This is the all-new 2023 (D92A). Yes, that's how it looks like, and it's just made its world debut in Thailand where it's sold as the Yaris Ativ. It's big news, and more importantly there's extra Malaysian flavouring in this as it's been co-developed by Daihatsu and .
That means it's underpinned by the Daihatsu New Global Architecture (DNGA) – just like our Ativa and Alza – and shares more than a couple parts with them too. Since the Yaris Ativ is a Thailand-specific car, this runs on a 1.2-litre engine paired to a CVT, which will differ from our Vios that's almost certainly getting a 1.5-litre mill.
The exterior, by golly, looks like a mismatch of cars in almost every segment. The LED lights and front grille are reminiscent of the Camry, while the fastback profile calls back to the Civic FE.
Then you get to the rear and the lights look a bit like a City and the whole thing looks a bit distended if we're honest.
But most of the time spent will be inside driving that thing so thankfully the interior looks fine. Lots of it is familiar with the current crop of Daihatsu/Perodua cars yes, which means that there's more room for good stuff to trickle to consumers.
There's an electric parking brake (EPB, first time in a Vios), a 7-inch digital instrument cluster not unlike what's in the Ativa/Alza, and a 9-inch floating infotainment touchscreen with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. Pricier variants finally gain rear air-cond vents, matching the City
For Thailand there's a special grade that nets a Pioneer 6-speaker setup, red leather seats, 64-colour ambient lighting, and metallic grey garnishes on the exterior.
In terms of safety there's 6 airbags, and beyond the requisite passive safety systems there's also ADAS features. The Safety Sense (TSS) kit in the new Vios are as follows:
- Pre-collision system
- Lane departure alert
- Front departure alert
- Pedal misoperation control
- Front Departure Alert
- Adaptive Cruise Control
Prices have crept up marginally, though the entry-level variant is priced the same as the outgoing model's. Across the board there's a slight 2% increase over the last-gen car.
2022 Ativ price in Thailand | |
---|---|
Variant | Price |
Sport | THB 539k (~RM 68k) |
THB 584k (~RM 73k) | |
Premium | THB 659k (~RM 83k) |
Premium Luxury | THB 689k (~RM 86k) |
Keyword: The Perodua-Daihatsu developed DNGA-based 2023 Toyota Vios makes you want to buy the current one