After a four-year absence, the Toyota C-HR is back. This time, it's a sleek and desirable subcompact EV with much more potential than its predecessor.
2026 Toyota C-HR Pricing, Specs, and Release Date
- What’s New for the 2026 Toyota C-HR
- Design
- Powertrain
- Interior
- Technology
- Safety
- Pricing and Release Date
- Further Research
What’s New for the 2026 Toyota C-HR
Back in 2018, Toyota debuted the C-HR in the U.S. It was a subcompact SUV with origins in Toyota's Scion spin-off brand. With a tiny footprint and fluid-like styling, it had plenty of potential to appeal to budget-conscious shoppers. Sadly, its dreadfully slow acceleration and loud interior kept it from realizing that potential.
The 2026 Toyota C-HR looks to erase that past, returning as a fully electric vehicle with significantly more power, technology, and a fresh new look.
Design
Toyota's new "Hammerhead" design language seems to be doing wonders for the brand, replacing the previous style that displayed oversized grilles and some awkward bodywork. This new look seems to suit the 2026 C-HR perfectly, with distinctive split accent lights and beveled body panels that show off its modernity with the hint of a sporty attitude. Around back, the modernity gets kicked into high gear with a sharp light bar that spans the width of the liftgate and wraps around the sides.
This sleek and athletic appearance can easily stand on its own, but shoppers can further enhance it with 20-inch alloy wheels instead of the standard 18-inchers, and opt for a black roof for a two-tone theme. Overall, this new C-HR effectively erases the memory of its predecessor and should be able to attract buyers on looks alone.
Powertrain
The new C-HR ditches the disappointing 144-hp four-cylinder gas engine for a fully electric powertrain. Two electric motors (one each for the front and rear axles) combine to produce a healthier 338 hp, and thanks to standard all-wheel-drive, it should rocket the C-HR to 60 mph in only 5.0 seconds. That's a huge improvement to the last version that required almost 11 seconds.
Those motors are fed by a 74.7-kWh battery in the floor, and by Toyota's estimate, it should return up to 290 miles on a single charge. When you need to replenish the battery, the C-HR features a NACS charge port that is compatible with Tesla's Supercharger network, ensuring forward compatibility and quick charge speeds. Under ideal conditions, you could DC fast-charge the battery from 10 to 80 percent in 30 minutes. On level one and two AC chargers, it can achieve rates up to 11 kW.
Battery preconditioning can speed up the charge process when a charger is selected in the navigation system, or manually via the infotainment touchscreen. Helping to eliminate some of the hassle of charging, it's capable of Plug & Charge that exchanges all necessary information to the charge station, rather than forcing you to open different apps for different charge networks, or carry around a deck of specific swipe cards.
Interior
The new CH-R's modern exterior styling extends to the interior, with a simple layout embellished with modern touches. A large glossy infotainment touchscreen dominates the dashboard and is placed well within the driver's sightlines and physical knobs to adjust the temperature and volume further help to reduce distraction while driving. Below that, a dial gear selector is well-placed on the center console and is fairly intuitive to use.
Personal item storage is adequate, with moderately sized cup holders, a tray underneath the console, and a dual-hinged center armrest bin. The lid tended to rattle annoyingly in the pre-production model we checked-out, so hopefully that will be addressed before it hits the assembly line. Interior materials are comparable to other subcompact SUVs, with plenty of hard plastic in the cabin, but there are padded soft-touch surfaces where you rest your elbows.
The front seats are notable for their sporty side bolsters that should keep you securely planted when cornering. In the base SE trim, they're upholstered in fabric and Toyota's SofTex synthetic leather. The XSE trim upgrades to a velour-like synthetic suede that is both attractive and a pleasure to the touch.
The rear seats offer plenty of headroom for the average adult passenger, though the seat cushion is mounted a bit low to the floor. This reduces thigh support some, but we're confident that most passengers will find it suitably comfortable on road trips. The sense of spaciousness is enhanced with an available panoramic sunroof, that gives the interior a more open and airy feel. Behind those seats, the cargo area can accommodate up to 25.4 cubic feet, which is typical for the class.
Technology
Standard equipment for all CH-R models include a digital instrument panel and a massive 14-inch infotainment touchscreen. Wireless versions of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are also included and pair well with the dual wireless phone chargers. The touchscreen's optimal placement atop the dash should make for easy operation and reduced distraction, and enhanced voice commands should further simplify use.
As with most vehicles today, the CH-R features remote monitoring and control via a smartphone app. This allows you to pre-condition the cabin on a hot or cold day, as well as manage the battery charge schedule to take advantage of off-peak utility rates. On top of that, you also get a wifi hotspot free trial. The standard audio system has six speakers, but a premium nine-speaker JBL upgrade is available as an option.
Safety
The 2026 CH-R comes loaded with Toyota's Safety Sense 3.0 suite of advanced safety features and driver assists. These include frontal collision warning with automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, a blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert, a traffic sign reader, automatic high beams, and safe passenger exit alert. Traffic Jam assist is also included with the XSE trim, combining adaptive cruise control with lane-keep assist to reduce driver fatigue in dense traffic conditions. Toyota's Proactive Driving Assist is also featured, but we typically disable this feature as it's a bit too intrusive for our tastes.
Pricing and Release Date
As of this writing, pricing is not yet available for the 2026 Toyota CH-R, but we should have that information closer to the on-sale date that is set for the beginning of 2026. In addition to the aforementioned items, the Base SE trim comes with standard feature highlights that include a power liftgate, a power-adjustable driver seat, heated front seats, and a heated steering wheel. Stepping up to the XSE trim adds a power front passenger seat, driver seat memory functions, a digital rearview mirror, lane-change assist, and a surround-view camera system.
Our first impressions of the new CH-R are very favorable. So much so that we think it could have justified a name change because it's so different from the previous generation. Optimism is high, so be sure to check back for more information drive impressions later in the year.