I got to take their BZ4X for a test drive at the Columbus auto show, but the route the guy had me take didn’t include any highway despite state route 315 and I-670 being right in the area. The all surface street test drive didn’t really give a feel for the vehicle as construction and traffic was in play at the time.
Unlike my Bolt where I can just push the shift lever back twice to go into 1 pedal driving(once for normal drive then again for 1 pedal), the b4 needed me to press a button beside the shift knob.
I guess the EV manufacturers all have their own way of doing things. On my my Model 3 you access the the one pedal driving from the video screen, just like almost everything else. There are three levels: none, mild and full on regenerative braking. I’ve only used the full on system.
That is one thing I like about the Teslas, their streamlined interior with minimal clutter all over the place- just the large screen and not much else.
Honda has gone the push button route for their transmissions where you reach down to where the lever would normally be to find the button you want for the transmission gear you need.
Here’s an updated interview with Toyota president Sato.
I would argue Toyota is only behind in offering EV products. The technology they use in their hybrids is applicable to full EVs.
They correctly gauged the auto market with hybrids rather than EVs. 94 % of the US market is still ICEs or hybrid variants. Worldwide, I’d estimate the market is 98 to 99% ICEs.