New Toyota Vios

New Toyota Vios

Novan Iman Santosa
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

There are several ways for an automaker to promote a new vehicle
to get a leg up on the competition. It can emphasize the
vehicle's sleek new design, improved performance, fuel efficiency
or all the latest technological gizmos stuffed inside the
vehicle.

When PT Toyota-Astra Motor (TAM) launched the new Toyota Vios
last Friday, an update of the popular minisedan first introduced
here two years ago, the carmaker was touting all of the Vios'
advantages.

The new Toyota Vios still comes with a 4-cylinder inline 1,500
cc 1NZ-FE engine, with 16-valve double overhead camshaft (DOHC)
and variable valve timing-intelligent (VVT-i) technology. The
engine produces maximum power of 109 horsepower (hp) at 6,000
rotations per minute (rpm) and a maximum torque of 142
Newtonmeter (Nm) at 4,200 rpm.

PT TAM also did not hide its pride that earlier model of the
Toyota Vios was the overall champion of the 2004 Indonesian
Touring Car Championship (ITCC) in the N group. Cars in this
group have the same engines and transmissions as those sold to
customers.

This year, Toyota Vios has won three out of four series in the
Super Production group, which has replaced the N group. There are
a total six series in the championship.

There are also three variants of the Vios 1.5E that come with
5-speed transmission, as well as a Vios 1.5G available in both
manual transmission and 4-speed automatic gearbox, applying the
super electronic controlled transmission (ECT) that allows
smoother shifting while going up or down hills.

The Toyota Vios 1.5E sells for Rp 160 million (US$16,000)
while the Vios 1.5G manual is priced at Rp 171 million and the
Vios 1.5G automatic is tagged at Rp 182 million.

The carmaker claims the Toyota Vios is the most fuel-efficient
car in its class, getting 13.5 kilometers to the liter in the
city. This claim is based on tests done by an automotive
magazine.

Little wonder the company picked "fuelsaver and speedmaker" as
the campaign theme for the new Toyota Vios.

With the face-lift, all variations of the Vios come with newly
designed wheel discs, bumpers, radiator grilles and head, front
fog and rear lamps. A side turn signal has also been added.
Another change is the use of a shorter antenna. The Vios 1.5G
also has side protection molding and the outer electric mirror is
now retractable.

Inside, the driver seat is now equipped with a height adjuster
plus seat undertray for all seats. The Vios 1.5E comes with a
gray interior color scheme, while the manual Vios 1.5G is dark
gray and the automatic 1.5G ivory. Those buying the automatic
1.5G will also get wood paneling for the center meter.

Standard safety features include anti-lock braking system
(ABS) and electronic brake-force distribution (EBD). All variants
come with disc brakes for the rear wheels and ventilated disc
brakes for the front wheels.

There are now two new color schemes for the Vios, medium
silver metallic and super red, in addition to black mica,
champagne mica metallic, dark mica blue and silver metallic.

The Toyota Vios leads its competitors with a 50.4 percent
share of the market, selling 10,071 units this year as of
September. This figure includes the Toyota Limo, which is the
taxi version of the Vios.

The redesigned, third generation Honda City, launched earlier
in September, is the closest competitor to the Toyota Vios.

Other players in this segment include the Hyundai Accent, KIA
Rio and Suzuki Baleno Next-G.

Apart from these sedans, there are also hatchbacks or mini
multipurpose vehicles (MPVs) with engine capacities of up to
1,500cc. These include the Chevrolet Aveo, Honda Jazz, Suzuki
Swift and KIA Pride.