Toyota has pulled the plug on its model, Yaris, in India. Yaris was introduced here just three years as a plan to contend amongst the midsize sedan section.
Toyota Yaris launched in 2018, and only close to 20,000 have been sold so far in India. It consisted of a long list of features and a safety kit that contained seven airbags in higher variants.
The only engine available on the offer was 1.5-liter petrol along with either a 5-speed manual or a CVT gearbox.
Customers could not find value in this sedan in this shoulder-to-shoulder segment, consisting of rivals such as the Honda City, the Hyundai Verna, and the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz. Hence, like mentioned earlier, Yaris could only find 19,784 homes in India.
Toyota halting the production of Yaris goes in line with its plan to keep the Rs. 10 lakhs segment for rebadged Maruti Suzuki variants like the Toyota Urban Cruiser and the Glanza. By the way, they are on sale in India already.
On the other side, Toyota is planning to launch new models in the upcoming year, 2022. However, Toyota will continue to serve all the Yaris customers’ needs via service centers across the nation, in line with the availability of Yaris’ genuine spares for a minimum of 10 years.
Is there a replacement?
Yes, there is. Toyota is drawing up another rebadged Maruti Suzuki model to its line-up. They are planning to rebadge the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz, which is expected to release in the name of ‘Belta.’
It is rumored that there is no real difference between the Ciaz and Toyota’s version of it. It will mate the same features and engine specs. The production has already been initiated at the company plant in Manesar. It could be in a red color scheme.
As witnessed in the variants of Maruti Suzuki Ciaz, like the Sigma, Delta, Alpha, Zeta, and S, the Belta too could be launched in a range of variants that are still unnamed. However, it may get a few changes with a new front grille and logo to seem different from its rival.
The launch date is just around the corner, possibly this month, just before the festive season. The new Toyota Belta is expected to be priced competitively to remain against the other C-segment sedans, which include Hyundai Verna, Honda City, Volkswagen Vento, and Skoda Rapid.
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