Toyota recently made waves with the announcement of several new models coming to South Africa over the coming 12 months.
This includes a special-edition Fortuner, luxurious models from Lexus, and even a replacement for the brand’s most affordable car in the country dubbed the Vitz.
Arguably one of the most exciting announcements, though, was the confirmation of a new Urban Cruiser – one of the best-selling vehicles in the country.
What we have now
The current Urban Cruiser is one of the top-selling crossovers in all of South Africa, with its closest competitor in terms of sales being yet another Toyota-badged model in the form of the Corolla Cross.
The Cruiser is the most affordable crossover in the Toyota family and is the second cheapest offering overall, only beaten out by the Agya hatchback which is itself being replaced.
This is important to note as the car currently has a starting price of R283,200, but Toyota has warned consumers to expect a “price bump” when the new version comes out.
The current vehicle comes with a 1.5-litre engine capable of producing 77kW and 138Nm, and consumers have a choice of two gearboxes – either a five-speed manual or a four-speed automatic.
Standard equipment on the crossover includes LED headlights, a chrome-accented grille, fabric seats, manual air conditioning, a multifunction steering wheel, a four-speaker Bluetooth audio system, smart entry, rear park distance control, and ABS.
What’s coming
Toyota has yet to reveal many details regarding its top performer’s replacement, aside from the fact it will see a noticeable price increase and that it is observably larger than before.
In India, the new Cruiser is available with a 1.5-litre drivetrain producing a near identical 75kW and 135Nm to the engine found in the current South African models, and it’s likely that this powerplant will be carried over to the new units when they arrive in the country later in 2023.
The manufacturer also stated it is investigating the possibility of a mild-hybrid configuration, but that this won’t become a possibility for at least another year and a half.
To get a better sense of what we can expect from Toyota’s upcoming car, we can once again turn to its development partner Suzuki and the comparable models it currently has on the market.
The current Urban Cruiser is a half-sibling to the Vitara Brezza, as the two cars were co-developed by Toyota and Suzuki to reduce the cost of research and development.
Since this new car will be more expensive than the previous one, a better comparison may be the new Grand Vitara which Suzuki also plans to bring to South Africa this year.
The Grand Vitara will ship with one of two 1.5-litre engines – one of which will feature hybrid technology – which lines up with Toyota’s previous statement that it was investigating a semi-electric Urban Cruiser for South Africa.
A few of the features confirmed for the Suzuki thus far also include LED projector headlights, cruise control, keyless entry and start, intelligent climate control, a wireless charger, a 360-degree camera, a heads-up display, and a 9-inch touchscreen infotainment system.
However, even the current Vitara has a starting price far above R400,000. Additionally, it’s unlikely that the new Urban Cruiser will be priced to infringe on the market of the highly-successful Corolla Cross which goes for R371,200.
As such, we anticipate the Toyota’s specification sheet may resemble the Suzuki’s, but this time around it might not be a near-identical copy of its co-developed sibling.
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