What To Expect From Toyota Vitara Brezza?

More rugged design along with a new petrol engine and added equipment expected from the Toyota re-engineered Vitara Brezza.

Toyota Vitara Brezza Exterior — The Toyota based Brezza will have the butch face so typical of Toyota SUVs

Toyota and Suzuki have made an agreement that would enable both manufacturers to share certain models in India. Maruti will supply the Baleno premium hatchback and the Brezza compact SUV to Toyota and Toyota, in turn, will supply their global bestseller Corolla to Maruti.

This collaboration will help Toyota enter into the lower segments where the company has not seen much action. Maruti Suzuki, on the other hand, will venture into the premium segment with the Corolla. Both the brands have stated that the model sharing will go beyond mere re-badging of cars.

The new Toyota based Vitara Brezza will look very similar to Toyota’s range of global SUVs. The design is expected to be butch and bold giving it a proper SUV stance. As can be seen from our rendering, the Toyota Vitara Brezza will have the traditional grille design like the one seen on the US-spec Toyota 4Runner. The bumpers and fog lamp housings will also be bigger giving the car a very rugged look. It remains to be seen if Toyota changes the car’s ride height but we can expect sharper wheel arches and probably even plastic claddings along the side. The rear will also feature the typical Toyota long tail-lights and more chrome. More accentuated bumper design can be expected too.

The interiors will be a step-up from the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza. The dashboard layout in the Maruti Brezza is a bit bland. That will be changed to something more visually appealing in the Toyota re-engineered Vitara Brezza. We expect the car to boast of more equipment including an electric adjustment for the driver’s seat, all-digital instrument cluster, a larger touchscreen, dual-zone climate control and even a sunroof. Overall material quality will be better too and we might see a beige theme with the Toyota based Vitara Brezza.

Safety seems to be the top priority for Toyota and it will be the same with their version of the Vitara Brezza. Toyota may equip the car generously with safety equipment like ESP, all-round disc brakes along with ABS and multiple airbags. The Maruti Vitara Brezza has earned a decent four-star safety rating from Global NCAP and with more equipment from Toyota, the car will certainly excel in the upcoming crash norms.

The agreement states that engines and gearboxes will be carried over. However, the Vitara Brezza is currently powered by a Fiat-sourced 1.3-litre diesel which will be discontinued soon. Maruti is developing its replacement in the form of an all-new 1.5-litre engine and we expect that to power the Toyota based Brezza. The petrol engine is unknown but it is likely to be the new K15 series engine from Maruti. Toyota may work on hybrid and electric versions of the Vitara Brezza. A 4WD system is unlikely. Both manual and automatic transmissions will make their way in the new Toyota.

Toyota and Suzuki are expected to launch the re-engineered cars as early as the second quarter of 2019. Prices are likely to be higher than Suzuki cars owing to added style and more equipment. When launched, it will take on the likes of the hugely popular Tata Nexon and soon to be launched Mahindra XUV300.