The Japanese has made it clear that it will adopt a multi-technology approach to achieve carbon neutrality, and for the taxi industry, Toyota Motor Thailand is exploring the feasibility of assembling the Thai Taxi in the country.
Electric vehicles are cleaner in terms of vehicle emissions, but fast charging technology has not reached the stage where a battery can be recharged fully in the time it takes to fill a LPG tank. For taxi drivers, time spent at the fuel pump is time not used to ferry passengers around and earn money. As such, an interim solution to reducing carbon emissions with the Thai Taxi makes sense.
The mill drives the front wheels via an electronic continuously variable transmission and is joined by a 2LM electric motor rated at 61 PS and 169 Nm for a total system output of 100 PS. According to Toyota, the JPN Taxi with its Toyota Hybrid System II offers a fuel consumption of 19.4 km/l following the JC08 standard.
The general design is reminiscent of London’s hackney carriages and prioritises the passenger cabin, with access provided by sliding doors and a wheelchair-friendly ramp. There’s also 401 litres of boot space that is enough to for two large suitcases stacked horizontally or four golf bags.