Toyota India is all set to make its debut in the competitive subcompact SUV segment with a new product which will be based on the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza. Likely to be called 'Toyota Urban Cruiser', the company plans to launch its compact SUV during the upcoming festive season. The company will be aiming to boost sales with the launch of a new 5-seater SUV in the Indian market. The Japanese carmaker was expected to launch the SUV in sometime in August, however, it has been delayed due to Coronavirus pandemic.
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Responding to a query from carandbike, Naveen Soni, Sr. VP, Sales & Service, Toyota Kirloskar Motor said, "At Toyota, we constantly evaluate and assess the market to understand customer preferences and trends. We have been studying the market and we see an increasing trend in customer preferences shifting from sedans to SUVs. Hence, as a part of our overall plan to strengthen our SUV portfolio as well as to be able to offer our discerning customers the World of Toyota SUV experience, we plan to enter the compact SUV segment with our new offering this festive season. This launch is also planned so as to provide an opportunity to our aspiring young customers to enter the Toyota family and for existing customers (Innova and Fortuner) to co-own another Toyota. We hope that with this entry we can create more Toyota fans and focus on those ambitious customers who would like to upgrade to a higher/niche offering. It will be our constant endeavor to offer a range of options to our customers whose choices are governed by their mobility needs and expectations from the brand."
The new Toyota sub-compact SUV will be based on the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza. (Image used here for representational purpose only)
Toyota Motor Corp and Suzuki Motor Corp (SMC) signed an agreement in 2018 for supplying hybrid and other vehicles to each other in the Indian market. Toyota had already sourced Baleno premium hatchback from Maruti Suzuki India, which is retailed as Glanza. The company has already sold over 25,000 Glanza units since its launch and the overall volumes have been increasing. It will be the second product that will be sourced from Maruti Suzuki.
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Toyota's upcoming SUV is expected to borrow the mechanical parts from the Maruti Vitara Brezza. Maruti uses a 1.5-litre K-Series engine on the Vitara Brezza, which comes with Suzuki's mild-hybrid technology. The motor is capable of producing 104bhp and 138Nm of power figures and is mated to either a five-speed manual or a four-speed torque-converter automatic transmission.
Toyota will launch its subcompact SUV during the festive season
Naveen Soni, Senior Vice President Sales and Marketing, Toyota, told PTI, "The automaker is now ready to bring in the second product under this arrangement during the early part of the upcoming festive season. "India loves the sub-four meter compact SUV category. And this segment alone is now 10-11 per cent of the total passenger vehicle sales. So we have been evaluating this segment for a long time and now the time has come that we are announcing that this festive season we will have our own compact SUV in the market."
Also Read: 25,000 Units of Toyota Glanza Sold In India Since Launch
When launched, the SUV will take on Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Hyundai Venue, Tata Nexon, Ford EcoSport and the Mahindra XUV300. Interestingly, Kia Sonet and Nissan Magnite will also be aiming to dominate the segment after their launches.
