Toyota Has No Immediate Plans To Offer The Hilux With A Petrol Engine In India

The upcoming pickup will be offered with a 4x4 drivetrain as standard

Toyota has officially revealed the details of the India-spec Hilux, with the market launch slated for March. It will be offering the pickup with a diesel engine only, and the carmaker has confirmed that it is not considering a petrol option right now.

The Hilux shares its mechanicals with the Fortuner which has been on sale in India for a long time. Toyota will be offering the lifestyle vehicle with the same 2.8-litre diesel engine as the SUV, making 204PS/500Nm, but with 4WD as standard. The Fortuner’s 2.7-litre petrol engine will not be offered on the Hilux with no plans for any other petrol option either in the near future.

It is surprising that Toyota has opted to go diesel only at a time when diesel engines are being pushed out due to high prices and restrictive regulations, such as the 10-year limit in Delhi. The carmaker explained its product decision stating that there is more demand for diesel vehicles in the lifestyle-utility segment that the Hilux will operate in. The Isuzu D-Max, the only rival in this space, is also a diesel-only offering.

Perhaps another reason to avoid the petrol option is that Toyota does not offer 4WD with the petrol powered variants of the Fortuner or Innova Crysta. As stated earlier, the Hilux will get 4WD as standard at launch and no 4x2 drivetrain option. On the other hand, the Isuzu pickup does offer 4x2 variants as well for a lower entry price into the segment.

Also read: Toyota Hilux To Be Available In Three Variants And Five Colours

The India-spec Hilux will be a premium offering with dual zone climate control, leather upholstery, cruise control, power-adjustable driver’s seat, and drive modes. The safety kit for the India-spec Hilux includes seven airbags, stability control, and traction control. Its all-terrain ability is aided by features such as an electronic locking differential, hill assist, and boasts a water wading capacity of 700mm.

At present, Toyota will only be localising 30 percent of the eighth-gen Hilux and has not shared an expected sales figure for the pickup. It might be offered in batches of limited numbers while the brand gauges customer demand.

Based on the details revealed about the India-spec Hilux, we have to increase the expected entry pricing to over Rs 30 lakh (ex-showroom) making it more expensive than the top-spec Isuzu D-Max V-Cross by around Rs 4.5 lakh. For reference, the Fortuner’s 4x4 variants are priced from Rs 36.99 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi).