One of the most highly anticipated new model launches of the year is the debut of the next-gen Toyota Vios—the country’s bestselling car. It’s now called Vios Ativ. We got to drive it last week to Tagaytay and here are seven takeaways we got from that drive.
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- The first-ever Ativ is Toyota’s new subcompact sedan, but it won’t be replacing the venerable Vios—it’ll be sold side by side with the current Vios and will be positioned as a sharper-looking and more upscale version, targeting buyers looking for a hybrid powertrain, improved tech, and a fresher design. The Ativ will, in fact, still carry the Vios badge, not unlike how Toyota did it with the Zenix MPV, which still sported the Innova badge.
- The Ativ, which is made in Thailand and is based on Toyota’s more modern DNGA platform, is only marginally bigger than the current locally made Vios in every dimension, save for the wheelbase. It is only 5mm longer and taller and 10mm wider than its older sibling. The wheelbase, however, is a substantial 70mm longer, endowing the Ativ with longer legroom and a more comfortable ride.
- The Ativ carries over the Vios’ 1.3- and 1.5-liter engines mated to a CVT. Only the base Ativ E is available with a manual transmission. The biggest news, of course, is the availability of a hybrid powertrain, coupled to a 1.5-liter engine. On the drive from Makati to Tagaytay, we saw fuel consumption readings of a phenomenal 27 km/l, with the slow uphill portion approaching Tagaytay showing a still exceptional 17-18 km/l.
- All variants of Ativ get full LED headlights and taillights as standard. Previous lower-spec Vios variants came with halogens. For infotainment the Ativ has a 9-inch (up from 6.75”) touchscreen (wired Apple CarPlay/Android Auto) on non-HEV variants, while the HEV gets a 10.1-inch system with wireless CarPlay/Android Auto. It also now has a 7-inch fully digital gauge cluster across all variants. The current Vios has an analog/digital combo.
- The Ativ HEV gets leather upholstery while lower trims get fabric, but with improved quality and better materials and detailing (faux leather on dash, for example). The HEV also boasts features like wireless charging and sequential turn signals, 360-degree camera (in higher variants), and rear aircon vents in all but the base model.
- The Ativ HEV gets the full Toyota Safety Sense suite: Automatic Emergency Braking (pre-collision), Adaptive Cruise Control (full-speed), Lane Departure Warning, Lane Keeping Assist, Blind Spot Warning, Rear Cross-Traffic Alert, among others. All variants get ABS + Brake Assist, Vehicle Stability Control, and Traction Control. The base variant gets dual airbags while higher variants get six.
- The prices of the four Ativ variants are as follows (as compared to the Vios variant closest to it):
· ₱916,000 for 1.3 E MT (P868,000 for the Vios XLE MT)
· ₱980,000 for 1.3 E CVT (P908,000 for the Vios XLE CVT)
· ₱1,069,000 for 1.5 G CVT (P1,039,000 for the Vios G CVT)
· ₱1,198,000 for 1.5 HEV CVT
Photos by Mica de los Reyes
