The 2015 Toyota Fortuner will get a new base variant, while a new top-end variant with four-wheel drive and an auto box is also said to be on offer.

2013 Toyota Fortuner Test Drive Review
The next generation Toyota Fortuner will be launched in early 2016

It had been widely speculated that Toyota will be updating the Fortuner with a slew of changes this year. However, with 2014 all set to drop the curtains in a few days, the Japanese manufacturers’ plans have now been postponed to 2015 as the very potent SUV fights against new competition. For the next year, Toyota India will be bringing two new variants of the Fortuner as the model enters its last year of life cycle in the current generation.

On offer will be a new base variant of the Fortuner that will come equipped with the 2.5-litre D4-D diesel engine (also seen on the Innova) that will be tuned to produce around 142 BHP of power. The new engine option will be available in both manual as well as automatic transmission options and a two-wheel drive configuration. The other variant on offer will be a new top-of-the-line trim and will continue using the existing 3.0-litre D4-D diesel engine, paired to a 5-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel drive as standard.

In addition, Toyota India will also be updating its other range of vehicles and will be making airbags as standard across all variants. Earlier this year, the company made airbags and ABS standard on the Etios Liva, the only model in its segment to get the safety features across all variants (just in case you are wondering, the Etios Liva doesn’t compete with the Volkswagen Polo which also has airbags as standard on all trims). The updates to the Fortuner will keep the SUV fresh for the whole year as the next generation model is all set to make its debut in early 2016.

Toyota Fortuner Test Drive
Apart from new variants, the 2015 Fortuner could also get subtle updates to the cabin

Source – Team-BHP