After being serial teasers the past few weeks regarding its new electric model, Toyota has finally unveiled the model destined for the North American market. Meet the 2027 Toyota Highlander, completely transformed, starting with an absence of an internal combustion engine anywhere in the product offering.
2027 Toyota Highlander – What’s new?
Conceived using the company’s e-TNGA platform, familiar from its use with the bZ and bZ Woodland models as well as the brand-new all-electric C-HR, the new, fifth-generation Highlander gets a wholly new start, starting with its powertrain but also as concerns its look.
By the way, the new Highlander EV for North America will be assembled at Toyota’s plant in Georgetown, Kentucky.
Versions of the 2027 Toyota Highlander
- - 2027 Highlander XLE FWD
- - 2027 Highlander XLE AWD
- - 2027 Highlander Limited AWD
Design of the 2027 Toyota Highlander
The new Highlander has a wheelbase of 3,050 mm and a total length of 5,050 mm; that’s more in both cases than the outgoing Highlander (2,850 mm and 4,950 mm). It’s also gotten wider, but slightly less tall in its transformation.
The front end is totally reworked, not surprising given this is now an EV, so we find a solid panel up front above with sit oh-so-slender headlamps. The fenders are broad and, new Chinese regulations be darned, the door handles are flush. Up top, an optional fixed glass panoramic roof, “the largest in the Toyota lineup”, according to the company.
Said chief designer for the model Masayuki Yamada, “Our design mission was to create a new Highlander that pursued the robust proportions of an SUV while also capturing the sophisticated, high-tech aspects of all-electric performance. To accomplish that goal, we designed a model that balanced aerodynamics, interior space, and capability.”
Interior
Once again three-row in configuration, the new Highlander can accommodate six or seven occupants, depending on if buyers choose the optional bench seat for the second row. Toyota touts standard SofTex-trimmed seating, soft-touch materials on the dash and doors and customizable interior lighting, as well as heated front seats. Ventilated front seats and heated second row seats are available.
Powertrain of the 2027 Toyota Highlander
The three-row electric SUV borrows the electric motors found in the smaller bZ, giving it a total output of 338 hp and 323 lb-ft of torque. Feeding those motors is a standard 77-kWh battery (same as in the C-HR and the bZ, or else an optional 95.8-kWh battery. Range from those two units is 431 km and 511 km, respectively. Note that the optional bigger 22-inch wheels on the higher-end XLE Premium and Limited grades will eat into that latter range, dropping it to 473 km.
Toyota has given its new electric SUV a heat pump and battery pre-conditioning to limit range loss in cold weather.
The 2027 Highlander will feature a built-in NACS charger to permit access to eligible Tesla supercharging stations. It also gets vehicle-to-load (V2L) functionality, allowing it to serve as a mobile power source for appliances and such.
With the smaller battery, towing capacity is rated at 1,180 kg (2,600 lb); with the larger, it’s 1,587 kg (3,500 lb).
Sales of the new 2027 Highlander are expected to begin in late 2026; pricing will be announced closer to the model’s launch date.
