2015 Toyota Yaris gets sharper looks

The revival of style in the Toyota empire continues, this time with the big selling Yaris getting a striking facelift. So strong is the small car market in Australia at the moment that the importer has chosen to release information early to try and upstage competitors.

The facelifted Toyota Yaris won’t reach us in Australia until September. The photos of the upcoming new model show it has Toyota's signature front-end design, with a downward dipping upper grille focused around the Toyota ‘T’ badge.

Below the bumper is what looks to be the largest grille yet seen in any modern small car since Audi ushered in the era of the single-frame unit. Indeed, the grille extends back in the direction of the front wheels, and at the same time frames large triangular headlights.

The overall result is a strong family resemblance with the Corolla hatch, and the all-new Corolla sedan that was launched only a couple of months back. The upgrade to the Yaris’ shape is matched by new wheel designs. There’s also revised rear styling including new taillights. Toyota tells us its latest Yaris has aimed for a higher-quality interior, though no photos have been released so we can’t comment at this stage. 

Toyota Link multimedia information system will be standard in topline versions and optional in others. Again, no details have been provided in the teaser press release.

Small car sales have been surging in Australia in recent times as people move down from large cars in the interests of lower fuel consumption and emissions. Large car buyers have, not surprisingly, shown a huge preference for cars with back doors. As a result the three-door version of the new Yaris won’t be imported to Australia. All hatches will have five doors, the sedan will continue to have four.

Sales of Toyota Yaris in Australia have reached 181,000 in just eight-and-a-half years since the nameplate arrived in late 2005. Yaris replaced the Toyota Echo, which in turn had displaced the Toyota Starlet. Sales were slow in the Starlet days, primarily due to its high price. But there’s no doubting the success of the Echo and Yaris.