Toyota Urban Cruiser: Only a few changes differentiate it from the Vitara Brezza

Under its partnership with Maruti Suzuki in India, Toyota will introduce a number of badge-re-engineered models borrowed from the former. We got a taste of the first model under this partnership in the form of the Glanza, which was simply a Baleno with Toyota badging and little else to set it apart. The Urban Cruiser, the second model under the partnership, does get a few changes that helps differentiate itself from its sibling, the Maruti Suzuki Vitara Brezza.

We take a closer look at Toyota’s first compact SUV for India.

Toyota has changed the front end of the Urban Cruiser to differentiate it from the Vitara Brezza and give it a more Toyota family look. This includes a new dual-slat grille with squarish indentations that are flanked on either side by vertical chrome trim pieces. The bumper itself gets a very typically Toyota angular vent design on each end, with a large central opening and a silver skid plate. An intriguing design element is a circular slot in the lower half of the bumper on the driver’s side, behind which the horn is mounted.

While the changes in the greater scheme of things might be small, the new grille and bumper make the Urban Cruiser look a lot more aggressive compared to the Vitara Brezza, and more in-line with other Toyotas.

Apart from those changes though, everything else is nearly the same — the same 16-inch alloy wheels, the same side profile and the same rear end — albeit with Toyota badges instead of Maruti ones and Urban Cruiser embossed across the thick splashing of chrome above the rear number plate.

Additionally, the Urban Cruiser also gets a few unique colour options, including a Rustic Brown in single and dual-tone, the latter paired with a black roof, and a dual-tone Groovy Orange and white.

While there are a few changes on the outside to differentiate between the Urban Cruiser and Vitara Brezza, the cabin has almost no difference at all. You get the exact same dashboard design, with the same textured hard plastics, the same 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment system with in-built navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and the same instrument cluster too. In fact, the only obvious change is the Toyota badge on the steering wheel in place of the Suzuki one and brown seat fabric as compared to the black in the Brezza.

Under the hood too, there is no telling the Urban Cruiser apart from the Vitara Brezza. It gets exactly the same powerplant as the latter, a 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder, naturally-aspirated petrol engine that makes 105hp and 138Nm of torque. The unit comes mated to either a 5-speed manual or a 4-speed torque-converter automatic gearbox. The automatic version also benefits from Suzuki’s fuel saving, mild-hybrid tech. According to ARAI, fuel economy for the manual is rated at 17.03kpl while the automatic is rated at 18.76kpl.

It is when you look at the variants do things get a bit interesting. While available in three variants — Mid, High and Premium, the Urban Cruiser does not offer a bare bones entry-level variant like the Brezza. Like for like, the Mid, High and Premium trims are comparable to the Brezza’s VXi, ZXi and ZXi+ trims so even the ‘base’ variant gets you kit such as LED headlamps with DRLs, power folding wing mirrors, 2-DIN audio system, key-less entry and go and auto AC. Additionally, all three variants are available with both gearbox options

Prices for the manual version range from ₹8.40-₹9.80 lakh while Urban Cruiser automatic prices range between ₹9.80-₹11.30 lakh. Compared to the Maruti Vitara Brezza, this is just ₹5,000-₹15,000 more depending on which variant you choose.