New Toyota Urban Cruiser SUV gets 249-mile range for £36,000

New Toyota Urban Cruiser small electric SUV should offer 250 miles of range – here's everything you need to know...

Published12 December 2024

On sale Autumn 2025 | Price from £36,000 (est)

Like Jurassic Park, Matlock and Star Wars, the new Toyota Urban Cruiser is a reboot of something that’s come before. Where the previous Urban Cruiser was a fairly underwhelming SUV, however, this rebooted version is bang up to date.

Based on the Urban SUV concept revealed in October, the new model will be the sister car to the Suzuki e Vitara, with the two cars sharing their underpinnings, batteries and motors.

Key rivals will be as numerous as a blockbuster-filled cinema, including models such as the Hyundai Kona Electric, Jeep Avenger and Smart #1, plus upcoming entries like the Ford Puma Gen-E.

The Urban Cruiser sports a similar look to the existing Yaris Cross SUV, including that car’s black body cladding around its lower edges, which is designed to emphasise its rufty tufty nature. Indeed, the Urban Cruiser is intended to offer a similarly sized alternative to the Yaris Cross for buyers wanting electric rather than hybrid power. The Urban Cross’ colour palette will include bi-tone paint options, allowing drivers to have a contrasting roof and body, and alloy wheels of up to 19in in diameter.

Two battery sizes will be offered, with entry-level models using a 49kWh battery which sends its power to the front wheels via a single 142bhp motor. The larger 61kWh battery ups that power to 172bhp.

For those seeking off-road prowess, the larger battery model can be offered with four-wheel drive, with a second electric motor driving the rear wheels, and pumping up the total power output to 181bhp. This version also comes with extra assistance features to help when you leave the Tarmac, including a Downhill Assist Control system to tackle steep inclines, and a Trail Mode which can brake spinning wheels while applying extra torque to the opposite wheel. Front-wheel drive models, meanwhile, get a ‘Snow mode’ which controls the amount of torque going to each front wheel to minimise wheel-slipping on icy roads.

Toyota hasn’t specified how far each version of the Urban Cruiser can go on a charge, but its Suzuki e Vitara sister can manage 249 miles between charges in 61kWh front-wheel drive form. That’s slightly less than the #1 can cover in Pro+ form, but is similar to the official range of the Jeep Avenger. We’d expect the smaller battery to have an official range of around 200 miles.

All versions of the Urban Cruiser come with a heat pump as standard, which allows for more efficient pre-heating of the battery and interior, helping you to go further in colder conditions. In the most recent What Car? winter range test, we found that cars fitted with a heat pump could be around 5% more efficient than those without. In our test, which involved driving identical versions of the Volkswagen ID 7 electric saloon both with and without a pump, we covered an extra 14 miles in the car with the pump compared to the one without before we ran out of range.

The interior of the Urban Cruiser features a 10.25in digital instrument cluster next to a 10.1in infotainment touchscreen. And while most functions appear to be controlled using the touchscreen, or voice control, we’re pleased to see a physical rocket switch to set the temperature. The interior also appears to feature a wireless charging pad for your smartphone, storage underneath the centre console, and Android Auto and Apple CarPlay smartphone mirroring. Drivers will be able to set the mood inside the Urban Cruiser by choosing one of 12 ambient colours, while the options list will include a power-adjustable driver’s seat, a premium stereo from JBL, and a sunroof.

While we’re yet to sit inside the Urban Cruiser, features including a sliding rear bench which allows you to prioritise either leg room or boot space, and seats which split and fold in a handy 40/20/40 configuration, should boost practicality.

Like Toyota’s other cars, it’s likely that the Urban Cruiser will benefit from the brand’s 10-year, 100,000-mile warranty if you service at your local dealer.

While prices have yet to be announced, we’d expect the Urban Cruiser to command a small premium over its e Vitara stablemate. At around £36,000, the new Toyota would be slightly more expensive than its Kona Electric and #1 rivals.