Toyota Improves Charging Experience for New and Existing bZ, bZ4X Owners
Advertisement
Key Points
- Owners of the model-year 2023-25 Toyota bZ4X can order a complimentary North American Charging Standard adapter from Toyota dealerships beginning in November.
- The 2026 Toyota bZ now benefits from Plug & Charge capability, which will simplify the charging experience for owners.
- All Toyota electric vehicles can now use Apple Maps EV Routing through an Apple CarPlay
Toyota updated the all-electric bZ SUV for the 2026 model year with substantial increases in range for most configurations. While that in no way benefits existing owners of the model-year 2023-25 bZ4X, their public-charging experience is about to improve dramatically.
Related: 2026 Toyota bZ Quick Spin: Now, Doesn’t That Feel Better?
More Chargers and a Simplified Search
The model-year 2023-25 bZ4X has a Combined Charging System charge port that is incompatible with Tesla’s North American Charging Standard plugs. Starting in November, however, complimentary adapters will be available at Toyota dealerships for owners of its EV, which will allow them to use more than 25,000 Tesla Superchargers nationwide. (The 2026 bZ is built with an NACS port and includes an adapter to use CCS fast-charging and J1772 Level 2 plugs.)
Additionally, Toyota has integrated Apple Maps EV Routing into CarPlay. While Apple Maps functions the same in any vehicle a user’s phone is connected to, EV Routing incorporates information about the electric vehicle and its battery charge into its route planning. This allows the app to predict remaining range upon arrival at a destination or, if the vehicle will need a charge en route, to suggest the most convenient options. EV Routing also incorporates real-time information about charger availability, reducing the likelihood that drivers arrive at a charging station to find every plug occupied.
- ${price_badge()}
- ${ami_badge()}
- ${battery_badge()}${ev_report_link()}
- ${hot_car_badge()}
- ${award_badge()}
- ${cpo_badge()}
${price_badge_description}
${ami_badge_description}
The EV Battery Rating is based on this vehicle's current expected range relative to the vehicles expected range when new. ${battery_badge_text}
This vehicle is certified pre-owned, backed by a manufacturer warranty, and typically undergoes a rigorous multi-point inspection to ensure quality and reliability.
This vehicle is currently in high demand given its competitive price, desirable features, and overall condition, and may have a higher chance of selling quickly.
Shop the 2026 Toyota bZ near you
Shorter Stops
While Apple Maps will ease route planning for existing bZ4X owners as well as buyers of the 2026 model, only the 2026 bZ benefits from the newly introduced Plug & Charge capability. Plug & Charge allows precisely what its name says: Drivers simply plug their vehicle in at a public charger and charging starts. There’s no need to fiddle with apps or credit cards to initiate the session. If this sounds like minimal hassle, it’s not. In last year’s Electric Vehicle Experience Public Charging Study, analytics firm J.D. Power found that convoluted payment processes added seven to eight minutes — or nearly 30% — to the average charging stop.
Tesla’s Superchargers are the first network to be enabled through Toyota’s Plug & Charge system, with Ionna (the OEM-backed effort from seven automakers, including Toyota), ChargePoint and EVgo to be added later. Unfortunately for owners of the 2023-25 bZ4X, Plug & Charge requires software and hardware changes within the vehicle, so Toyota will not be adding the capability to the earlier EVs.
Read More About the Toyota bZ and bZ4X:
- How Much Is the 2026 Toyota bZ?
- 2023 Toyota bZ4X DC Fast-Charging Test: Don’t Rely On It
- Here Are the 11 Cheapest Electric Vehicles You Can Buy
- How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2023 Toyota bZ4X?
- Toyota Drops bZ4X Price Almost $6,000, Adds Nightshade Trim
Related Video:
Cars.com’s Editorial department is your source for automotive news and reviews. In line with Cars.com’s long-standing ethics policy, editors and reviewers don’t accept gifts or free trips from automakers. The Editorial department is independent of Cars.com’s advertising, sales and sponsored content departments.
Advertisement
You Might Also Like
With the upcoming Rivian R2, the luxury electric brand seems to be making a play for greater mainstream acceptance. The all-new mid-size SUV is expected to carry a base price around $45,000 — roughly half the price of the pricier trims of the other vehicles in its lineup. And the planned Launch Edition expected to hit dealerships early next year won’t be the fully loaded variant such editions typically are, but instead a mid-level version more in line with what shoppers will likely end up choosing. We’ve got all the details on the R2 in Cars.com’s most popular news article of the past week.
Kia’s flagship gas-powered SUV, the Telluride, is getting a big update for the 2027 model year, and the South Korean brand has lifted the cover on what we’ll see when it makes its in-person debut at the 2025 Los Angeles Auto Show later this month. The new Telluride embodies what Kia calls its “Opposites United” design ethos that’s both rugged and sophisticated with curves and angles. We’re not sure where we stand on that idea, but the new Telluride’s look certainly does appear evolutionary instead of revolutionary, in a break from what Kia has done for a lot of its latest designs.
We’ve owned our long-term 2025 Toyota 4Runner for about six months now, and we’ve now passed the 8,000-mile mark on the odometer. Over the course of all our daily-driver duties, long-haul road trips and some off-road driving, we’ve worn off our 4Runner’s showroom-fresh feeling.
With the launch of the Polestar 3 and now the 4, the electric-vehicle brand is finally giving American shoppers what they want: SUVs. And there are more on the way, too, with the Polestar 7 compact SUV set to launch in 2028. (Note that Polestar’s model numbers are chronological from the vehicle’s release, an approach that seems bound to confuse car shoppers.)
Take a look at how the Latch system and each car seat scored below in our Car Seat Check of the 2025 Ford Expedition.
Japan has a way of making some things just a bit cuter than you’ll find them in other places. Kei cars adorable and Honda’s old ASIMO somehow packed so much character into its little body.