Everything We Know About The New Combustion Engines Toyota's Working To Release Soon

The electric vehicle (EV) market in the U.S. is in a bit of a rut, with buyers turning away from leaders such as Tesla due to a lack of innovation and newer alternatives. Meanwhile, traditional car companies like Ford are pumping the brakes on their previously aggressive EV expansion plans. With concerns about lower-than-expected sales of purely electric vehicles, Toyota is taking a safer trajectory and focusing on more traditional internal combustion vehicles with hybrid options.

Toyota has a long history of leading sustainable automotive innovation. Prius, the poster child for eco-friendly rides, was first showcased as a concept in 1993 when it was proposed to be a "vehicle for the 21st century." A production-grade model of the Prius hit the market later in the decade as the world's first hybrid vehicle. Currently, the company's hybrid offering extends beyond the Prius and now includes nearly all of its vehicles, with more than a dozen models such as the Corolla, Camry, Land Cruiser, Sequoia, and even muscular ones such as Tacoma and Tundra.

Despite its legacy, Toyota has been hesitant to embrace electric vehicles (EVs) fully until recently, with just one pure EV in its portfolio — the bZ4X. Though the company is introducing a whole new line of BEVs, it appears persistent, at least partially, on that approach, recently revealing its plans to continue making internal combustion engines (ICEs) with three prominent upcoming models. Before we discuss those, here's why Toyota fancies hybrids so much.

Though Toyota has fallen behind its global counterparts in transitioning to fully electric vehicles, a few reasons back that choice. Firstly, it believes in focusing on the mass deployment of hybrids to significantly reduce emissions. The iconic Japanese automaker believes that a large number of hybrids on the road have a greater overall positive impact on the environment compared to a small-scale adoption of EVs. The company's internal documents illuminate its 1:6:90 rule, which states that the same amount of raw material used to generate one fully electric vehicle can be used to make six plug-in hybrids or as many as 90 hybrid cars. Besides the smaller requirement for raw materials, Toyota estimates that these 90 hybrid cars combined offset 37 times the carbon emissions than a single EV.

Studies substantiate this argument to some extent, indicating that a mid-size hybrid has a lower lifecycle carbon footprint than a compact EV when driven for 150,000 miles, owing to the energy-intensive battery production process. Despite criticism, Toyota and its sister companies, Mazda and Subaru, uphold their commitment to ICEs. They have pledged to continue investing and working together in fuel-based technology, a move that would also benefit hundreds of suppliers struggling with the shift to electric vehicles. With the challenges of lagging charging infrastructure and the high cost of EVs in mind, Toyota is banking on rising demand for fuel-efficient ICEs, especially hybrids.

Toyota's significant leap with its new hybrid engines is noteworthy. Its latest combustion engines, are more compact while delivering roughly the same power as traditional internal combustion engines ICEs. Of the three new engines announced by Toyota and its sister companies, the 1.5-liter naturally aspirated gasoline engine is about 10% smaller in volume compared to the current generation of engines with similar displacement. Similarly, another 1.5-liter turbocharged engine is 20% smaller than the existing 2.5-liter naturally aspirated variant. Lastly, a 2.0-liter turbocharged version is 10% smaller than a 2.4-liter turbo unit. Both of the turbocharged variants also offer 30% higher efficiency than their counterparts. In addition to their reduced size, these engines are also lighter.

These improvements are achieved by implementing a shorter piston stroke. The shorter piston strokes result in decreased torque, which is compensated for by the electric motor. This approach enhances efficiency by reducing the maximum RPM these newer engines can make. Smaller piston strokes, leading to compact engines, can allow for lowered front hoods. This, in turn, would improve aerodynamics, reduce the center of gravity, and minimize cabin vibrations. Toyota is expected to commence the production of these engines in 2026, before the EU's Euro 7 emission standards go into effect, in preparation for banning the production of emission engines by 2035.

Collaborating with Idemitsu Kosan, ENEOS, and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Toyota is working to establish a carbon-neutral fuel supply chain. The company's commitment to sustainability extends beyond carbon emission reduction, as it bets on creating a circular economy for its vehicles that emphasizes material reuse and recycling to minimize waste at every stage of the vehicle's lifecycle.

Although Toyota's strong stance on hybrids was initially criticized, especially on the back of strong EV sales between 2020 and 2021, other automakers are correcting their projections amid reducing sales. For instance, Hyundai experienced a 5% slowdown in its EV sales despite achieving record-breaking overall sales in Q1 2024. Meanwhile, Tesla quietly lowered its sales target while traditional automakers, including Ford, redacted on their push to new models. These align with challenges to the industry predicted by Toyota's Chairman and former CEO, Akio Toyoda, who earlier said that EVs will reach a saturation point at around 30% of the global market share.

Meanwhile, Toyota continues its plans to launch as many as 10 new fully electric vehicles in the US by 2026 but stated that the assembly will require significant modification to make the process more seamless.