The Toyota Yaris hatchback has been spotted road-testing in Delhi. Could it be that Toyota is bringing this global model to the Indian market?

Spotted by MotorBeamer Kunaal Banga, the fourth-generation Yaris hatchback has trendy styling. It is not a tall car (1500 mm) and is under 4-metres (3940 mm) in length as well.

The recently spotted Toyota Yaris hatchback had projector headlights and very stylish set of rear lights. The manufacturer’s emblems on the car were masked for obvious reasons.

Toyota Yaris Hatchback Spotted
It might not be long, but has a wheelbase of 2560 mm

Unveiled last year, the car was initially offered with 3 engine options – 1.0-litre, 1.5-litre and 1.5-litre hybrid – overseas and all of them are 3-cylinder units. The gearbox choices included a 5-speed manual, 6-speed manual and a CVT.

Subsequently, many markets only received the 1.5-litre models and the manual gearbox variant was also axed, in places like Australia and the UK in particular.

The non-hybrid model makes 118 HP and 140 Nm of torque, while the hybrid model’s internal combustion engine has been tuned to produce 116 HP and 120 Nm of torque. Its front axle electric motor then adds 79 HP and 141 Nm.

Toyota Yaris Hatchback Spotted Rear
It would be quite a fresh proposition in the premium hatchback segment

If at all the hatchback is put on sale here, it could come as a non-hybrid model. It would not be absurd to think about the possibility of Toyota making use of Maruti’s petrol engine to keep costs under control.

The Hyundai i20 rival has a very nice set of features inside including an 8-inch touchscreen, smartphone connectivity, 4.2-inch instrument display, among others, while safety should not be an issue thanks to an array of passive and driver-assistance systems.

But, nothing is concrete as of now and Toyota could simply be using this test mule to conduct durability tests. As for its presence in the premium hatchback segment, the Glanza has been bringing in decent sales every month.