New Toyota Highlander seven-seat SUV launching in UK in 2021

Toyota will soon expand its SUV line-up in the UK by introducing the all-new Highlander. The new Toyota Highlander will be a seven-seat SUV that will be positioned under the RAV4 and the flagship Toyota Land Cruiser.

With increasing popularity of high-riding utility vehicles in Europe, Toyota has decided to offer a seven-seat SUV at an accessible price point. When launched in 2021, the Highlander will compete against the Skoda Kodiaq, Peugeot 5008 and the Seat Tarraco in the UK.

The Highlander is sold as the Toyota Kluger in its home market Japan and Australia. It is built on the TNGA-K platform, which also underpins the Toyota Camry and the RAV4 SUV. However, it is larger than both the cars, measuring 4,950mm. The Highlander is 1,930mm wide, 1,730mm tall and has a wheelbase of 2,850mm, while the boot space capacity is 658-litres.

In UK, the Highlander will source power from a 2.5-litre petrol hybrid powertrain that gets an electric motor at each axle and is paired to an eCVT transmission. The combined system output is 241bhp and power is sent the wheels via an AWD drive-train. The SUV will also get an EV mode that will allow it to run on the electric motors for a short distance.

The high-riding SUV will feature automatic LED headlamps, wireless charging, ventilated and heated front seats and a 12.3-inch infotainment system replete with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. It will come equipped with a complete suite of driver-assistance systems like adaptive cruise control, traffic sign recognition system, lane departure warning, lane keeping assist and much more.