Pricing scoop! We’ve uncovered local prices for the new Toyota Hilux 48V derivatives ahead of the market launch in Uganda. Here’s how much these fresh mild-hybrid double-cab bakkie variants will cost you…
Yes, the Toyota Hilux is set to be lightly electrified. The venerable 8th-generation bakkie range – which was again Uganda’s best-selling nameplate last year – will soon be bolstered with a raft of fresh 48V mild-hybrid derivatives. And Motortrader.co.ug has unearthed local pricing for these Toyota Hilux 48V double-cab variants ahead of the official market launch.
Expected to go on sale at some point in March 2024, the 6 new mild-hybrid derivatives (3 rear-driven and 3 featuring 4×4) will each feature the double-cab body style and an automatic transmission as standard. By our maths, that means the Prospecton-built Hilux portfolio will swell to as many as 45 variants, though Toyota Uganda may well use this as an opportunity to rejig the line-up slightly. On that front, we’ll simply have to wait and see.
The Hilux 48V was displayed at Toyota’s SOMI 2024 event in January.
The 48V mild-hybrid package – which ostensibly brings both acceleration and efficiency gains – will be available on all auto-equipped Hilux 2.8 GD-6 Raider, Legend and Legend RS models. According to our information, the least-expensive electrified derivative will be the Hilux 2.8 GD-6 Raider 6AT 4×2 48V, which will be priced from 160 000 000/=. For the record, that’s Ugx4 200 000 more than the non-MHEV version (based on current pricing for the latter; whether a general price increase will be implemented across the range at the time of the 48V launch remains to be seen).
Upgrading to 4×4 will push the Hilux Raider 6AT 48V’s price to 180 000 000/= (or 4 200 000/= more than the non-electrified version), while the Hilux Legend 6AT 4×2 48V will cost 178 000 000/= (a premium of 3 500 000/=) and the Hilux Legend 6AT 4×4 48V will be pegged Ugx189 000 000/= (up 3 800 000/=).
The 48V model on display at SOMI 2024 was in Legend trim.
Finally, the Hilux Legend RS 6AT 4×2 48V will kick off at 198 000 000/= (again representing a 3 300 000/= premium over the non-electrified equivalent), with the Hilux Legend RS 6AT 4×4 48V taking its place at the very summit of the line-up, priced at 210 000 000/= (3 800 000/= up on the standard Legend RS 6AT 4×4). That makes the latter the priciest Hilux in the current range, though the upcoming widebody Hilux GR Sport III may well grab that title in the coming weeks.
As a reminder, 48V models feature Toyota’s familiar 2.8-litre, 4-cylinder turbodiesel engine, though here it also drives a compact motor generator using a belt system, which in turn charges the lithium battery installed under the rear seats. Toyota says the position of the battery pack helps “minimise” any impact on cabin space.
The familiar 2.8 GD-6 engine gains a 48V mild-hybrid system.
The 48V battery weighs 7.6 kg and also supplies the vehicle’s 12V system via a new DC-DC converter. The battery pack is charged during deceleration, effectively regenerating braking energy that would otherwise be lost, while also ostensibly adding braking performance. When fully charged, the 48V battery can deliver up to 12 kW and 65 Nm through the motor generator to the engine, in addition to the 4-pot’s standard outputs of 150 kW and 500 Nm.
The Japanese automaker claims the lightly electrified models thus gain “improved acceleration and fuel efficiency” (the latter by about 5%, though official fuel-economy figures have yet to be released). In addition, the mild-hybrid gubbins allow the oil-burning engine’s idle speed to be reduced from the standard 720 r/min to 600 r/min, while an engine start-stop system is also introduced.
Expect a local market launch in March 2024.
According to Toyota, the hybrid components don’t compromise the Hilux’s towing and payload capacities, which are expected to remain unchanged. In addition, the company claims the Hilux 48V is capable of driving through water “up to 700 mm deep” thanks to “waterproofing of the 48V battery and DC-DC converter”.
While Toyota SA Motors has seemingly opted to badge the new mild-hybrid powertrain option simply as the “Hilux 48V”, it’s interesting to note the United Kingdom (which sources its Hilux units from the Prospecton facility in KwaZulu-Natal) calls it the “Hilux Hybrid 48V”, while the Thailand-sourced Australian version is known as the “Hilux V-Active Technology”.
How much does the new Toyota Hilux 48V cost in Uganda?
Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 RB Raider DC 6AT 4×2 48V – 170 000 000/= (160 000 000/= in earlier Raider form)
Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 RB Raider DC 6AT 4×4 48V – 180 000 000/= (178 000 000/= in earlier Raider form)
Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 RB Legend DC 6AT 4×2 48V – 37 000 000/=
Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 RB Legend DC 6AT 4×4 48V – 190 000 000/=
Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 RB Legend RS DC 6AT 4×2 48V – 199 000 000/=
Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 RB Legend RS DC 6AT 4×4 48V – 200 000 000/=
While we expect the new Hilux 48V to ship standard with the same 9-service/90 000 km service plan (with intervals of 10 000 km) and 3-year/100 000 km vehicle warranty as the standard models, it’s not yet clear whether Toyota Uganda will also offer a warranty specific to the battery pack.
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