Toyota has pulled the plug on the Yaris in India three years after the Japanese brand launched the mid-size sedan here. The Yaris was introduced in India in 2018, with a long features list and safety kit that included as many as seven airbags in some variants!
The only engine on offer was a 1.5-litre petrol mated to either a 5-speed manual or a CVT gearbox. Customers failed to find value in the sedan in this segment, which includes rivals such as the Honda City, the Hyundai Verna and the Maruti Suzuki Ciaz. The Yaris, till the end of August 2021, only found 19,784 homes in India and quite a few of those were for fleet customers.
Also, discontinuing the Yaris goes in line with Toyota’s plans of keeping the sub-₹10 lakh segment for rebadged Maruti Suzuki models such as the Toyota Glanza and the Urban Cruiser, which are already on sale in India. The Yaris could be replaced by another rebadged product in the coming months.
Toyota has assured all existing customers that the spare-part availability for the Yaris will not be affected for the next 10 years.
As far as Toyota’s India line-up goes, the company is expected to introduce updated Fortuner variants early next month, which will also include a 4WD variant for the Fortuner Legender
