Toyota Australia has again poured water on the idea of bringing a hybrid version of the 250 Series Prado to Australia and expressed doubt that PHEVs are currently ready to make their way into body-on-frame 4x4s.
Speaking to Chasing Cars at a pre-production drive of the incoming 300 Series hybrid, Toyota Australia vice president of sales and marketing Sean Hanley said Prado won’t follow suit with a similar option anytime soon.
The current Prado is available with a mild-hybrid 48-volt setup mated to a 2.8L turbo-diesel, but in the US it’s sold with a 2.4-litre turbo-petrol engine and a powerful electric motor.
The 243kW/630Nm outputs trump that of the 150kW/500Nm diesel, but the braked towing capacity takes a dive from 3500kg to just 2722kg. Fuel economy is also worse for the hybrid, using around 10L/100km vs 7.9L/100km for the diesel.
Preserving the 3500kg towing capacity has been highlighted as a key factor in the 300 Series Hybrid’s local introduction, although the figure has yet to be officially confirmed.
Prado hybrid unlikely for Australia in the near future
In light of Toyota Australia’s stated goal to offer some form of electrified option for 100 percent of its line (excluding GR performance cars) by 2030, Hanley said he would be keen to introduce a hybrid Prado “in the future…. but not the near future”.
A Prado drivetrain that uses more fuel, tows less and likely only has five seats would be a hard sell for many Australians, and Toyota would need an enticing product to justify the development costs of converting the Prado Hybrid to right-hand drive.
Pictured: Soon to release 2026 Toyota Landcruiser 300 petrol hybrid
As previously stated to Chasing Cars, annual demand would need to be around 10,000 to justify the conversion.
However, the current towing and payload limitations of the hybrid variant would also need to be upgraded to make it more palatable to Aussie buyers, pushing the required sales target even higher to offset development costs.
With 19,955 cars registered from January to August this year, it’s not impossible that this threshold could be reached, but with the seemingly uncompetitive nature of the Prado’s current hybrid option, it remains unlikely for local adoption.
PHEV technology not ready for 4x4s – but will be soon
Plug-in hybrid (PHEV) technology is increasingly being looked to in the industry as a way to reduce emissions in the commercial and recreational 4×4 market.
Large PHEVs have the ability to harness electric power to drive short distances (around 50-100km technically) but with a petrol engine still available to take over once the battery runs flat for a more diesel-like 700-1000km combined driving range.
Notable sales success has been seen from the BYD Shark 6 since its launch in early 2025, with the GWM Cannon Alpha, Ford Ranger PHEV utes following to market soon after.
Later this year, the GWM Tank 500 PHEV will be the first ladder frame wagon available in our market harnessing this technology.
Pictured: 2025 Toyota Tundra, which utilises a plugless hybrid system
But in its current form, Hanley told Chasing Cars the technology isn’t ready to meet Toyota standards, and would compromise space, payload and more — pointing to expected developments in EV technology, such as more energy-dense solid-state batteries.
“At the moment, that would be… not a problem, but you’d have to compromise. Battery technology is evolving so quickly, it won’t be a problem in the future,” he said.
“These kinds of technologies are evolving, smaller batteries, longer range, shorter charge times, no compromise on internal space – that will be the future.”