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There are less than two weeks to go until the Toyota Tacoma is officially revealed, but Toyota has inadvertently let slip an official image of the sibling to the next generation of one of Australia's most popular vehicles.
The next-generation Toyota HiLux is set to share a lot with the 2024 Tacoma, including the same TNGA-F ladder-frame platform, as well as potentially drivetrains and other features.
But while its design is unlikely to be a direct copy - they’re different models after all - the look of the next Tacoma as published by 4thgentacoma.com is an indicator of some elements we can expect from the next HiLux dual-cab.
The forum user that published the image said they found it by playing around with a URL where Toyota website assets can be found, only a day away from Toyota officially announcing May 19 as the official reveal date for the Tacoma.
The Tacoma looks somewhat as expected based on previously published design patent renders, but its shared design language with models like the Toyota RAV4 suggests the new HiLux could follow a more squared-off look when it eventually makes its debut.
Toyota’s teasers for the Tacoma so far have also confirmed the model will use the brand’s new i-Force Max hybrid powertrain, which made its debut in the US model Tundra large truck as a 3.5-litre V6 with hybrid assistance, making 326kW and 790Nm, though it’s unlikely the same size engine would appear in a smaller dual-cab pick-up.
The next HiLux could also use the brand’s Hybrid MAX powertrain, a turbocharged 2.4-litre four-cylinder engine with twin electric motors - found in the Grand Highlander in America - making 266kW and 542Nm.
While Australia has been slow with electrification uptake, the HiLux will definitely go at least some of the way to electrification this decade, with the brand’s local VP for Sales and Marketing Sean Hanley having told CarsGuide the whole stable of Toyota models, aside from GR models, would be electrified this decade.
