Hybrid HiLux incoming? 2024 Toyota Tacoma ute revealed in the US, and the HiLux's sibling has a hybrid engine

Is the Toyota HiLux finally going to get a modernised, hybrid engine? That’s the question being asked as the US sibling to the HiLux, the Toyota Tacoma, has been revealed with just that.

The 2024 Tacoma, which will go on sale later this year, had been rumoured to receive the Toyota i-Force Max hybrid powertrain, similar to the Hybrid Max seen already in US models like the Crown or Grand Highlander SUVs. That drivetrain has been confirmed as its higher-spec option.

The i-Force Max used for the Tacoma features a 2.4-litre four-cylinder petrol engine, paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission and producing 243kW and 630Nm.

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Toyota Australia has already flagged electrification coming to all of its models - including the HiLux - by the end of the decade, so it’s reasonable to expect the next generation of one of Australia’s favourites to arrive with a hybrid ready to go when it lands early in the second half of the decade.

The US model Tacoma also comes with something more familiar on our own shores, a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder engine for the lower grades, though it’s a petrol engine instead of the diesel we’re used to here.

This variant can be had with a six-speed ‘intelligent’ manual transmission (with outputs of 201kW and 420Nm) with rev-matching and anti-stall, or with an eight-speed automatic transmission - good for 170kW/329Nm in base models or 236kW/430Nm in other grades.

The 2024 Tacoma will go on sale later this year.

Additionally, the Tacoma’s high-spec Trailhunter variant has Australian developed parts underneath helping the TNGA-F-based ute get around on uneven terrain - a set of Old Man Emu shocks from Aussie brand ARB join a host of other parts from the business.

Inside, Tacoma models come with either an 8.0- or 14.0-inch multimedia touchscreen, with interior features updated more in line with the brand’s newer models. Expect the HiLux to follow along.

Reports earlier this week from South Africa suggest, however, that the HiLux might take a different approach to hybridisation.

Leon Theron, Toyota South Africa Vice President for Sales and Marketing, told publication CarMag.co.za that the HiLux and Fortuner would go hybrid next year in the form of a mild hybrid.

The 2024 Tacoma had been rumoured to receive the Toyota i-Force Max hybrid powertrain.

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The high-spec Trailhunter variant has Australian developed parts for added off-roading capabilities.

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A set of Old Man Emu shocks from Aussie brand ARB help the Tacoma traverse uneven terrain.

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That means the HiLux could end up retaining a tweaked version of its current diesel engine for Australia, with a mild-hybrid 48-volt system to improve efficiency and potentially increase outputs slightly.

According to Toyota Australia Vice President of Sales and Marketing Sean Hanley, the HiLux’s hybridisation will occur within the next few years.

“[Before 2030], we expect to have an electrified version of every model in our local range, excluding performance cars, and we will continue to evaluate all EVs for this market as they’re made available,” Hanley has previously told CarsGuide.

“It makes sense that the LandCruiser, the Prado, the HiLux and other commercial vehicles are going to have to adopt some sort of electrification as we get closer to that point.”