In the United States, the Japanese automaker remains one of the last bastions of full representation in all sectors of the automotive industry – passenger cars, crossovers, SUVs and trucks. Speaking of CUVs and SUVs, the choice is wide and varied, starting with the US $ 22,445 Corolla Cross (after they abolished the C-HR) and ending with the massive new 2024 Grand Highlander or its off-road-focused three-row sibling. road, the Sequoia.
There are also electric vehicle options, such as the bZ4X, but it is clear that the company is more specialized in off-road adventures, such as “dune-bashing” and “rock-crawling”, than in batteries. Therefore, the 4Runner, which is a well-known model, has not been abandoned, even if it is already a little outdated, since its current fifth generation began to be produced in 2009.
In other regions, the emerging markets equivalent of the 4Runner is also based on a pickup – this time the model used is the Hilux, not the Tacoma. In production since late 2004, the midsize SUV is known as the Toyota Fortuner or the SW4, depending on where it's sold. As part of the company's IMV project, it features two or three rows of seats, rear and all-wheel drive, and, in the tradition of enduring generations, has only reached its second iteration since 2015. But what if the future holds something different for it? , instead of a complete redesign?
At least in the imaginary world of digital car content creators, this has already happened, courtesy of Kleber Silva, the Brazil-based virtual artist known as KDesign AG on social media, who recently decided to create a CGI image imagining the SW4/Fortuner as a compact pickup. That's right, this design proposal for an "unlikely" transformation is based on the American Hyundai Santa Cruz and would certainly emerge from the digital nothingness as an opposing force to the popular Ford Maverick unibody compact pickup.
Since this design idea is merely a fantasy, we can fill in the gaps left by the pixel master, remembering that the rumors are eager to see their whispers fulfilled about a possible return of Toyota to the compact truck business in the North American region. Of course, the buzz is about the hypothetical return of the Stout nameplate. But who says Toyota won't check out every design possibility – even a unibody compact pickup inspired by the SW4/Fortuner remote? As for what's under the hood, of course it would need to be something electrified, and the Prius' new "Hybrid Reborn" powertrain could be the perfect suspect, right?
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