Toyota outlines new Yaris range, here in August

TOYOTA Australia has detailed some of the specifications of its upcoming new Yaris light city car ahead of its arrival in Aussie showrooms as of August this year.

The new fourth-generation hatch will reportedly feature more advanced safety systems than ever before with brand executives saying it will “leapfrog” its competitors to become the new benchmark of the segment.

“In addition to segment-leading safety, the new Yaris will leapfrog the competition with its distinctive design, dynamic performance and impressive efficiency,” Toyota Australia sales and marketing vice president Sean Hanley said.

This “segment-leading safety” features include a new camera and radar based pre-collision safety system with autonomous emergency braking, speed sign recognition, lane keep assist, reversing camera and a new airbag designed to protect the heads of front-seat occupants, especially in side-on collisions.

The new line-up will consist of three trim levels – Ascent Sport, SX and ZR – largely mirroring that of the current range, albeit with ‘Sport’ added onto the Ascent nameplate.

Under the bonnet of all variants will reside a new 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine – as opposed to the current 1.3 and 1.5-litre four-cylinder units – producing 88kW and driving the front wheels via either a manual (Ascent Sport) or a continuously variable transmission (CVT).

Claimed fuel consumption for the new unit is pegged at 4.9 litres per 100km on the combined cycle.

A new hybrid powertrain will also be debuted in the Yaris as a replacement for the ageing Prius C with the new set-up said to sip just 3.3 litres of fuel per 100km, making it the brand’s most frugal car ever offered Down Under.

Toyota has not yet published a torque figure for the new internal combustion engine or the hybrid, though it has revealed the latter to generate 85kW, 11kW more than the outgoing Prius C.

The hybrid powertrain will only be offered in the mid-spec SX and range-topping ZR.

Standard equipment on all variants includes a 7.0-inch display screen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, enhanced voice recognition, LED daytime running lights, 60/40 split-fold rear seats and a USB port.

The base model Ascent Sport rolls on 15-inch wheels while the SX ups the ante with 15-inch alloy units, satellite navigation, keyless entry, push-button start, LED headlights and tail-lights, piano-black and satin interior finishes, leather-accented steering wheel and digital dials.

Compared with its mid-spec stablemate, the ZR adds 16-inch alloys, rear spoiler, head-up display, blind-spot monitoring, front and rear parking sensors, sports seats and pedals, piano black trim, red inserts and paddle shifters for the CVT in the petrol version.

Due to launch in August, Toyota Australia would not be drawn into revealing any other details of the new Yaris, including the number of gears in its manual transmission.

Full specification and pricing will be revealed closer to launch.

The current Yaris has had things go largely its own way so far this year, occupying a dominant 21.6 per cent share of the sub-$25,000 light car segment with 3241 sales to the end of May.

Its nearest rival was the MG MG3 with 2270 sales, or 15.1 per cent of the segment.

Unlike the MG however, Yaris sales have slipped 14.5 per cent compared to the same period last year while the Chinese-built MG3 has enjoyed a 92.9 per cent improvement.