The Toyota Urban Cruiser will be based on the Maruti Suzuki Vitara in the sub compact SUV space
As demand for subcompact SUVs continues to rise in India, automakers are bringing in more offerings into this segment. The next upcoming subcompacts will include the Kia Sonet, Nissan Magnite, Renault Kiger (HBC). Toyota too will mark its entry into this segment with launch the new Urban Cruiser. Today, they have revealed the first official teaser photo of the same.
Toyota – Suzuki Collaboration
The launch of Toyota Urban Cruiser is a part of an agreement entered into between Toyota and Suzuki. This will be the second model launch in India, via this partnership. The first being the Maruti Suzuki Baleno which is sold as the Toyota Glanza. Toyota will enter the sub four meter SUV space with the new Urban Cruiser which is essentially based on the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza.
Commenting on the foray into the compact SUV segment, Mr. Naveen Soni, Senior Vice President, Sales and Services, TKM, said, “We are very excited to announce our plans to launch the Toyota Urban Cruiser this festive season. With a customer-first approach, TKM has always endeavoured to fulfil the aspirations of its customers with timely introduction of new products and the Toyota Urban Cruiser is another such effort to satisfy the evolving customer needs.
Also, we hope that the Urban Cruiser gives us an opportunity to welcome a new set of customers who not only aspire to own a Toyota SUV early in life, but would also like to experience Toyota’s global standards of sales & after-sales services. We will share more details about the car and the launch in the days to come.”
Youngest SUV
Calling it as their Youngest SUV, Toyota says that it is “A unique offering from Toyota in India, the new Urban Cruiser exudes an ‘Urban Standout Appeal’ for those who love to ‘Travel in Style’.” Toyota Urban Cruiser will be launched in India sometime in September, at an estimated price of Rs.8 lakhs. Bookings will commence from 22nd August as per sources, while deliveries are promised by the end of September.
Apart from visual updates, the Urban Cruiser will retain its overall design and powertrain seen on the Vitara Brezza. These changes will include some tweaks on the dashboard and bezels for AC vents but other than that the interior layout remains much the same as that seen in the Maruti Vitara Brezza. Features will also continue to include LED head and tail lamps with LED DRLs, automatic headlamps, rain sensing wipers and automatic climate controls. It also receives a 7 inch touchscreen system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay compatibility, keyless entry, cruise control and push button start/stop feature.
Engine Specs
Borrowing its engine lineup from Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza, Toyota Urban Cruiser will be powered by a 1.5 liter petrol engine offering 103 hp power and 138 Nm torque mated to a 5 speed manual gearbox or 4 speed automatic transmissions. The Urban Cruiser will also receive a Progressive Smart Hybrid system as seen on the Brezza which will be offered on its automatic variants.
As was also seen in the case of the Glanza, the Urban Cruiser will also be sold only in mid and top end variants. It will also get Toyota 3 year/unlimited kilometer warranty. Once launched, the Toyota Urban Cruiser will compete against the likes of Hyundai Venue, Tata Nexon, Mahindra XUV300, and soon to be launched Kia Sonet.
