Toyota Might Be Working on a Plug-In Tacoma—Here’s How It Could Work

Plug-In Pickups Are Already Out ThereElectrified pickups are slowly gaining ground, but plug-in hybrid versions are still a rare sight in the U.S. In other parts of the world, though, they’re already much more common.Ford has rolled out the Ranger PHEV, while China’s BYD is pushing the Shark plug-in hybrid pickup in markets like Mexico, Asia, and Australia. Nissan has also introduced a plug-in version of the Frontier overseas.Toyota has also been pushing electrification in its pickups, but mostly outside America, with the company showing off a battery-electric Hilux. But the Tacoma, Toyota’s main midsize pickup in the US, still doesn’t have a plug-in version.That may be something the Japanese automaker is studying. Two recently published patent applications, first spotted by CarBuzz, describe a plug-in hybrid pickup truck configuration designed around battery placement and packaging.Filed with t …