Toyota Yaris Cross details emerge

The new Toyota Yaris Cross has been launched in Japan, where it's priced from around ¥1.8million (about $A23,000), shedding new light on what Aussies can expect when the all-new compact SUV touches down in Australia before the end of this year.

Tipped to cost around $25,000 when it arrives in Australia later in 2020, the Toyota Yaris Cross is considerably cheaper than the bigger RAV4 but more expensive than other small SUVs such as the Hyundai Venue and Mazda CX-3, both of start from around $20,000.

However, the Japanese specification reveals it has a larger 390-litre boot than its Hyundai (355L) and Mazda (264L) rivals, and the Yaris Cross is available offered with premium features like a powered tailgate with kick-to-open gesture control, which can come in handy when your hands are full with shopping, for example.

There’s even a 1500W power outlet for hybrid models that can be used to plug in electrical appliances, such as an air fryer or a toaster.

Toyota has also revealed several sporty body upgrades for the Yaris Cross in Japan, including Modellista and GR kits, the latter raising hopes for a full-blown rally raid version fitted with the banzai 192kW/360Nm 1.6-litre turbo-triple from the Yaris GR hot hatch.

Heated and six-way power-adjustable front seats and a heated steering wheel will be offered on top-spec models in Japan, as will a colour head-up display. As we've previously reported, Android Auto and Apple CarPlay functionality will be part of the car's touch-screen infotainment system.

Based on the same TNGA-B platform as the new and significantly more expensive Toyota Yaris hatch, the Yaris Cross SUV will get much of the same safety and powertrain systems.

That means autonomous emergency braking (AEB) with day/night vehicle and pedestrian detection and daytime cyclist detection, plus adaptive cruise control, lane keep assistance, adaptive high-beam headlights, blind-spot monitoring and traffic sign recognition.

Available in front-drive and all-wheel-drive configurations and with six-speed manual and automatic (CVT) transmissions, the new compact SUV will be powered by a pair of 1.5-litre three-cylinder engines -- one hybrid (85kW/120Nm), one conventional (88kW/145Nm) -- mirroring the Yaris hatchback.

Japanese fuel economy figures based on the WLTP test cycle put the hybrid models at 3.2L/100km and the conventional engines at 5.7L/100km, which are both good results.

Sean Hanley, Toyota Australia’s sales and marketing boss, told carsales the Yaris Cross was a crucial model for the brand and will fill a significant void in its product portfolio.

As the recent price increases for the new Yaris shocked the industry and even saw Toyota point entry-level vehicle shoppers to its used vehicle program, Hanley said the new Yaris Cross model would be an affordable competitor in the compact SUV segment.

“The Yaris Cross will offer a great value alternative in the segment, and we are really excited about it,” said Hanley.

“And it will fill a gap for us in the fastest-growing segment. It’s deeply important to our sales plans going forward.”

It’s unlikely Toyota Australia will offer the wild Modellista and GR body kit upgrades, but Hanley said the new design is already resonating with younger customers.

“In terms of its style, it's magnificent. It’s a great looking car and we’re seeing really strong and positive sentiment, particularly in social media, about the Yaris Cross and its styling.”

In terms of sales, the Hanley reckons hybrid models will account for around half of all Yaris Cross sales, although hybrid models will almost certainly start above $30,000.

“Certainly in the first 12 months of launch, that would be a planning volume we’d look towards. In fact, I think it could be a little bit better than half [for hybrid] during the initial launch period," he said.

"I think it will settle somewhere between 40 to 50 per cent but I don’t think the stats were seeing on hybrid mix across our hybrid range of vehicles should be underestimated as short-term stats now.”

The top-selling compact SUV in Australia is the Mazda CX-3 with 7501 sales thus far in 2020, accounting for just over 52 per cent of the market segment.

The discontinued Holden Trax found a 15.6 per cent share (2236 sales) for second place, the Hyundai Venue 13.6 per cent (1959 sales) for third place and the Volkswagen T-Cross has hit the market all guns blazing after just a few months on sale with a 7.5 per cent market share (1072 sales) and fourth p[lace.

Although Hanley wouldn’t say how many Yaris Cross vehicles the brand hopes sell each month, his tone suggested it would give the CX-3 a run for its money.

“I pretty well think we’ll sell every one we’ve got. What that equates to right now it’s too early to delve into specific numbers, but I expect it’ll do very well in the segment it’s in.”