Toyota begins sales in China of the bZ3X electric SUV with a surprising price

The launch of the bZ3X by Toyota in China can already be described as a resounding success for the Japanese manufacturer, and the secret behind this achievement is none other than the surprising retail price of this electric SUV in that market. Toyota, together with GAC, has announced the availability of the entry-level version of the bZ3X in China from 109,800 yuan. At the current exchange rate, this amounts to just under 14 thousand euros, making this model the most affordable the brand has offered in this market to date and, in short, a real bargain.

As expected, the response of the Chinese public to this announcement has been overwhelming. The Japanese manufacturer says it received more than 10 thousand firm orders within just one hour. Interest has been such that, according to some local media reports, GAC’s Toyota web server even crashed at certain moments due to the avalanche of visitors.

The bZ3X is the first electric model from Toyota to be sold at a price close to 100 thousand yuan. It also does so while offering a level of finish and overall quality typical of higher-segment vehicles. This model features, for example, a driver assistance system developed by Momenta, which allows activation of the Navigate on Autopilot function, which uses only the vehicle’s sensors and does not depend on high-definition maps.

With the bZ3X, Toyota thus aims to change the idea that many Chinese customers currently have about Japanese vehicles, which are seen by many as excessively expensive and technologically underdeveloped.

Availability and prices

This electric SUV from Toyota is available in the Chinese market in seven versions. Five of them, priced between 109,800 and 159,800 yuan -roughly 14 to 20 thousand euros-, do not include LiDAR. The two top-of-the-range versions do feature these sensors and a higher level of equipment, with a price ranging from 149,800 to 159,800 yuan -around 20 thousand euros-. In other words, they cost roughly the same as the higher versions without LiDAR, which increases their appeal.

The Toyota bZ3X is based on the AEP 3.0 platform, the same one used by the GAC Aion V, already on sale in China and which the Chinese manufacturer also plans to bring soon to the European market. The electric SUV from Toyota is equipped with a 150 kW motor manufactured by Guangzhou Nidec Auto Drive System, a subsidiary of the Japanese specialist Nidec. In the entry-level 430 Air+ version, it comes paired with a 50 kWh LFP battery pack, with which it can cover 430 km on a single charge under the Chinese CLTC homologation cycle.

The higher versions, meanwhile, offer even greater ranges of 520 or even 620 km, while the supported charging power allows this model to increase its state of charge from 30 to 80 percent in just 24 minutes.

The bZ3X is also a fairly spacious vehicle, measuring 4.60 metres long, 1.88 metres wide and 1.65 metres high, with a wheelbase of 2.77 metres. On the scales, it weighs 1,690 kg.