Toyota C-HR News

Toyota has too many models? The company’s new global boss seems to think so, and he is sharpening his axe in his hunt to save money. Why is this happening? Which models doesn’t Toyota need?Toyota is the world’s biggest car manufacturer and has been for the past six years running. In 2025 Toyota sold 11.2 million vehicles across its three brands - Toyota, Lexus and Daihatsu.That global dominance is replicated in Australia where Toyota has been the biggest selling car brand for 23 consecutive years.So, you’d think it was doing everything right. And why on Earth would you change anything?Toyota’s Kenta Kon became the new global CEO of the company on June 17, and has hit the ground running as he looks for what could be done better, while he hasn’t mentioned any models by name he’s made it clear there will be cuts.In an interview with Automotive News, Kon said he was touring facilities looking for inefficiencies. It’s enough to send a chill down even the most hard working employee’s spine.“We’ve become increasingly able to identify things that don’t seem quite right, areas where operations have become somewhat inefficient, or where the amount of work that doesn’t directly add value has increased,” Kon told Automotive News.“We’re now at the stage where we can really start addressing them – making corrections and implementing improvements.“If you go to a development division, you see issues such as an increasing number of different specifications and variants being created, which in turn is driving up costs.”Carmakers, as many companies do, often go through a streamlining process where they prune back on activities deemed superfluous in a bid to save money.This cutting back is already happening. The fully electric Lexus LF ZC was axed before it even went into production, just before Kon succeeded Koji Sato as President and CEO. Before the promotion Kon was Toyota’s Chief Financial Officer.Mr Sato is a “self confessed” car guy - a mechanical engineer by trade and a performance car enthusiast. Mr Kon calls himself a “numbers guy”.According to Toyota’s Financial Year 2026 summary, the company sold 2.5 per cent more cars and sales revenue was up by 5.5 per cent, but the operating profit fell by 7.3 per cent.Add to this the billions lost from the bottom line caused by tariffs imposed by the United States, a massive loss in sales in China (a 31 per cent drop in May this year alone), a conflict in the Middle East putting pressure on fuel prices and the sudden huge popularity in Chinese electric vehicles, and even the biggest car girl or guy can see the need to cut back on spending.The axing of the LF ZC is interesting and it happened just as Kon was moving into his new office. This was to be an electric successor to the IS sedan, but perhaps being a sedan was the reason it was axed. SUVs being where the money is these days and all that.In a time when sales are being stolen from right under mainstream brand’s noses by affordable, high-tech and good looking vehicles made by Chinese manufacturers, surely EVs aren’t the models Toyota should be axing?But then Toyota’s EVs haven’t really taken the world by storm. One of the brand’s worst selling cars is the C-HR SUV and the electric version, which recently arrived has done nothing to help sales anywhere globally for Toyota.Toyota’s other electric SUVs, such as the bZ4X, haven’t been major hits either. Toyota’s focus doesn’t appear to be EVs for now. Instead, hybrids are bringing in the money for Toyota.The axing of the LF ZC was also only just one model, but it's a good indication of how Toyota is now in a phase of conservative growth and not willing to take risks.That's not to say the brand won’t make EVs, of course it will, but rather than sedans like the LF ZC they’ll be electric SUVs.Currently Toyota has 23 models in its Australian range. The worst performers are the Yaris, C-HR and GR86, all with less than 1000 sales so far this year.Which models will Toyota axe next? Most likely the C-HR first. This SUV, while great to drive, isn’t selling well here and around the world - even the fully electric version.What about the bZ4X? That’s actually selling well in Australia and globally even if it had a bumpy start with recalls and a battery that didn’t offer enough driving range in the first iteration. Toyota has sold 1526 of them this year. That’s more than the 1340 combined sales of closely priced Volkswagen ID. 4 and its ID. 5 coupe twins.But when you compare that to its Zeekr 7X rival, with 3664 sales for the same period, then you begin to see that EVs are currently really just a side hustle for mainstream brands that make nearly all their income from traditional models.Does it annoy Toyota that it’s not the go-to for EVs when it has been for ICE cars for decades? I’d say it does, a lot. Even if Toyota would tell you it doesn’t and say that it's all about having models for every body - the multipathway powertrain approach is the marketing phrase it uses.Toyota may even feel that it exerts such a colossal influence over people’s purchasing habits that customers will continue to buy what the brand’s range offers. The company may just think that “until we make and sell it, people won’t buy it”.Yes, it’ll lose a relatively tiny amount of sales to BYD, Zeekr and other Chinese rivals but it’ll stay its course and bring in electric versions of its successful models.In the meantime, for Toyota you can probably forget design studies like the LF ZC or wild reborn models such as the Celica or MR2. The Toyota 86 as we know it is also on borrowed time.Yep, if you thought Toyota was boring now… you ain’t seen nothing yet.

