Toyota boosts local EV allocation amid increased demand

As its lead electric vehicle cops its first update and as it prepares to launch a second electric nameplate, Toyota New Zealand has moved to increase its intake of allocation in the face of rising petrol prices and a subsequent rise in EV demand.

Toyota New Zealand manager of product planning, Sven Tulicic, confirmed to CarExpert NZ that the Japanese marque has lifted its allocation of both the standard bZ4X (which has just received its first facelift), as well as the upcoming bZ4X Touring. 

“Customer demand has definitely increased on our EV portfolio and we are obviously answering our customer requirements by increasing volume,” said Tulicic.

“There is still a lot of activity in our EV platform vehicles this year. We are not that far away from bringing in the bZ4X Touring. 

“Both of them have been really well received globally. The cars themselves have gone through quite an evolution, so we’re seeing a really good response from customers when they drive the cars.” 

Tulicic did not clarify how much of a boost in quantity the likes of the bZ4X and bZ4X Touring will receive. But, given Toyota’s standing as New Zealand’s most popular carmaker, there is potential for the two nameplates to be serious players in the EV market. 

The updated bZ4X features tweaked interior and exterior styling, as well as increased range claims. Perhaps most notable for the New Zealand market, though, is the considerable reduction in the model's sticker price. Once priced from $79,990, the bZ4X now starts from $56,990.

March saw local electric vehicle sales rise by an unprecedented 380% over the same month in 2025, with 2422 units being registered. The Tesla Model Y was the top seller, with 480 registrations.

Tulicic noted that the current climate is a difficult one for carmakers, but the growth of the plug-in sector — which will soon for the first time include the RAV4 — is a local silver lining. 

“This year is going to be a challenging job for the automotive industry,” he said.

“We’re dealing with an incredibly high price of petrol. We have seen our customers in recent times reignite their passion for EVs. Again, we’re getting a lot more questions, a lot more demand on new models like the bZ4X. And [the RAV4] PHEV is about to land.” 

The product planning manager reiterated that Toyota remains a ‘multi-pathway’ company, keen to continue to offer a breadth of powertrain options for every customer.

“At the end of the day we keep coming to the same point; we are not going to put all of our eggs in one basket. We are a multi-pathway company and we don’t want to leave our customers behind,” said Tulicic.

“We know that our customers need different requirements in different situations,” he added.

“We’re bringing for example the Hilux EV, and that vehicle is not going to be a current Hilux 4WD. That’s not what it’s supposed to be. It’s designed for a particular usage in particular industries, like mining in Australia. 

“But we’re learning with every one of these steps. From my perspective, customers are the ultimate judge.”