2020 Toyota Urban Cruiser compact SUV teased ahead of festive season debut
Toyota Kirloskar Motor has released the first teaser for the Toyota Urban Cruiser. This sub-four-metre SUV will be the second product to come from its understanding with Suzuki, being derived from the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza. The Urban Cruiser is expected to be launched in India either by late August or early September.
We expect the Toyota SUV to follow in the same vein as the Glanza. But the teaser suggests that there could be more differentiation this time around. There seems to be a new Toyota grille with twin chrome strips and a different design for the alloy wheels. However, the Urban Cruiser will remain mechanically identical to the Vitara Brezza.
The Maruti is powered by the K15B 1.5 litre BSVI compliant petrol motor as seen in the Ciaz and Ertiga. This motor makes 105PS and 138Nm torque and gets the Smart Hybrid tech to go with it in the automatic versions. The motor is paired with either a five-speed manual or four-speed auto. The variants and features offered will most likely be carried over as well. The Vitara Brezza recently got this petrol engine and a mid-cycle refresh as part of its BSVI upgrade.
Like the Glanza, We expect the Toyota badged SUV to be manufactured by Maruti Suzuki at its facility and priced quite similarly to the Brezza.
This will be the second car to come from the Toyota-Suzuki partnership in India. The two Japanese companies signed an agreement in 2018 to allow them to co-develop models supply chains and technologies for global markets. Prices for the Vitara Brezza start from Rs 7.34 lakh for the LXi, going up to Rs 11.40 lakh for the ZXi Plus Dual Tone AT. For the Urban Cruiser, Toyota could follow the same strategy that it did for the Glanza. It could bring in the mid and top-spec variants of the Suzuki at a similar or marginally lower price, but then differentiate itself by offering a more comprehensive after-sales package.
As for the Urban Cruiser name, it has been used by the Japanese carmaker in the late 2000s in Europe on a small FWD crossover. Given this backstory, this name would be quite apt for the Toyota version of the Brezza, which is also a mostly city-focused SUV. Even the Glanza name has been reused for the rebadged Baleno, this time taken from a sportier version of a small hatchback called the Starlet that Toyota sold in its Japanese home market.
Starts Rs 8.4 Lakhs
1499cc
Automatic
105
138
18.76 Kmpl
