Toyota bZ4X interior, dashboard & comfort

Toyota says it went for a "living-room" ambience when designing the bZ4X's interior, making use of soft, woven trim textures with details finished in satin and creating a slim, low-set instrument panel to give a greater sense of openness from the driver's seat.

Toyota bZ4X dashboard

The dashboard layout is undeniably attractive at first glance, finished with a sustainable, ribbed material that brings a sense of warmth. Some of the other plastics used feel a bit low-rent, but it doesn’t spoil the overall impression of comfort and space.

From the driver’s seat, the instrument binnacle with its digital display feels high and quite far away. It’s reminiscent of Peugeot’s iCockpit, in that you set the steering wheel too high, you obscure the bottom of the display and up peering over the wheel to see what you’re missing. As a result, we recommend you try it out before signing on the dotted line. Meanwhile the small steering wheel is nice to hold and makes the car feel sportier than it might otherwise, and features physical buttons which is becoming uncommon these days.

The concept version of the bZ4X seen in April 2021 featured a 'yoke'-style steering wheel – an element of 'steer-by-wire' technology that does away with a mechanical link between the steering wheel and front axle, reducing the need to move your hands around the wheel. However, Toyota says this system is now planned for introduction in Europe "at a later date" and the initial production version has a conventional circular wheel.

Equipment, options & accessories

The bZ4X is available in three trim levels now: Pure, Motion and Vision. The Pure is available only with front-wheel drive, the Motion and Vision offer a choice of front or all-wheel drive. 

Standard equipment on the Pure includes 18-inch alloy wheels, an eight-inch central touchscreen, a seven-inch digital driver's display, smartphone connectivity, a reversing camera and climate control. Options include roof rails and a towing pack. The Motion adds a rear spoiler, rear privacy glass, a powered bootlid, parking sensors, heated front seats, ambient lighting and wireless phone charging. Options here include a fixed panoramic roof and 20-inch alloys.

The Vision kit list encompasses 20-inch alloys, rear parking sensors with automatic braking, remote parking assistance, synthetic leather upholstery, heated and ventilated front seats, a powered bootlid with kick sensor and a heated steering wheel. Options include the panoramic roof and towing pack.

Toyota also sold a limited-run Premiere Edition for a time which packed in everything you get on the Vision, plus a nine-speaker premium sound system and panoramic roof. It was also available exclusively with the all-wheel drive powertrain, but you can’t order this version anymore.

Infotainment, apps & sat nav

A "hands on the wheel, eyes on the road" philosophy sees the driver's seven-inch instrument and infotainment display placed directly in their eyeline, just above the line of the steering wheel, while in the centre of the dashboard on our high-spec test car was a 12-inch infotainment touchscreen. This is the best system we’ve ever seen in a Toyota; it’s responsive and features big icons that are easy to use on the move. Lesser models are equipped with an eight-inch touchscreen, but every version comes with wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto.