The new Toyota Yaris has finally made its official debut in Philippines. Known as the Vios in that market, it is going to be the second major facelift to the sedan since the current-gen was introduced in the ASEAN region in 2013. The Japanese carmaker hasn’t gone leaps and bounds in updating the Yaris and it carries over the same DNA, albeit with some minor changes. It is expected that Toyota will launch the updated model in some other countries as well, including Malaysia, Singapore and Taiwan.
The updates
The upcoming model has also been spied on several occasions in the past and several spy images indicated that it will feature reworked styling. Toyota has stayed true to the speculations and has updated the Yaris cosmetically too.
In terms of exterior styling updates, the new Yaris receives a part Lexus-inspired grille at the front which is flanked by a set of redesigned headlights, giving it a sharper look. The higher variants of the sedan will benefit from a heavier dose of chrome on the grille and headlamps. The lower variants will get dark-themed inserts in the grille, while the higher trims will feature chrome treatment.
It can be seen that the updated sedan gets a restyled front bumper featuring a trapezoidal central air dam. The fog lamps are housed in new C-shaped recesses on either side of the air dam. New alloy wheel design, as well as a slightly altered rear styling, will also feature in this update. At the rear too, it gets freshly designed tail lamps. As far as dimensions are concerned, as reports suggest, there isn’t going to be any change in the facelifted model and that might affect its chances in India against key rivals like the new Honda City and Maruti Suzuki Ciaz.
Updated cabin
Even though it has retained its existing cabin and dash layout without any notable revisions, it now features a newly updated infotainment system featuring Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Some of its key safety features include 7 airbags, ABS with EBD, ESP, keyless entry with push-button start, vehicle stability control, cruise control, Eco and Sport engine modes, and more.
As for the mechanicals, the Philippines-spec Yaris facelift will receive a 97 PS, 1.3-litre and 105 PS, 1.5-litre naturally-aspirated petrol engine options. The transmission duties will be performed by either a 5-speed manual or a 7-step CVT automatic. The India-spec is set to carry the same powertrain and transmission combination currently present. The India model is powered by the 1.5-litre unit and mated to either a six-speed manual or a 7-step CVT gearbox.
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In India, the Yaris rivals the likes of Honda City, Hyundai Verna, Skoda Rapid and Volkswagen Vento in the C-segment sedan space. Other than this, Toyota is also gearing up to introduce its Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza based subcompact SUV in India which is expected to launch during the festive season this year. The company also has the Fortuner Facelift up its sleeve which is due to launch sometime next year or late this year.