Toyota is charting its own course as the industry moves into a new, electrified era, and no one is more in touch with those plans than Cooper Ericksen, the company’s Senior Vice President, Product, BEV and Mobility Planning and Strategy. Ericksen is our special guest this week. And Host Jack Nerad will question him about Toyota’s introduction of battery-electric vehicles as many of its competitors go all in.

Chastized by some for being too slow to adopt BEVs, Ericksen will describe Toyota’s philosophy on net-zero carbon emissions that defies the critics. As he told us, the Toyota bZ4X is just the first of a long string of BEVs that Toyota and Lexus will launch in the next several years. At the same time reaching net-zero isn’t as simple as shutting the door on internal combustion engine vehicles, Ericksen said.

In the road test segment, Host Jack Nerad discusses the 2022 Kia Seltos small crossover SUV. Little crossovers don’t get much respect from auto critics, but Nerad found the Turbo Nightfall Edition to be far more involving than most have a right to expect. With 175-horsepower on tap and black trim all around, the Seltos Turbo Nightfall packs a lot of fun into a small but useful package.

Also in the road test segment, Co-Host Chris Teague shares his opinions on the 2022 Toyota Camry. Once regarded as the automotive equivalent of mayonnaise, the Camry has gotten much more tart and tasty lately. Teague will tell us how.

In the news this week we ask the question: Will limited availability of raw materials sink battery electric vehicle sales in the future? Experts say that the current oil shortage might be child’s play compared to a possible shortage of lithium and other key minerals involved in the production of vehicle batteries. We’ll have the details and our reactions to that.

Also in the news, fresh details have surfaced on the proposed Apple car. After lying low for years, Apple seems to have rejuvenated its effort to create a self-driving electric vehicle. We’ll give you the details on that and our thoughts as well.