The Ford F-Series may forever reign in the USA, but outside North American borders, the Toyota Hilux is the incredibly popular pickup truck that pulls in buyers across the globe. During over half a century on the market, it's sold more than 27 million units and has been identified as the most indestructible passenger vehicle on the planet by some guys who would know. Now, the Hilux evolves into its 9th generation, a critical step that sees it welcome in new capabilities and tech, including several electrified powertrain options.
Toyota is showing the new Hilux at this week's Brussels Motor Show, which has recently raised its profile as a major automotive event to fill some of the void left by the 2024 cancellation of the annual Geneva Motor Show. It may lack the pure exotic supercar power that made Geneva such a pretty place to visit, but what was once just a sleepy sales gathering for the Belgium domestic market has become a more important date on the calendar for the European automotive sector at large, hosting a number of major premieres.
Toyota didn't hold the Hilux for a Brussels world premiere, having first revealed it back in November, but it is using the event to show the truck to the European public for the first time, a notable reveal in itself given the Hilux's continued popularity on the continent. The Ford Ranger has been Europe's sales leader among pickup trucks for the past decade, but the Hilux has long been nipping closely at its heels as a strong number 2 contender.
We can't say we're big fans of Toyota's new Hilux styling direction – it just doesn't feel right for this truck ... or any other pickup, really. We love that Toyota pulled its all-caps badge front and center, bringing styling in line with the new Land Cruiser, but everything surrounding it – those razor-thin headlamps and body-color grille perforations or indents – feels more suited to a small SUV, not the world's toughest midsize pickup truck.
The multiple polygonal recesses and panels and sharp creases throughout the lower half of the front-end are an uninvited reminder about how eager Toyota's design team seems to throw itself into absolute overwrought styling territory. It's just too much.
Thankfully, after expending serious overtime up front, the design crew lightened its hand over the rest of the truck, which remains a stout, sturdy pickup without the over-accentuation that characterizes the new US-market Tundra and Tacoma. Outlined wheel arches within lightly bulged fenders give the Hilux the look of a solid, off-road-ready workhorse without going overboard. And the extra-large stamped "TOYOTA" tailgate is always welcome in our book.
Perhaps the Hilux's more avant garde front-end design is meant to hint at the modernized powertrain humming below. Toyota identifies plans for its volume seller to come powered by a 2.8-liter diesel engine with 48-V light hybrid system, a powertrain that was first introduced on the eighth-generation Hilux in 2025.
Toyota complements the diesel engine with a motor-generator, lithium-ion battery and DC-DC converter in a layout that was designed for modest efficiency and emissions improvements while also promoting a quieter, smoother and more refined ride overall, particularly when starting up and accelerating.
Despite taking on new powertrain hardware, the Hilux maintains its capabilities and capacities, including 3,500 kg (7,700 lb) of towing, a 1,000-kg (2,200-lb) maximum payload and 700 mm (27.5 in) of wading capability.
The new Hilux will also be available with a pure-electric powertrain for the first time in the pickup's history. Toyota refined the battery-electric underpinnings through several years of prototype R&D and will launch the BEV in Europe this spring as the first-available new Hilux variant. In order to deliver the traction and off-road-readiness the Hilux nameplate demands, Toyota installs electric axles at the front and rear to create a battery-driven permanent AWD system with 268 Nm (198 lb-ft) of terrain-biting torque in back and 205 Nm (151 lb-ft) up front.
Estimates call for 257 km (160 miles) of combined range from the 59-kWh lithium-ion battery, a 715-kg (1,575-lb) payload and a 1,600-kg (3,525-lb) towing capacity. We wouldn't be so excited about halving our towing and three-quartering our payload versus the light hybrid, but we'd also be likely to choose the diesel-hybrid out of the gate so as not to have to worry about range or charging availability.
The Hilux BEV does maintain its 700-mm wading depth for those looking to power through creeks and rivers and offers 212 mm (8.3 in) of ground clearance.
Both the BEV and hybrid will come exclusively in double-cab layout and will include a Multi-Terrain Select system tuned in line with their specific hardware for more conditions-specific drive performance.
Beyond the hybrid and electric offerings, Toyota also plans to offer standalone diesel and petrol engine options for select Eastern European markets. A hydrogen fuel cell model will follow in 2028.
The slew of Hilux powertrains falls into Toyota's greater "multi-pathway" strategy for lowering CO2 numbers. That initiative aims to create flexibility in offering cleaner powertrain options to meet the demands of different markets and customer bases. Toyota announced Wednesday that 77 percent of the record-breaking 1.23 million vehicles it sold in Europe in 2025 featured some form of electrification, up 5% from 2024's numbers.
Toyota is holding further Hilux details, specs and pricing information until closer to launch. The Hilux BEV will hit the European market in April 2026, followed by the 48V hybrid version in July.
Source: Toyota Europe
