Thursday, 11 March 2021 10:55

Strewth mate... it's a shocker!

Written by  Staff Reporters
Toyota Australia is trialling a Landcruiser 70 Series single-cab ute with an electric drive line. Toyota Australia is trialling a Landcruiser 70 Series single-cab ute with an electric drive line.

Over the ditch in Australia, Toyota utes and trucks are the workhorses of the country’s economy.

With an eye to reducing emissions, as we move into the future, Toyota Australia has converted a venerable Landcruiser 70 Series single-cab ute to an electric drive line. This will be trialled at a BHP Nickel West mine site in Western Australia.

The conversion, carried out by Toyota Australia’s product planning and development division in Port Melbourne, sees the LC 70 equipped for underground use, where it will operate under full battery power.

Toyota Australia’s president and chief executive Matthew Callachor says the trial is another step in the Japanese manufacturer’s move towards a zero carbon emissions future.

“BHP and Toyota have demonstrated a strong relationship throughout the last 20 years and this project is a testament to how we can work together in our respective industries to change the future,” Callachor said.

Edgar Basto, president, of Minerals Australia, BHP, says the partnership is another step in the mining giant’s ongoing studies into how the company can reduce the emissions intensity of its light-vehicle fleet.

“Reducing our reliance on diesel at our operations will help achieve our medium-term target of reducing operational emissions by 30% by 2030,” he said.

Meanwhile, looking at the broader Australian picture, Toyota has almost doubled its sales of hybrid vehicles in Australia during 2020. This saw a record of 54,335 hybrids sold, representing 26.5% of Toyota’s total sales. This was double 2019’s sales of 27,846 units.

The RAV hybrid was the star for Toyota and Australia’s best-selling hybrid for 2020.

On the commercial front, the Toyota Hilux (45,176 sales) was the country’s most popular commercial vehicle for the 23rd year straight and Australia’s best-selling vehicle for the fifth year in a row.

More like this

Enhanced Hilux hits the spot

The war for supremacy in the ute market is still being waged by market leaders Toyota and Ford, with the Hilux and Ranger.

Mako goes after Raptor

With Ford holding the reins of the ute market since about 2014, it was always going to be a case of when – not if – Toyota NZ would deliver a model to compete.

Workhorse gets makeover

Like many of Toyota’s product ranges, the Hiace series has a history that dates back five decades.

Featured

Editorial: Time for common sense

OPINION: The case of four Canterbury high country stations facing costly and complex consent hearing processes highlights the dilemma facing the farming sector as the country transitions into a replacement for the Resource Management Act (RMA).

National

Machinery & Products

Calf feeding boost

Advantage Plastics says it is revolutionising calf meal storage and handling, making farm life easier, safer, and more efficient this…

JD's precision essentials

Farmers across New Zealand are renowned for their productivity and efficiency, always wanting to do more with less, while getting…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Are they serious?

OPINION: The Greens aren’t serious people when it comes to the economy, so let’s not spend too much on their…

A hurry up!

OPINION: PM Chris Luxon is getting pinged lately for rolling out the old 'we're still a new government' line when…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter