New and old model at the same time, completely electric
Toyota adds a new large van to its delivery range: the ProAce Max. The Toyota ProAce Max, like other vans of the brand, is basically not a Toyota at all, but a product of Stellantis. A Fiat Ducato, to be precise!
With the ProAce City and ProAce and the passenger car versions derived from them ProAce City Verso and ProAce Verso, Toyota added two ‘vans’ to its range years ago that had their origins in a PSA Group product. For example, the ProAce City is a brother of the Peugeot Partner and Citroën Berlingo and the ProAce is actually a Peugeot Expert or Citroën Jumpy with a mild Toyota sauce. PSA Group, together with Opel and the former FCA Group, is now part of Stellantis, with the result that the interaction in the commercial vehicle world went a step further. In a nutshell: the Opel Combo became a Partner, the Vivaro an Expert and Fiat now also has versions of it in the form of the Doblò and Scudo (and passenger car version Ulysse). The largest vans of the Stellantis brands became a variant of the Fiat Ducato. This finally brings us to today’s story. Now Toyota is also getting a version of the Ducato. This is the Toyota ProAce Max, both the newest and the oldest Toyota model in Europe.
The recently renewed Fiat Ducato.
Also Toyota? Yes, the Ducato already has numerous brothers and sisters within Stellantis. For example, Peugeot sells it as a Boxer, Citroën as a Jumper, Opel as a Movano and even Ram has a version of it: the ProMaster. Opel, Fiat, Peugeot and Citroën recently showed refreshed versions of their largest commercial vehicle and Toyota’s version of the Ducato is also a refreshed variant given the relatively dark glazing of the rear lights. The ProAce Max is completely new for Toyota, but the Ducato on which it is based has been in operation since 2006 and is therefore already 17 years old.
The Toyota ProAce Max will be available in various sizes, just like the original. Three length and three height versions will be available. The most spacious variant has a loading volume of a generous 17 cubic meters. There is also a choice of various body types, including a Crew Cab version with two rows of seats, a Chassis cab variant and a version with an open loading platform.
While various Ducato derivatives are also available with diesel engines in addition to EVs, the Toyota ProAce Max appears to only be supplied with an electric drivetrain. According to Toyota, the electric Toyota ProAce Max has a range of 420 kilometers (WLTP). More information – including extensive technical data – will follow later this month.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl