[Auto] 2021 Toyota Mirai First Look

[HiTLeR]

 

When Toyota introduced the Mirai to the U.S. in late 2015, it came with a promise from what was then the largest carmaker in the world: Hydrogen fuel cells were the future, said Toyota. The name itself even means “future” in Japanese. Now that future is more clearly defined in the 2021 Mirai, one that quite literally looks better than ever before.

The biggest change in the completely redesigned Mirai is obvious: It no longer looks like a Toyota Corolla that’s been beaten with an ugly stick. The 2021 Mirai has grown up, graduating to a much larger, front-engine, rear-drive platform. This gives the car the long and low proportions of something like an Audi A7 or Mercedes CLS and allows for a center seat in the rear, making the Mirai a 5-seater for the first time. While Toyota wouldn’t say exactly where the underpinnings come from, it's clear that the new Mirai has more than a little Lexus in it.

Upgraded interior

The interior gets a similar overhaul, with a 12.3-inch touchscreen and a more conventional dashboard layout. The center instrument panel from the Prius is now gone, replaced by a driver-centric cockpit design with a more horizontal layout to the controls. The rest of the interior looks to be as premium as in any Toyota.

As the styling goes from egregious to elegant, so too will the Mirai's performance improve. Toyota says the new car will see its range extended by 30 percent, from the 312 miles of the current car. Better aerodynamics and increased hydrogen storage capacity will play a part, but the Mirai’s powertrain hardware will also get upgrades.

Second-generation fuel cell

A new, second-generation fuel cell stack will make more power and further development of the components shared with Toyota's legion of hybrids (the battery, electric motor generator, and power control unit) will translate to improved efficiency. Toyota officials also said that driving performance was a key consideration for the new Mirai, which will offer 20-inch wheels and tires, a big upgrade from the current car's 17-inchers.

How much does the Toyota Mirai cost?

The Mirai was the first fuel cell electric vehicle that any carmaker would actually let you buy rather than lease. Yet with a sticker price just under $ 60,000 and sweetheart lease deals that cover trips to the fueling station, nearly all Mirai drivers have chosen to lease. Currently the Mirai lease is $ 2,499 up front, plus $ 389 per month for 36 months, which includes three years or $ 15,000 of hydrogen fuel. Expect that to increase for the second generation, commensurate with Toyota’s positioning the new Mirai as a flagship for the brand.

Of the roughly 6,000 Mirai units Toyota has sold or leased (all in California, the only state with sufficient hydrogen refueling infrastructure to support fuel cell electric vehicles), more than 99-percent have been leased, according to the manufacturer. If that reflects the science project nature of this nascent technology, or just Toyota’s typically pragmatic customer base, remains to be seen.

Global sales target of 30,000 per year

The goals for Toyota's second-generation Mirai are lofty regardless. The new model is targeting global annual sales of 30,000, a massive increase considering Toyota has built only 10,000 of the Mirai so far. While the company says it would love to offer the new Mirai outside of California, particularly in the Northeast, for now it is still waiting on resolution of regulatory issues surrounding operating hydrogen-fueled vehicles on bridges and in tunnels.

Toyota will be revealing more details about the car and its sales plans closer to the new Mirai’s late-2020 on-sale date.