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By Jonathan Crouch

The improved version of Toyota's Proace City Electric offers businesses looking to make the EV switch a small van with peace of mind. Jonathan Crouch sees how it measures up.

Ten Second Reviewword count: 57

The improved version of Toyota's Proace City Electric is a small van with big ideas for the environment. Like all full battery-powered LCV's, it looks a bit pricey but you get a longer warranty than any other van in the class, a useful 'Smart Cargo' loading system and now more usable 213 mile driving range between charges.

Backgroundword count: 186

With its hybrid technology, Toyota has played a major role in vehicle electrification in the 21st century. So who could have thought that the brand's very first full-EV products would be vans - with engineering developed by someone else. Yet that's just what we got as the company was dragging its feet getting the all-electric bZ4X SUV into production. First the Proace Electric mid-sized van; then in 2021 this LCV, the Proace City Electric. Both are based on the Stellantis Group engineering of similar vans already on sale from Peugeot, Citroen and Vauxhall: namely the Peugeot E-Partner, Citroen's e-Berlingo and the Vauxhall Combo Electric. As with those models, this Toyota was updated for the 2024 model year with a smarter look, improved cabin infotainment and a longer EV operating range. You might worry here about a slightly smaller dealer network than those other manufacturers can provide, but the brand is establishing 'Toyota Professional Centres' in existing dealerships, with dedicated maintenance spaces, highly trained staff and special website tools for business customers. And it's all complemented by the most comprehensive warranty in the LCV industry. Sounds promising.

Driving Experienceword count: 232

If you know anything about the engineering of this product, you won't be expecting it to be any different to drive than its E-Partner, e-Berlingo or Combo Cargo Electric EV cousins - and of course, it isn't. Start up and there's the usual beep as you get the sign that all is ready to pull away; which you do in the default 'Normal' drive mode. The other selectable drive settings are 'Eco' and 'Power'. You'll need the 'Power' mode to unleash the electric motor's full 134bhp output, though if you drive like that, you will of course get nowhere near the 50kWh battery's WLTP-rated best driving range figure, now improved to 213 miles between charges, 45 miles further than this model could manage when we first tested it back in 2021. Better to stick to the 'Normal' mode, which restricts output to 108bhp; or possibly around town to 'Eco' mode, though that gives you just 81bhp and restricts the climate system. 'Normal' mode should be fine for realistic maximisation of range, particularly if you select the 'B' transmission setting that increases brake regeneration. As usual with EVs, if you do need performance, it's only a right foot jab away; 62mph from rest occupies 11.2s, but the instant response you get to 30mph makes this LCV feel quicker than that. Overtakes are easy too; 50-75 mph takes 8.9s. Top speed is just 84mph.

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