Hybrids work well for SUVs as they combine the benefits of excellent fuel economy with no range anxiety.

The hybrid system is available in all three GX, GXL and Grande grades in combination with the e-Four electric all-wheel drive (AWD) system. We have previously driven the Grande and this week we drove the entry GX model.

Its comfortable and spacious inside, especially for the front two rows, has cavernous storage areas, and particularly good leg room for middle row passengers.

TO LISTEN TO THE KLUGER GX HYBRID RADIO REVIEW CLICK BELOW

The GX comes with fabric seats, LED headlights, three zone climate A/C, 8 inch central infotainment screen, wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity

The hybrid system delivers a combined maximum power of 184kW through a smooth electric continuously variable transmission (e-CVT) that offers driver selectable NORMAL, ECO and SPORT modes.

Hybrid AWD models are also fitted with a Trail mode switch for more demanding off-road performance.

Economy is claimed to be 5.6l/100k and we weren’t too far off that on test.

Priced from $54,150 plus the usual costs it’s a well-equipped, comfortable and spacious SUV for the family

This is a Motoring Minute

Im Rob Fraser

Also Look At

• Kia Sorento PHEV
• Haval H6 Hybrid
• Land Rover Discovery Sport PHEV
• Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV
• Peugeot 3008 PHEV

Some Other Toyota Kluger Articles

• 1- Toyota Kluger Grande Hybrid AWD SUV 2022 Motoring Minute Review
• 2 – Toyota Kluger is all new and includes a Hybrid
• 3 – Toyota Kluger GX Hybrid AWD 2021 Review
• 4 – Toyota Kluger all new 2021 4th generation
• 5 – Toyota’s all-new Kluger large SUV has arrived in Australia
• 6 – Toyota’s all-new Hybrid Kluger large SUV has arrived in Australia
• 7 – Toyota Kluger GX Radio Review
• 8 – Hybrid Power Features In Next-Generation Toyota Kluger
• 9 – 2018 Toyota Kluger GX AWD SUV Review
• 10 – Toyota Kluger AWD SUV Video Review
• 11 – Toyota Kluger Grande 3.5L V6 Review

*MLP Includes GST and LCT but excluding statutory charges, dealer costs and dealer delivery. See your dealer for RDAP. Does not include price of options. Some features mentioned in the article are options. RDAP means Recommended Drive Away Price (without options but including all other charges)

 Motoring Minutes are heard around Australia every day on over 50 radio channels through the Torque Radio network. 

Our Motoring Minute has an average daily audience of over 550,000 listeners and they are also syndicated through various news sites around Australia.

Additionally Motoring Minute is also broadcast as part of Overdrive Radio Program, which is broadcast through the Community Radio Network across Australia.

Some more Kluger hybrid GX notes

We have reviewed the Kluger a number of times and continue to be impressed with just how much internal space they seem to have.

Even as a base model the seats were comfortable, everything is well laid out and visibility relatively good. Middle row seats are spacious, and third row acceptable.

Internal storage is a feature, the dash has little convenient trays and the central console bin is huge.

Lights and windscreen washers are good as well

Toyota need a technology upgrade though, their infotainment systems seem a little old now, even though they have been updated.

The latest model is not bad looking. Alloy wheels and 18 inch tyres on a base model are good value

Kluger is a natural candidate for the hybrid engine. It allows SUV space and practicality with the excellent hybrid economy.

Think of the AWD capability as more a safety feature rather than allowing anything more adventurous than the gravel driveway on a weekend away or trips to the snow.

The new platform and multi-link suspension provide a smooth and comfortable ride, with reasonable handling. It does a fair job of soaking up the suburban goat tracks we call roads in Sydney.

Being the base model there are obviously things missing like electric seats and leather, that’s why upper spec models sell more as people want those things.

Overall though the Kluger doesn’t do a lot wrong and it does a lot right, that’s why they sell so many of them? Toyota has a premium price though and other cars like a Kia Sorento offer more value in lower spec models.

Kluger Hybrid Engine more details

The hybrid system is available in all three GX, GXL and Grande grades in combination with the e-Four electric all-wheel drive (AWD) system.

It combines a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with three electric motor generators – two at the front and one in the rear – and a large Ni-MH hybrid battery to provide seamless performance and traction in all road conditions.

Under the bonnet, the petrol engine generates a maximum power of 142kW at 6000rpm and peak torque of 242Nm at 4400rpm.

With a long stroke and high 14:1 compression ratio, the Atkinson cycle petrol engine is designed for high thermal and fuel efficiency.

The latest D-4S fuel injection system that combines both direct and port injection, and electric variable valve timing (VVT-iE) on the intake and variable valve timing (VVT-i) on the exhaust ports, further enhance efficiency enabling a combined cycle fuel consumption as low as 5.6l/100km¹.

Transmission

The hybrid system delivers a combined maximum power of 184kW through a smooth electric continuously variable transmission (e-CVT) that offers driver selectable NORMAL, ECO and SPORT modes.

In SPORT mode, the Kluger’s AWD Integrated Management (AIM) system automatically adjusts throttle control, transmission shift schedule, drive force distribution and electric steering assistance to provide a more dynamic drive experience while ECO mode modifies throttle control and the transmission shift schedule for improved fuel efficiency.

The e-Four AWD system uses a 40kW/121Nm electric motor generator mounted in a rear transaxle to provide additional drive force to the rear wheels in slippery or off-road conditions.

