyota’s E3 architecture, compatible with the PHEV and BEV powertrains.
Toyota unveiled the bZ Compact SUV concept at the end of November for the 2022 Los Angeles Auto Show. Some might be tempted to say this could be the production version of that model, but the proportions are off. The test vehicle is smaller with a sleeker coupe-like shape. When you match it up with the Small SU EV’s photos, the similarities become obvious.
This is the first sighting of our SU EV test vehicle. We don’t have any current estimates for the reveal, although it could definitely happen by the end of the year. If that happens, it will probably replace the C-HR in the Toyota lineup.
