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August 23, 2023

This Is Your First Look At The Next-Generation Toyota Tamaraw


Toyota Motor Philippines remains committed to assembly of vehicles in the Philippines. It showcased the next-generation Tamaraw which will be assembled at the carmaker’s Sta. Rosa, Laguna plant starting in 2024.

A precursor to the current Innova and Zenix MPVs, the Tamaraw was manufactured and sold in the Philippines from 1976 to 2005. It was a dependable utility transport vehicle for many Filipinos, and many are still on the road today.

This heritage has prompted Toyota to resurrect the nameplate as a true commercial vehicle using the brand’s “IMV-0” (IMV Zero) platform.

Returning to its roots, the next-generation Tamaraw will not just support economic growth, but also entry-level mobility.


Taking in the learnings from the original IMV, the IMV 0 Concept features a level of modularity and customizability that’s best described as “Lego-like.” Modules such as a Modern PUV Jeepney and a Pace Car Pickup were shown.

It’s also designed with a very low cost of ownership in mind. For instance, the front bumper is made of three separate pieces meaning replacements or repair will not be costly compared to when they are made of one large piece.

More interesting is the “0” or “Zero” in the concept’s name. Toyota envisions a family of eco-friendly powertrains including a clean diesel, hybrid, BEV, fuel cell (FCEV), or even hydrogen-combustion. For its Philippine preview, it was shown using the current Hilux’s running gear (2GD-FTV).

The assembly of the next-generation Tamaraw in the Philippines adds a further P 4.4 billion investment in the country by Toyota. It will also add to the current 3,742 employees working directly for Toyota Motor Philippines and the more than 71,000 at various Toyota dealers and suppliers.

25 comments:

  1. very filipino design yet modern, ala "ford piera"

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    1. Toyota Indonesia Astra developed and designed this one
      They call it Rangga in their country as the spiritual successor of the cab and chassis version of Kijang Revo from the mid and late 1990's.

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    2. @Anon 8:32 This is actually developed by Toyota Thailand R&D (TDEM to be specific). If you watched the livestream last night, they showed a video with a Thai engineer presenting the vehicle with Simon Humphries, the chief branding officer of TMC. Thailand is the main hub for the IMV platform (soon to be hub for TNGA-F platform for Hilux and Fortuner) so it is highly logical for them to lead development for the Tamaraw. Ofc, Toyota Indonesia would have had a hand in development just like TMP did since this product is very significant.

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    3. It's designed by Toyota Thailand though I'm pretty sure that other Asean Toyota are involved too

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  2. Very interesting to see what Mitsubishi will do to respond to the Tamaraw revival. This is the first time that Toyota has brought out a direct L300 rival since the Tamaraw FX HSPU days. This new Tamaraw will be designed to modern standards (read: safer) and is based on the current IMV architecture that allows access to the GD series engines. The L300 now seems pre-historic next to this despite the engine upgrade it got. Granted, this will be a more expensive product, but many would jump to this vs the L300 due to the brand and nostalgia of the nameplate on top of being a superior vehicle. This may actually force Mitsubishi's hand and make an all-new L300 if things get worse sales wise.

    Also, what will happen to the Hilux Fleet range? Will they kill the Cargo, CC, and FX variants and only keep the J and E variants when the TNGA-F-based model comes? With the Tamaraw being very flexible, I see no need for TMP to sell CC variants of the Hilux anymore.

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    1. Hoping this wouldn't be more expensive than the L300, because the Mitsubishi is already pricey for an ancient product. The new engine also gave the vehicle a stance that looks like it will be more likely to topple over.

      It is possible that Toyota would end the sales of the Hilux fleet range as the new Tamaraw fulfills the middle ground between the Lite Ace and Hi Ace Cargo.

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    2. May sales figure ba if dominated ng L300 tong segment nato? I am thinking Toyota was force to offer this to our market due to L300 domination on this segment.

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    3. @Anon 4:35 In 2021, the L300 returned to the top-10 best-selling cars list. There are times that it wasn't there but I'd say it nipps at the fringes of the top-10 consistently (unlike other models). Now, you see more L300s on the road vs Foton Harabases and Kia K2500s. The Carry and Lite Ace compete in a smaller segment but can be considered as part of the segment (I see more Lite Aces than Carries but still not as much as L300s because TMP may still be dealing with high demand). The only model that comes close to frequency on the road is the Traviz (Lite Ace will catch up eventually). With the Tamaraw, TMP seems to be aiming straight at the heart of the L300 and fight it mano-a-mano with local production (much easier unit allocation vs import).

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  3. Love them or hate them, Toyota invests billions and employs thousands even though importing cars can be cheaper. Hope the Chinese can do the same.

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    1. Foton is in the Philippines for a decade manufacturing trucks in the country
      TMPC relies on Metrobank depositors investment
      Mitsubishi Motors Philippines's been manufacturing vehicles locally since the 1970's

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  4. TMP should eventually spend more to modernize the design of the initial batch of options that they will be offering. The ones shown here reminds me of Armour cars with all those flat panels surrounding the vehicle. Apply R&D to make Tamaraw more world class and away from the 70/80's look.

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  5. Is this some kind of a sick joke?

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  6. If am not mistaken tmpc has already said that tamaraw for ph market will be assembled/manufactured here in ph. Good for our job force and the economy as a whole.

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  7. It doesn't even look like a Tamaraw at all.

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    1. It's just a Hilux single cab with a different body and interior

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    2. Maybe what was shown in the pic is an accessorized/spruce up version. Tamaraw is for utility/business, so final ph version could look similar to 1st gen. Tmpc investing 4.4B for tamaraw assembly/manufacturing here in ph. units will be rolled out 2024 as per tmpc

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  8. Too wide so they will end up clogging the streets even more. Good job.

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  9. Akala ko ba, pushing for electrification na mga PUVs..?
    Why do toyota even bother doing this?.. and its ugly.

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    Replies
    1. Knowing Toyota, they still want to preserve ICE as much as possible because they’ve already invested a lot into it and they also know how to make reliable ICE cars.

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    2. Reliable ICE cars?
      Tell that to GR86 and GR Yaris owners with blown defective engines.😂
      Toyota will reused their 20 year old engines in it 😂

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  10. It'll eat the sales of the Hilux next year
    PNP and AFP are gonna hoard the units of it for sure 😂

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  11. I wonder if this will be crash-tested. Toyota doesn't want to sell a vehicle with less than 5-stars crash rating (even willing to go through *other* lenghts to gain these ratings lol), but those thin a-pillars look flimsy.. but then again, atleast it has a proper nose that could probably save you in a crash unlike its competitors which are absolutely death traps from the 1980s (L300 and Traviz)

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    Replies
    1. Toyota doesn't immediately sent their vehicles for crash test at ASEAN NCAP anymore for obvious reasons
      New Tamaraw/Rangga won't score 5 stars at ASEAN NCAP as it only got two airbags..They won't add ADAS on it for cost reasons.

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  12. Can't wait to see the plain white passenger version of this. We had a Tamaraw FX for a school service business when I was in gradeschool. Served us for many years. Nostalgic indeed.
    Recent releases of Toyota are forgettable especially the cheap Daihatsu rebadged ones.

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