Tested: 2026 Toyota bZ EV Comes With An Upside Surprise

LifestyleCars & BikesTested: 2026 Toyota bZ EV Comes With An Upside SurpriseByBrooke Crothers,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Brooke Crothers covers and reviews electric vehicles and autonomy.Follow AuthorJun 14, 2026, 09:58am EDTJun 14, 2026, 09:58am EDT2026 Toyota bZ Woodland in the high desert outside of Los Angeles. Credit: Brooke CrothersThe 2026 Toyota bZ comes with surprises. Mostly good. I tested the Toyota bZ Woodland, an off-road-capable EV that impressed me with its speed above everything else. TL;DR: The AWD Toyota bZ Woodland EV can take you off-road but its neck-snapping acceleration is what really impresses. Rated range is about 280 miles. Starting MSRP is $45,300.2026 Toyota bZ Woodland at a Simi Valley, Calif. Tesla Supercharger location.Credit: Brooke CrothersOff-RoadI wasn’t expecting an off-road capable bZ from Toyota so I wasn’t able to schedule a trip to my usual off-road spot in the Mojave Desert during the week I had the vehicle. I did take it to another (closer) location in the Mojave Desert but that area is not nearly as challenging. All I can say is that the limited (very light) off-road testing that I did posed no problems. The Dunlop Grandtrek tires, high ground clearance (8.4 inches), and X-MODE make this a solid off-road vehicle capable of handling much more challenging off-road conditions than I was able to throw at it. SpeedThis was a surprise. Despite its size (the Woodland’s stretched rear wagon profile extends the length almost six inches more than the standard bZ) and weight (the curb weight is about 4,500 pounds) it has addictive torque. I did most of my driving in Los Angeles traffic on Interstate 5, 405, and 118. Let me just say this: while it’s not a Lucid (I’ve test driven Lucids twice for a week each time), it feels close. My favorite stretch of highway with the bZ Woodland was the rise on 118 as it approaches the Ventura County line. Whenever I punched it on this upgrad...