The refreshed 2017 Toyota Yaris has gone on-sale boasting tweaked looks and “improved safety”.
THE REFRESHED 2017 Toyota Yaris is on-sale now with tweaked styling and improved safety, including autonomous emergency braking, lane departure alert and automatic high beam which is standard on the top-spec ZR variant and a $650 cost option on the entry-level Ascent and mid-range SX variants.
Toyota has kept pricing for the refreshed Yaris static at $15,290+ORC for the Ascent and an unchanged $17,330+ORC for the SX with the option of automatic transmission steady at $1530. Only the price of the auto-only ZR has risen to $22,470+ORC to cover the cost of the extra safety equipment.
Yaris is covered by Toyota Service Advantage capped-price servicing at a maximum of $140 per service.
Toyota’s executive director sales and marketing Tony Cramb said, “In addition, Yaris now offers advanced safety systems that can help prevent an accident happening, or lessen the consequences if an impact does occur”.
Toyota’s French design studio was responsible for tweaking the look of the Yaris, with Toyota saying the tiny-tot city car has a “stronger three-dimensional quality and a greater emphasis on horizontal lines to express a wide, more planted stance and low centre of gravity”.
All models get new-look headlights, with some, ZR and SX, getting fog lights too. The ZR runs bi-LED headlights, other variants get halogen headlights. There a new-look tailgate and rear combination light cluster. ZR grade features LED stop and tail lights.
The Ascent and SX get steel wheels with a silver cover, while the ZR gets 16-inch alloys. Refreshed Yaris gets a new colour – Azure Blue (replacing Aura, a lighter blue), for a total of 10 different colours.
On the inside, the main changes have been to add silver and gloss trims.
The Yaris gets a 1.3-litre four-cylinder engine in Ascent, and a 1.5-litre engine for SX and ZR. Both engines are now rated Euro 5.
As standard, Yaris gets featuring cruise control, a display audio system with controls on the steering wheel spokes, a multi-information display, air-conditioning, electric power steering, power windows and mirrors and a 12-volt accessory socket, seven airbags, a reversing camera, vehicle stability and traction control, anti-skid brakes with electronic brake-force distribution and brake assist, and an emergency brake signal that flashes the hazard lights.
SX variants, in addition to the bigger engine, get front fog lights, privacy glass, and a “premium” steering wheel and gear-shifter. ZR variants add automatic climate control for the air-conditioning, satellite navigation, Toyota Link, a rear spoiler and auto-levelling headlamps, pre-collision safety system, lane departure alert and automatic high beam.
where’s the “hot hatch”? Oh, there isn’t one.
Ewwwww