The facelifted 2021 Toyota Hilux has been spotted in the Philippines

The facelifted 2021 Toyota Hilux has been spotted in the Philippines hinting at the Japanese brand launching the vehicle soon. The Toyota Hilux, along with its stablemate the Toyota Fortuner, have both undergone a facelift in Thailand last June. This facelift has given the popular Toyota pickup truck a new look making it look a lot closer to its stateside brother the Tacoma. It gets a larger and robust looking grille along with a new seat of headlights. Its bumper has also been redesigned to match the new aesthetic of the vehicle along with a new set of wheels. 

Thanks to photos uploaded to Facebook by Vijay Sohal and information from TopGear Philippines we can safely say that the refreshed Toyota Hilux is indeed in the country. The images from the Facebook post showcase what appears to be G and E units of the popular Japanese pickup truck being hauled around the Santa Rosa Laguna area. This indicates that Toyota has already brought in at least the first batch of these new units into the country in preparation for its launch.

It is important to note that in the photos, these units do not come with the LED headlight housings found on the Thailand models. The images do showcase the new grille along with the vehicle’s new face. Over at the rear, it's also notable to point out that the taillights at least for the variants shown still retain the older look of the current model. Still, other sightings have indicated that a Toyota Hilux Conquest or a new range-topping “V” variant is already in the country. What remains uncertain is if the top of the line model will be coming with the LED headlight housings as well as the redesigned LED taillights.

Still another unknown factor is if these new units of the popular Japanese pickup already come with a boost in power to its 2.8-liter engine. Over in Thailand, the 2.8-liter turbo diesel motor already makes 201hp and 500 Nm of torque. In the Philippines however, the 2.8-liter engine only makes 174hp and 450 Nm of torque. With that said if the power increase does come with the new units, it represents a gain of 27hp and 50 Nm of torque making the Hilux one of the more powerful pickup truck options in the country.

While these units are already in the country, it is only a matter of time before Toyota Motor Philippines officially unveils the refreshed 2021 Toyota Hilux in the country. We estimate that it should be launched before 2020 ends or about a month after the launch of the Toyota Corolla Cross.