Toyota Unveils New Future Yaris in Japan

TOKYO — Unveiled Wednesday in Tokyo is the latest from Toyota, the new Vitz. This car, in essence, is expected to come to the U.S. as the next Yaris.

Nissan, Honda. Subaru and Mazda have all refreshed their subcompact offerings in Japan of late, so Toyota is now ready to up the ante with this first full redesign of the Vitz/Yaris since 2005.

Although the stakes are high, Toyota has essentially played it safe with this third-generation Vitz.

Yes, the styling is more expressive and, it seems, strongly Eurocentric (with more than a nod, perhaps, toward France's Renault). But underneath, this is a safe evolution of a well-established product. The platform is essentially a carryover, even though the wheelbase is up almost 2 inches and overall length stretches 4 inches to a new 153 inches.

The payoff is extra cabin space, especially in the back, but bigger news in Japan is the car's fuel economy. It may be academic for America, but on home turf, Toyota has reshuffled the existing 1.3-/1.5-liter engine, putting a lot of emphasis on the 1.3.

One trick version of that, with engine stop/start, returns a class-leading 62.3 mpg in Japan's 10.15-mode fuel cycle. The 1.5 that comes to the U.S. continues on with 107 horsepower and stars in the Vitz RS, the raciest of the new Vitz family at launch.

This RS spinoff runs with massaged grille and bumper treatment and gets 16-inch alloys and sport seats. An Activematic CVT option, with steering-wheel paddle shifters, is also on the RS menu, as an alternative to a stock five-speed manual shifter.

Inside, Toyota has gone for a simple, functional dashboard design with a long, thin metal panel running along the middle, plus a conventional main gauge cluster that's easy to get to know, if not terribly inspiring to look at. The makeover also brings all-new seats.

A hybrid model is also in the works but, we hear, won't appear until well into 2012.

Inside Line says: Toyota goes for a new look with the redesigned Vitz/Yaris, which may or may not lure new buyers into the fold. Whatever you think of the styling, this is a major new player for Toyota at home that's on a mission to sell 10,000 units a month, and counting. — Peter Nunn, Correspondent