Toyota PROACE CITY Electric Panel Van (2019 - 2024) review

The Toyota Proace City Electric comes in two body lengths named ‘short’ and ‘long’, with just a single roof height available across the range - exactly the same as the vans it platform shares with. You can access the cargo area through the twin side loading doors that come as standard (a very appealing provision), or the twin rear doors that open up to the full 180 degrees. Load lengths are 1817mm and 2167mm respectively, giving drivers load volumes of 3.3 or 3.9 cubic metres. These dimensions can be increased when the Smart Cargo system is used - this is simply a hatch in the bulkhead and a rising passenger seat - allowing for loads as long as 3440mm in the ‘long’ version and increasing the load volume by 0.4cu/m. Payloads in the Toyota Proace City Electric are good for a small electric van, providing 800kg in the short version or 750kg in the longer body (the added metalwork eating only slightly into the payload). If you need to tow, a useful 750kg of towing capacity is available on the Proace Electric - not something that all electric vans of this model year can do.

You’ve a choice of a single or twin passenger seat. Be aware that the centre seat is for occasional use only - it’s very narrow and passengers will clash with the driver's arm on a constant basis. However, this seat can be folded down to provide a work surface which can be angled toward the driver or passenger - nice touch. There’s plenty of storage, too, with 5.9 litres of capacity in the door pockets alone. There are open and closed areas on the dash, and a handy overhead shelf which sits well above head height for my six-foot frame. Proace City Electric doesn’t come with the digital instrument cluster that its Stellantis siblings have - an example of how these vans do have subtle differences. Fabrics are standard fair, as is the durable plastic used in the interior - it does the job.

Electric vans usually offer good running costs to offset their higher standard prices. The Proace Electric offers decent charging times too. A 100kWh public charger will get you to 80% of capacity in as little as 30 minutes with a 7kWh home wall box charger taking just over 7 hours. If you have access to an 11kWh charge point at home or at work, you’ll need to specify the optional 11kWh onboard charger to take advantage of this charging speed - it’s perhaps its only down side. If you can pick one up on finance or on a lease you’ll also mitigate the upfront price. Just something to bear in mind.

Toyota Proace Electric has one of the best warranty offerings on the market. Although the standard 3 years/60,000 miles is industry standard, if you have your van serviced at a Toyota dealer the warranty will continue for up to 10 years or 100,000 miles, whichever comes first! The battery packs benefit from an industry-standard 8-year/100,000-mile guarantee, which is a huge vote of confidence in this vehicle’s power train. Service intervals are fixed at 2 years/25,000 miles between scheduled dealer visits. Top marks for Toyota here.

The Toyota Proace City Electric has a 100kW (roughly equivalent to 136hp) electric motor powered by a battery pack of the same rating. So, on the WLTP combined cycle, the van has a range between charges of 168 miles and the 0-62mph sprint will take 11.2 seconds. However, I’d err on the side of caution with that range as I noticed some big drops in mileage that did have some variance. I drove my standard test of 30 miles in the vehicle’s ‘normal’ mode starting out with an indicated range of 171 miles - by the end I had an indicated range of 129 miles showing a drop of 41 miles. Now, 11 miles variance is not huge in the electric van marketplace, but it’s something to bear in mind. As previously alluded to, there are three driving modes available selectable by a switch in the centre of the dash. The default setting is ‘Normal’, restricting motor power to 80kW. ‘Eco’ further reduces the motor’s power draw to 60kW to prioritise range. If you want the full 100kW of power you’ll need to switch to ‘Power’ mode. It’s pretty good in this field.

The diesel versions of the Proace City are a nice and quiet drive, meaning that the Proace Electric (as you’d expect) is even quieter. I found it a pleasure to drive with good response from the pedal. Electric power gives you way more torque and the ability to get away from crossings at legal speed without a problem. Wind noise was very low - not something you often get from electric vehicles - and I have to wonder if Toyota added to the noise baffling in the body work. Either way, it’s a quiet and powerful drive for a small van, but you’ll get similar performance from the vans it platform shares with.

Standard safety kit includes electronic stability control, hill-start assist, downhill assist, tyre pressure monitors, six airbags, adjustable speed limiter and the integrated emergency eCall system. It’s pretty good for this vintage of vans, but feels like a very standard level of kit, so take a good look at other vans alongside this when considering your safety needs.

When it comes to trim levels, the Toyota Proace City Electric in this model year offers one. ‘Icon’ trim level includes a touch screen multimedia unit with Apple Carplay and Android Auto smartphone integration, front and rear parking sensors, a reverse camera, cruise control and powered door mirrors. Other than that, standard equipment includes the EV-specific instrument cluster with 3.5-inch multi-function display behind the steering wheel, the excellent 8.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Bluetooth, two USB sockets, manual air-con, adjustable speed limiter, smart cargo load-through bulkhead, six rear load hooks and ample lighting in the cargo area. It’s absolutely fine.

Taken on its own terms, the Toyota Proace City Electric is a solid offering in the small van sector. I feel that you’d be hard pushed to choose between it and the other Stellantis vans it shares its platform with, and ultimately it will come down to how you feel about its looks and the van itself (which, apart from the instrumentation panel in the electric version, is not that different on an equipment level). To balance this out, the shorter-than-most range and its variances could be a hurdle, as is the single trim level in this model year, and safety and security kit is also limited. And then there’s the elephant in the room that it’s one of five nearly identical electric small vans available on the market. However, I like that Toyota has made an effort to differentiate the look and feel of the van from the other platform sharers. I also like how important Toyota puts its drivers first in the warranty and aftercare process. The company knows that the vehicle has to win over potential drivers on more than just the van, so they do that by providing peace of mind with up to 10 years of coverage! This may be a solid enough reason to opt for this van over others itself.