Controlled by the AIM system, drive force can be varied between the front and rear axles depending on conditions and driver behaviour with a torque split front to rear of between 100:0 and 20:80 with an instantaneous readout able to be displayed on the MID in the instrument cluster.

Hybrid AWD models are also fitted with a Trail mode switch for more demanding off-road performance that is able to adjust throttle control, shift schedule, drive force distribution and brake control to deliver optimal traction for the conditions.

The post Toyota Kluger GX Hybrid 2022 Review appeared first on Eco Car Guide.

Hybrids work well for medium SUVs as they combine the benefits of excellent fuel economy with no range anxiety.

The hybrid system is available in all three GX, GXL and Grande grades in combination with the e-Four electric all-wheel drive (AWD) system.

TO LISTEN TO THE RADIO REVIEW CLICK BELOW

It combines a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with three electric motor generators – two at the front and one in the rear – and a large Ni-MH hybrid battery to provide seamless performance and traction in all road conditions.

Under the bonnet, the petrol engine generates a maximum power of 142kW at 6000rpm and peak torque of 242Nm at 4400rpm

The hybrid system delivers a combined maximum power of 184kW through a smooth electric continuously variable transmission (e-CVT) that offers driver selectable NORMAL, ECO and SPORT modes.

Hybrid AWD models are also fitted with a Trail mode switch for more demanding off-road performance.

Economy is claimed to be 5.6l/100k and we weren’t too far off that on test.

Priced from $54,150 through to the Grande at $75,700 plus the usual costs.

This is a Motoring Minute

Im Rob Fraser

Some Other Toyota Kluger Articles

• Toyota Kluger is all new and includes a Hybrid
• Toyota Kluger GX Hybrid AWD 2021 Review
• Toyota Kluger all new 2021 4th generation
• Toyota’s all-new Kluger large SUV has arrived in Australia
• Toyota’s all-new Hybrid Kluger large SUV has arrived in Australia
• Toyota Kluger GX Radio Review
• Hybrid Power Features In Next-Generation Toyota Kluger
• 2018 Toyota Kluger GX AWD SUV Review
• Toyota Kluger AWD SUV Video Review
• Toyota Kluger Grande 3.5L V6 Review

Also Look At

• Kia Sorento PHEV
• Haval H6 Hybrid
• Land Rover Discovery Sport PHEV
• Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV
• Peugeot 3008 PHEV

*MLP Includes GST and LCT but excluding statutory charges, dealer costs and dealer delivery. See your dealer for RDAP. Does not include price of options. Some features mentioned in the article are options. RDAP means Recommended Drive Away Price (without options but including all other charges)

*Towing and AWD capability is measured against similar vehicles in the same class.

Motoring Minutes are heard around Australia every day on over 50 radio channels through the Torque Radio network. 

Motoring Minute has an average daily audience of over 150,000 listeners. That’s over 750,000 listeners a week.

Motoring Minute is also broadcast as part of Overdrive Radio Program, which is broadcast through the Community Radio Network across Australia.

Motoring Minutes are also syndicated through various news sites around Australia

The post Toyota Kluger Grande Hybrid AWD SUV 2022 Motoring Minute Review appeared first on Eco Car Guide.

Toyota has confirmed the next-generation Kluger SUV will offer both hybrid and petrol engine options when it arrives in Australia in the first half of next year.

• First seven-seat Toyota SUV with hybrid performance and economy
• Customers can choose between powerful hybrid or V6 petrol engines
• All-new model range due in Australia next year

The new seven-seat Kluger embraces a similar dual-powertrain strategy to that adopted by the Yaris Cross SUV due later this year and the latest-generation C-HR and RAV4.

Toyota is the leader in both SUV and hybrid sales in Australia with the all-new Kluger expected to add to the increasing popularity of both categories.

It will be the first time a hybrid powertrain has been offered on Kluger in Australia with the hybrid range now accounting for more than one in every five Toyota sales.

Built in the United States, the newest Kluger will provide customers with the choice of a 2.5-litre new-generation hybrid system or a 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine.

Kluger’s total hybrid system power output is expected to be 179kW* when it arrives in Australia, with excellent fuel economy and low emissions.

Its performance is supplemented by electric motors and a hybrid battery located under the second-row seats.

The powerful quad-cam V6 is expected to deliver 218kW* to the road through a direct shift eight-speed automatic transmission.

All-new Kluger will also offer front and all-wheel-drive (AWD) traction alternatives for the V6, with the hybrid drivetrain equipped exclusively with an intelligent AWD system that incorporates front and rear electric motors.

The fourth-generation Kluger sits on the Toyota New Global Architecture GA-K platform, providing multiple benefits for dynamics, safety and styling.

It has enabled engineers to develop a lightweight and highly rigid bodyshell with a low centre of gravity – features that provide the new SUV with nimble handling and comfortable driving around town and on the highway.

The new Kluger will be equipped with advanced Toyota Safety Sense active safety technologies designed to help prevent or mitigate collisions across a wide range of traffic situations.

Kluger’s new platform has also allowed designers to craft a longer, more distinctive body that delivers a more flexible interior with expanded cargo space and a more tailored ambience.

Toyota Australia Vice President Sales and Marketing Sean Hanley said the hybrid Kluger is a logical step for a company that has sold more than 15 million hybrid vehicles globally, including in excess of 135,000 in Australia.

“The all-new hybrid Kluger is the result of combining Toyota’s hybrid leadership with extensive experience in SUVs, along with an unrivalled reputation for quality, durability and reliability,” Mr Hanley said.

The post Hybrid Power Features In Next-Generation Toyota Kluger appeared first on Eco Car Guide.