Saturday 10 March 2007

All New Toyota VIOS launched in Bangkok







Courtesy of Mr Peter Lee reporting from Bangkok, Thailand, these are the official pictures of this popular model replacement from Toyota.

Prices start at RM50K equivalent in Thai baht to the top-spec G trim asking for around RM75K.
In the royal kingdom however, life does not get cheaper even with the basic entry-level model, since all variants come with ABS standard. Options include leather seats, airbags and immobilizer but not the all important safety braking system.

From the pictures, its 1.5L engine remains largely unchanged. Also, the centrally placed meters are still present, but now with Optitron gauges for the 'G' version.

Update:
Significantly, the all-new VIOS' wheelbase has been increased to 2550mm (previously 2500mm). As a result, the passenger cabin is more spacious now (120mm extra) but the overall length of the car has been increased by just 15mm. In other words, wheels are increasingly being pushed nearer to the four corners of the vehicle. In growing evolution, boot volume is 19% more capacious than its predecessor, offering up to 475 litres.

Not wanting to discard a proven powerplant and likely in the interest of cost, Toyota's 1NZ-FE DOHC 16 valve 1.5L VVT-i engine soldiers on in this replacement model, albeit with claims of some minor improvements. Perhaps better fuel efficiency now? Power output and torque figures are the same as the Yaris, at 109bhp @ 6,000rpm and 141Nm @ 4200 rpm respectively. Transmission options are either a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic. No CVT options are available for the Thai/ASEAN market, as opposed to the JDM Yaris and Ractis with Super CVT-i (Continuously Variable Transmission-intelligent). CVT allows for a smoother drive, with no perceptible gear shifts at all, as gear ratios are infinitely varied with the use of steel belts and pulleys. Another welcomed benefit would be lower fuel consumption due to lesser loss of power in transmission.

2 comments:

BMW.Toyota said...

I want! I want! Design-wise, this sure looks better than the next Corolla-Altis. My only gripe will be the centre-located meter cluster....

drlong said...

Be patient! Our guess is that this all new VIOS will be out in Malaysia before year end...cheers :)