Toyota Australia has increased the asking price of a number of its popular SUV models.From January 1, 2026, the Toyota C-HR, LandCruiser Prado and LandCruiser 300 Series all received price hikes of up to $1500, depending on the model and variant.“Toyota is committed to keeping price increases to a minimum. These changes came into effect recently due to increased costs and inflationary pressures both here and overseas,” said a Toyota Australia spokesperson.The 2026 Toyota C-HR is now priced from $46,940 before on-road costs to $58,890 before on-road costs. Pricing for the entire line-up is $1500.The 2026 Toyota LandCruiser Prado is now priced from $73,200 before on-road costs to $100,690 before on-road costs. Pricing is up $700 across the line-up.The 2026 Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series $99,340 before on-road costs to $147,160 before on-road costs. Pricing is up $1000 across the line-up.Pricing tables for all three Toyota models are at the bottom of this story.This is the first time the current-generation Prado has received a price rise in Australia since it was introduced in late 2024.Since it first launched, Toyota introduced a five-seat version of the popular GXL mid-spec variant following criticism of the compromised boot space of the seven-seat versions.The Prado was also the third best-selling Toyota model in Australia during 2025, behind only the popular HiLux and RAV4.While the existing LandCruiser 300 Series with its 3.3-litre twin-turbo V6 diesel engine almost already reaches $150,000 before on-road costs, it’s expected to surpass this with the forthcoming 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol ‘Performance Hybrid’ GR Sport and Sahara ZX trims.While the first-generation Toyota C-HR was a sales success, sales of the current second-generation which was introduced in 2024 have been notably softer.During 2025 a total of 2892 examples were sold which is up 2.3 per cent year-on-year. However over the same period Toyota also sold 12,686 examples of the similarly sized Corolla Cross.This is likely due to the fact the current C-HR is much more expensive than it was. It’s now sourced from Turkey instead of Japan and as a result incurs a five per cent import tariff.2026 Toyota C-HR pricing:2026 Toyota LandCruiser Prado pricing:2026 Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series pricing:

Toyota has locked in yet another battery electric vehicle (BEV) for Australia.The Japanese carmaker has confirmed it’ll launch the new C-HR+ during 2027.No further details have been confirmed just yet.This forthcoming addition to the local Toyota BEV line-up follows the announcement of the HiLux BEV dual-cab ute, which is set to arrive locally in the first half of 2026.The C-HR+ will also follow after the introduction of the updated bZ4X which is due in December 2025, and the larger bZ4X Touring due in the first half of 2026.This new electric C-HR+ will sit alongside the existing C-HR hybrid line-up, offering people who want a smaller Toyota SUV an electric offering.The Toyota C-HR+ was first revealed in Europe in March 2025. It’s built on the same e-TNGA platform as the bZ4X and bZ4X Touring, as well as the Subaru Solterra and Lexus RZ, among others.There is a Subaru version of the C-HR+ called the Uncharted. At this stage this car hasn’t been locked in for an Australian launch.The C-HR+ measures in at 4520mm long, 1870mm wide and 1595mm tall, with a 2750mm wheelbase. This makes it around 160mm longer than the C-HR hybrid, despite the two SUVs sharing similar designs.Globally there are two electric powertrain configurations and two batteries available.The entry-level model has a single, front-mounted electric motor that produces 123kW and is fed by a 57.7kWh battery pack.There’s also a larger 77kWh battery pack available in the front-wheel drive version, which bumps the power output up to 165kW.At the top of the line-up is a dual-motor, all-wheel drive set-up with a total system output of 252kW. Toyota claims this model can do the 0-100km/h sprint in 5.2 seconds.Depending on the trim level, the C-HR+ has a claimed electric range of up to 600km, according to WLTP testing.11kW AC charging is available as standard on most models, however 22kW AC charging is available on certain higher-trim models. 150kW DC fast-charging is offered across the line-up.

Toyota’s C-HR compact SUV is going electric.

A study of prices from September 2019 to September 2024 highlights some key models have risen sharply, but as the strong sales continue it appears customers have accepted the new pricing reality.

The new 2024 Toyota C-HR is the 11th car tested against the new 2023-2025 ANCAP criteria and the good news for prospective buyers is it scored a maximum five stars.

In line with ANCAP’s six-year lifespan for its new vehicle safety assessment ratings, more than 25 vehicles currently on sale in the Australian new car market were reclassified as ‘Unrated’ on January 1, 2024, many previously carrying a maximum five-star rating.

The Toyota C-HR is the subject of a fresh recall, with 14,480 units of the small SUV built between 2019 and 2023 recalled for a potential fire risk.

With the imminent arrival of the next-gen Toyota C-HR comes the end of its place as Toyota’s most affordable offering in the ‘Small SUV’ category.

If you’re hanging out for an electric Toyota HiLux ute that has genuine off-road capability, can tow a boat, has sufficient payload AND range of up to 800km, then we have some good news. Well, sort of…