Toyota Motor Corporation has partially redesigned the “Vitz”, and sales will begin at all Netz dealers nationwide on January 12.
The Vitz2 is a core Toyota brand model that was first launched in 1999 and is now being sold in approximately 80 countries and regions including Europe. Global cumulative sales have surpassed 7 million units3.
With the partial redesign this time, a hybrid grade was added to the lineup in response to strong requests from customers against a backdrop of growing demand for hybrids in the compact hatchback market4, the vehicle segment which the Vitz belongs to. In addition, major changes were made to the exterior design to create a vehicle with an even stronger market presence.
The development concept of the redesign incorporated the maximum possible knowledge and technology so as to achieve extensive improvements that exceed those typical of a partial redesign. In line with this concept, the hybrid system was enhanced, the shock absorbers were improved, and numerous areas of the body were made more rigid to provide for an exceptional driving performance. In addition, an interior design with all-black ornamentation was adopted, alongside other improvements which have been made to increase product appeal.
Welcab versions (specially equipped vehicles with factory-installed features for the disabled and elderly) offer the same improvements as the base models.
The Vitz is part of the lineup rolled out by the in-house Toyota Compact Car Company. Kazuhiro Miyauchi, the president of the Toyota Compact Car Company, made the following comment with the launch of the car, that “The Vitz pushes forward the boundaries of compact car manufacturing by combining the latest environmentally friendly and safety technologies with responsive and fun-to-drive dynamic performance. This Vitz is the template for the exciting new vehicles that we will continue to bring to market in the future.”
View the press release in full here
