Toyota Gazoo Racing is developing a new Toyota Hilux for 2026, one that they don’t expect to contend for the win immediately but comes with new features that should make it a threat in the coming years.

Unlike the Toyota GR DKR Hilux, which still has certain parts and the chassis built by SVR in South Africa, this new model will be produced entirely in Europe, specifically Germany (where the flagship TGR is based) and Belgium (Overdrive Racing). With operations closer to home and on such a short timetable, TGR and Overdrive—who fields the Hilux for privateers—brought in former Hyundai WRC boss Christian Loriaux as head of development in December to lead the project. Glyn Hall, the former owner of TGR partner SVR who designed the original DKR Hilux, is also involved as a technical consultant.

Although the new Hilux will still use the same 3.5-liter twin turbo engine as the current car, the technology set to be implemented requires a completely new and wider chassis surrounding it. This new tech comes from HySE, a hydrogen R&D project jointly run by Toyota and fellow Japanese auto giants Denso Corporation, Honda, Kawasaki Motors and Heavy Industries, Suzuki, and Yamaha. Yoshio Ikemachi raced the hydrogen-powered HySE-X2 at this year’s Dakar in Mission 1000, where it won the fan vote and finished second overall. While some ideas are taken from HySE, the new Hilux will continue to use a traditional ICE.

“This car is not intended to be a winner, but a demonstrator model that we can use to put some choices to the test in a hostile environment,” TGR sporting director Jean-Marc Fortin explained to the W2RC website. “The revolution will come in the 2027 Dakar, or perhaps in 2028.”

Although the current Hilux has proven to be wildly successful, having won every manufacturer’s title since the World Rally-Raid Championship’s inception in 2022, it is still narrower than the average T1+ because it was “developed for the 2019 Dakar.” By widening the chassis on the 2026 model, the driver can have a lower center of gravity. Fortin also teased “a slew of improvements, such as a new geometry, new brakes. It’ll be a whole new car with a revamped look.”

TGR plans to field two of the new Hiluxes for their factory drivers Henk Lategan and Seth Quintero, while also preparing a factory-level Hilux for reigning Dakar winner Yazeed Al-Rajhi.

Featured image credit: Kin Marcin / Red Bull Content Pool