The very popular and ultra-reliable Toyota Vios has just received a quick nip-and-tuck, in an attempt to fend off its upcoming rivals in this very competitive sector. Yes, there is a new Nissan Almera on the way which promises big improvements over the outgoing and very aged model currently still on sale in Malaysia and let us not forget the Vios biggest rival for years, the Honda City which has just been teased last week Thursday morning on Malaysian social media.
The Nissan Almera will definitely get a very impressive competitive selling price as local brand guardian Tan Chong will tick all the necessary local assembly (CKD) tax rebate boxes. Then there is Honda Malaysia who will try very hard to regain their slow sales progress in the first half of 2020 due to Covid-19 issues with their all new Honda City.
The biggest difference between this refreshed model and the outgoing one would probably be the new face of the Vios. Now bearing the semblance to its Corolla Altis bigger brother, the new Vios now wears a kinder face, instead of the older more aggressive look.
This gentler look is courtesy of the new front bumper with a cheeky front splitter and integrated front fog lamps on the higher trim variants. The headlights too have been given an update, this time incorporating the LED daytime running lights (DRL) within the LED headlight cluster. A big improvement over the current model’s DRL on the bumper that looks as if they have been tacked on as an afterthought.
When Toyota said the Vios has undergone a facelift though, they meant it literally, because nothing else apart from the face has been changed. The interior and even the rest of the exterior design remains the same. However, given that the Vios was only just launched recently, it may be too soon for a proper refresh anyway.
The face-lifted Vios has already landed in the Philippines. Sold there with the same engine choices as before, that being a 98 hp 1.3 litre and 106 hp 1.5 litre four cylinder, the prices of the refreshed version remain as competitive as before. Starting from a 671,000 pesos (RM 51,000) for a base manual version, and rising to 1,056,000 pesos (RM91,000) for the highest spec CVT-equipped variant.
In regards to when we will see this kinder face Vios on our shores, it should be in the coming months. There is no official word yet from Toyota Malaysia, but seeing this facelift is so minor the average Malaysian segment car buyer would probably not even notice it when one inevitably drives past on the roads sometime in the near future.
Research and Text by Joshua Chin
