The Toyota bZ4X isn’t an SUV with a name that rolls off of the tongue and it’s not an SUV that rolls off of dealer lots very easily either. After stutters and false starts during 2022 including a recall and stop-sale, the bZ4X is back again for 2023 and the automaker hopes to sell just 10,000 of them. What’s wild is that achieving that feat would be a huge victory compared to sales in 2022.
Last year, Toyota shifted just about 1,200 bZ4Xs in total and that includes about 988 in the fourth quarter alone. Of course, a major reason why it sold so slowly in the first few quarters is that Toyota had to recall every example due to a loose nut that could result in the wheel falling off. At least something related to the bZ4X rolls well.
According to Car and Driver, Toyota wants to sell 10,000 more this year which would be more than a 700 percent increase in sales year over year. Why such a modest target for a brand that sells literally millions of cars each year? Evidently, it comes down to resources and making them count to the greatest extent possible.
More: Toyota Fixes bZ4x EV Wheel Hubs, Restarts Production
The same report says that Toyota can make six RAV4 Primes or 90, yes nine-zero, Priuses with the same amount of materials that it takes to build a single bZ4X. Considering how hard it’s been for automakers to get chips and other parts, making the most of what Toyota can obtain makes sense. Still, there’s no promise that it can off load all 10,000 bZ4Xs that it hopes to.
To that end, it’s planning a new campaign to help the relaunches chance of success. Interestingly, that won’t begin until May, well into the second quarter. Could it be that Toyota wants to avoid selling too many of these SUVs while it’s still quite cold across the nation? Buyers might not be too enthralled to find that they can’t fast-charge when temperatures plummet. Either way, we’re interested to see if the bZ4X can make a dent for Toyota in 2023.
