2017 Toyota C-HR small SUV to get turbo power

Toyota is putting the finishing touches on its entry into the booming city-sized SUV segment.

The Toyota C-HR concept unveiled at the 2014 Paris motor show looks like a spaceship, but the production version is just weeks away from being unveiled at the Geneva auto salon ahead of an Australian showroom arrival this time next year.

As the saying goes, when you’re last in, you better be best dressed.

Reports out of Europe say the production version of the Toyota C-HR will be made in Turkey and come with a choice of turbo petrol or hybrid power.

However, vehicles destined for Australia are expected to be made in Japan and come exclusively with an all-new 1.2-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine (85kW/185Nm) that was recently introduced in the UK version of the Corolla.

The high-riding hatchback is also expected to be available with a choice of six-speed manual transmission or CVT auto.

Overseas reports say the Toyota C-HR will stay true to its daring design, although imagine the concept car with smaller wheels and more realistic headlights and tail-lights.

Pricing is a year away from being announced, but class rivals such as the Mazda CX-3 and Honda HR-V are typically priced between $20,000 and $30,000.

Australians are on track to buy more SUVs than passenger cars for the first time in our motoring history.

Toyota may be the biggest seller of SUVs in Australia but it has been conspicuously absent in the fastest-growing segment of the new-car market globally.

High-riding hatchbacks are fast catching sales of regular passenger cars as buyers embrace their taller driving position, ease of getting in and out, and roomier cargo areas.

If sales of SUVs continue at their current rate, Australians are on track to buy more SUVs than passenger cars for the first time in our motoring history.

Official new-car sales figures for January show the gap between passenger cars and SUVs is the closest it has ever been.

Passenger car sales were down by 11.5 per cent while demand for SUVs surged by 19.5 per cent.

If the trend continues, SUVs could overtake passenger cars by the end of 2016.

Just 2141 sales separated the two vehicle types last month (35,214 versus 33,073); this time last year the gap between the two biggest categories was six times greater.

Do you like the look of the C-HR concept? Share your opinion in the comments below.