Carmakers face backlash as the hybrid label war escalates, with Toyota saying mild-hybrids are misleading drivers and blurring real hybrid technology
October 4, 2025 at 14:34
- Toyota believes 48-volt systems should not be labelled as hybrid tech.
- It claims real hybrids must use electric drive alongside combustion engines.
- Despite that statement, in Europe the Hilux 48V is marketed as a hybrid.
A growing number of new cars fitted with 48-volt mild-hybrid systems has reached showrooms in recent years, but Toyota argues that calling these vehicles “hybrids” is a misnomer. Sean Hanley, the company’s sales and marketing chief in Australia, has openly criticized rivals for labeling 48-volt-equipped models as hybrids, suggesting the practice risks confusing buyers.
Unlike traditional series-parallel hybrids, which utilize a battery and a motor alongside a combustion engine to enhance efficiency, or a plug-in hybrid with a typically larger battery and more powerful motor(s) providing extended all-electric driving, 48-volt technology plays a much smaller role.
Drawing Clear Lines
The setup typically combines starter motor and alternator functions, offering modest gains in fuel efficiency. Toyota’s own 48-volt configuration cannot propel a vehicle using electric power alone, which is why the brand is keen to draw a line between the two technologies.
Read: 2025 Toyota Hilux Receives Another Facelift Along With Mild-Hybrid Diesel
According to Hanley, Toyota doesn’t even consider 48-volt systems as hybrids, marketing them as ‘V Active’ systems in Australia, and he thinks rival brands should also move away from using the term “hybrid” so easily.
“I’ve watched hybrid technology being used in different ways in marketing in recent years now,” he told Drive. “Now good luck to people, but Toyota is going to make it very clear what a hybrid system is for efficiency, what a hybrid system is for performance, and what a 48-volt-assisted system is,” Hanley continued. “And a 48-volt-assisted system, in our opinion, does not represent hybrid drive. I think OEMs have a responsibility to make sure [customers are aware of the differences].”
He reinforced the point by highlighting Toyota’s current lineup: “I want to make that clear that when you buy a Toyota 48-volt-assisted [powertrain] that currently exists in Hilux and Land Cruiser Prado, you are not buying a hybrid system. They’re not hybrids, not remotely, so we definitely want to separate these three conditions on this technology.”
Depends On Who’s Asking, Apparently
All would be nice and dandy if Toyota itself stuck to the same message globally. While it avoids using the hybrid tag in Australia, it takes the opposite stance in Europe. There, the 48-volt version of the HiLux is promoted directly as the Hilux Hybrid 48V – and that shows how a company’s marketing language can change depending on its target group.
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