Toyota Kluger News

Toyota’s entire passenger range is going hybrid only from today.As first revealed by CarsGuide earlier this week, the Corolla Cross SUV will ditch its petrol engine variants and go hybrid only.Now Toyota has confirmed the RAV4 and Kluger SUVs and Corolla sedan will follow suit and only be available to order in hybrid form from today. Toyota has already announced its Yaris, Corolla hatch, Yaris Cross and C-HR are going hybrid only.Only the brand’s commercial vehicles and rugged 4WDs will be available with conventional petrol or diesel powertrains.Toyota Australia’s Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Dealer Operations Sean Hanley said the adoption of hybrid vehicles in Australia made this decision possible.“This is not a result of the impending New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES). These are trends that are in the market now. In fact, the new mandated standard confirms the foresight of Toyota’s strategy,” said Hanley.“We continue and we will do even more in coming years to innovate across a diverse range of drivetrains, which is the essence of Toyota’s multi pathway approach.“So in that sense, you could say Toyota has been embracing the spirit of the New Vehicle Efficiency Standard for an extended period with our hybrids, plus out move now into BEVs and our comprehensive future model plans that remain under wraps for now. We remain committed to allowing customers to choose the low carbon or no carbon drivetrain that best suits their circumstances.”The Federal Government’s New Vehicle Efficiency Standard (NVES) has passed through both houses of parliament and will come into effect next year.This new standard will penalise carmakers for every car they sell that produces more CO2 than a set level. These levels will get harder to meet every year.There are few petrol-engined cars that will escape punishment but hybrids will slip under the mandated levels for a few years at least.In May, hybrid sales made up 48.9 per cent of the Toyota's total volume. More than 46 per cent of the brand's total sales for the first five months of this year have been hybrids.The top-selling RAV4 was more than 95 per cent hybrid the past month, demand for the Camry hybrid was up more than 250 per cent and Corolla Cross Hybrid sales have more than doubled this year.Petrol sales still make up about 20 per cent of Kluger SUV volume, though.The deletion of the petrol options for the Corolla Cross, RAV4 and Kluger means it’ll be more expensive to get into one of these models, too.Hybrid power costs $2500 more in the Corolla Cross and RAV4 and a whopping $6500 extra in the seven-seat Kluger. That big jump is due to Kluger hybrid variants only coming with all-wheel drive and not the cheaper two-wheel drive layout available in the petrol-only versions.That means the new entry point to Corolla Cross range is $36,480 (before on-road costs), $42,260 for the RAV4 and $60,920 for the Kluger.Toyota has no plans to add a cheaper two-wheel drive version of the Kluger hybrid, according to Hanley.The Japanese brand will honour all existing petrol orders, with those cars to be delivered over the next few months. Kluger petrol deliveries will stretch into next year, though.

Toyota’s electric vehicle strategy remains shrouded in mystery after the brand turned its attention to rapid development of BEVs last year.

Toyota Kluger pricing has climbed by $2630 across the range for 2024 despite no equipment additions. The seven-seat Kia Sorento, Hyundai Palisade and Mazda CX-90 rival is available in three trim levels and starts at $54,420 (before on-road costs) for the 198kW GX petrol FWD – $4700 dearer than when the turbo-petrol launched in December 2022.Toyota last adjusted the Kluger’s price in August 2023 and the current cost-of-entry is $2630 higher than that change. This fourth increase in two years applies across the range.“Toyota is committed to keeping price increases to a minimum” a Toyota Australia spokesperson told Carsguide."These changes came into effect on 4 March 2024 due to increased costs and inflationary pressures both here and overseas," they added.The entry-level Kluger GX front-wheel drive scores cloth upholstery, an 8.0-inch multimedia touchscreen, 7.0-inch digital instrument cluster and dual-zone climate control. All-wheel drive is available for $58,420 and a 184kW hybrid for $60,920, both before on-road costs. The mid-spec GXL ($31,940-70,440) adds a larger 12.3-inch touchscreen, synthetic leather upholstery (and more) while the flagship Grande sprinkles 20-inch alloy wheels, an 11-speaker JBL sound system, leather upholstery and a panoramic sunroof on top. The Kluger is the latest Toyota model to face price increases following the diminutiveYaris hatch (up $1270-$1770) and Yaris Cross (+$880-$950) light SUVs that were subject to bumps in March. In terms of year-to-date sales, although it remains behind seven-seat body-on-frame alternatives such as the Ford Everest (4499) and Isuzu MU-X (4854), the Toyota Kluger (2556) has been more popular than monocoque rivals such as the Kia Sorento (2552) and Hyundai Palisade (795) this year. 2024 Toyota Kluger pricing (before on-road costs)

In a statement reminiscent of a Clarke and Dawe skit from the early 1990s, Toyota Australia has issued a recall for more than 30,000 Kluger SUVs after it was found that there’s a risk that the front might fall off - or some of it, at least.

Not everyone who buys an SUV wants to tackle hardcore off-road adventures. In fact, I reckon most of them don’t. Most people want a well-equipped and comfortable family vehicle that is off-road-capable enough for an occasional foray onto a well-maintained dirt road, which leads to their favourite national park, campsite, or out-of-the-way beach.

Toyota Australia has long held a dominant grip on the Australian new-car market, having wrestled control from home-grown brands like Holden and Ford.

The “glitch” that shut down Toyota’s Japanese production facilities last week has been found, and it is a more common problem than you might think.

Toyota Australia has raised prices for most of its models by as much as $1890 as it passes on the increasing costs of raw materials, labour and manufacturing onto the consumer.

In a busy week for Lexus, the brand has revealed a three-row SUV in North America almost alongside the Toyota Prado-based (and much anticipated) Lexus GX. It’s the much more US-focused Lexus TX, and it’s basically a bigger version of the Kluger-cousin RX.

A new trend has emerged in the car industry, with both established and unlikely newcomers offering motorists the chance to simply subscribe to rather than buy their next car. While leasing a vehicle has long been an option for customers, this new subscription trend offers a new way to have access to a car without needing to buy.