Toyota Vios for the young on the move

Toyota Vios for the young on the move

Japanese giant carmaker Toyota recently released the 1,500 cc
Toyota Vios mini sedan on Thursday at Shangri-La hotel, Central
Jakarta. The vehicle is claimed to be the first in Indonesia to
have a center meter.

This means the instrument panel is placed in the middle of the
dashboard, instead of in front of the driver's seat.

Such a futuristic panel arrangement is believed to reduce
collision risks, as drivers should still have good sight of
traffic conditions while viewing the instrument panel.

Chief engineer of the Vios project, Sakae Kitazawa, told The
Jakarta Post that the center meter arrangement did not require
too much head movement and had received a good response in other
markets.

"We have used such an arrangement in the Japanese domestic
market, but this is the first time here," he said.

Derived from the Latin word meaning, "to move forward", the
Vios is a perfect name for a car that is designed to be one step
ahead and always leading in technological advancement.

"The Vios exterior shows that our design is no longer
conservative," said marketing and communications manager of PT
Toyota-Astra Motor Hendrayadi Lastiyoso. "The car is aimed at
young customers in the 25 to 35 age group."

Using the image of young pop singer Britney Spears to promote
it, the Vios looks similar to the Altis, which was marketed using
good-looking actor Brad Pitt.

The Vios comes in two variants: Vios 1.5E, with manual
transmission and Vios 1.5G, available with either automatic or
manual transmission.

The Vios is powered by the INZ-FE 4-cylinder, in-line, DOHC,
VVT-i, 16-valve engine, which is able to produce maximum power of
109 horsepower (HP) at 6,000 revs per minute (rpm) and maximum
torque of 142 Newton-meters (Nm) at 4,200 rpm.

With a length of 4.285 meters, the Vios will not encounter any
difficulty in overcoming the heavy traffic on Jakarta's roads or
densely packed parking lots, as it has a turning radius of 4.9
meters.

A major difference between the E and G variants is that the
Vios 1.5E is not equipped with an antilock braking system (ABS).
Instead, it has disc brakes.

Available in six colors, the Vios is offered at Rp 148 million
(US$17,420) for the 1.5E manual, Rp 157 million for the 1.5G
manual and Rp 167.9 million for the 1.5G with automatic
transmission.

-- Novan Iman Santosa