Johannesburg - The Toyota Vitz is set to become the company’s entry-level offering in South Africa and if you think it looks familiar your eyes are not deceiving you.
The new, or not-so-new, hatchback was unveiled at Toyota’s State of the Motor Industry (SOMI) event, held in Johannesburg on Thursday, and it’s basically a rebadged Suzuki Celerio.
Toyota’s partnership with Maruti Suzuki of India is nothing new, and has already brought us the Starlet, Urban Cruiser and Rumion. Apart from the badging, there is no visual differentiation between the Vitz and the Celerio that it’s based on and South Africa is the first market to receive this model, and may remain the only.
The Toyota Vitz will be officially launched in the second quarter of 2023, and no pricing or specification details have been released as yet. That said, it’s unlikely to stray far from the Celerio’s price range of R178 900 to R213 900.
That means it could come in cheaper than the Toyota Agya that it replaces, which currently retails for between R200 000 and R219 900.
The Toyota Vitz is powered by a 1.0-litre normally aspirated three-cylinder petrol engine that produces 49kW and 89Nm. It’s likely to follow the Celerio in offering a choice between five-speed manual and AMT gearboxes.
Interestingly, Vitz is not a new name for Toyota as in many markets it was used on the car we know as the Yaris.
Stay tuned for more details in the coming months when the new Toyota Vitz hits the streets.
IOL Motoring