Americans love to complain about all the cool Euro models we don’t get from German automakers like BMW and Mercedes, but Japanese automakers are pretty good at withholding vehicles, too. The cool factor of the new not-for-America Toyota Urban Cruiser is debatable, but it certainly has some neat features we’d like to see here.
The Urban Cruiser is an electric model that shares its underlying engineering with the Suzuki e Vitara, and it will be built alongside that model on Toyota and Suzuki’s Indian production line. The model’s debut marks a return to Europe for the nameplate, which has been absent there for the last eight years.
Toyota will offer two battery options for the Urban Cruiser, including 49- and 61-kWh packs. The smaller battery comes with a single electric motor making 142 horsepower and 139 pounds of torque, while the larger battery pairs with either a single or dual-motor setup, with the latter producing 181 horsepower and 221 pound-feet of torque.
While it’s not currently scheduled for a North American release, a vehicle like the Urban Cruiser could sell here. It’s a crossover, so there’s none of the “I must have an SUV” nonsense, and both powertrain offerings produce decent specs. We don’t have range numbers yet, but Toyota will include a heat pump and a user-initiated preheat feature to improve battery charging times in cooler weather.
[Images: Toyota]
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Source: The Truth About Cars
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