Toyota planning electric Yaris – but now is ‘not the right moment’

An electric successor to the Toyota Yaris is in the company’s plans – but now is not the right moment for it, bosses have told Autocar.

The supermini is the Japanese brand’s best seller in the UK and second best in Europe. It sold some 22,000 examples here last year, making up around 21% of its sales.

When asked about a Yaris EV joining the line-up, Toyota Europe product and marketing boss Andrea Carlucci told Autocar: “This is the idea, but now it is not something we talk about.

“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.”

Toyota currently has a three-strong EV line-up, comprising the new C-HR+, updated bZ4X and Suzuki-made Urban Cruiser. Not supplementing those SUVs with a smaller model “is a choice”, said Carlucci.

As for the UK, the reception of the Renault 5 shows that there is appetite for such a car here, agreed UK boss Scott Thompson.

“There will come a time and a place,” he said. “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.”

A Toyota electric supermini likely to arrive in the latter part of the decade, given that the three new EVs the brand will launch by the end of 2026 are hinted to be a pick-up truck, a fastback and an SUV.

When it does arrive, it’s expected to take the Yaris name, as Carlucci told Autocar that future Toyota EVs would take “familiar” names from “current cars”, like the recently revealed C-HR+.