Toyota Yaris News

The little Yugo hatchback made by now long-gone Serbian brand Zastava Automobili appears to be making a return to a market that's increasingly being dominated by new Chinese brands, and in another twist, it won't be electric.Made from 1980 to 2008 the Yugo was popular in the United States, India, Egypt and Eastern Europe. The little car was also sold in Australia before Zastava Automobili ended operations.The Yugo brand, however, has been bought by German university professor, Dr Alexander Bjelic, who plans to resurrect the small hatch that's yet to be named.While a production version is still far off, Dr Bjelic used the recent 2025 Munich Car Design Event to show off a concept version. The catch is, it's a tiny scale model in a plastic box for now with Dr Bjelic aiming to have a full-size prototype ready for the 2027 Belgrade Expo. The model shows off the little hatch’s retro-cool looks with a modern twist on the Yugo hatch. The futuristic looks may be reminiscent of a tiny version of Hyundai's Ioniq 5 electric SUV, but Yugo says its upcoming car will be powered by an internal combustion engine. The brand said an electric variant may also become available at a later point.The original Yugo hatch was known for its affordability but had a poor reputation for reliability and build quality. While the car was sold in Australia along with 76 other countries, it's uncertain whether the resurrected version will be sold in Australia.If the Yugo hatch did make it Down Under it would be up against fierce tiny rivals such as Volkswagen's Polo, the Skoda Fabia, Toyota Yaris, Suzuki Swift, MG3 and Mazda2.Still, if Yugo can price the car lower than its competitors and arrive with a design that looks as good as the concept then it could be onto a winner. 

Toyota has been reaping the benefits of a relatively reserved global electric vehicle strategy, but other makers have been diving into the deep end of the EV pool with offerings in virtually all market categories.Sticking with the petrol-electric hybrid technology it pioneered in the 1990s, the Japanese giant appears to have struck the optimal mix of powertrains to generate consumer demand while dealing with ever-tightening carbon emissions and vehicle sales regulations.But that doesn’t mean Toyota has consigned EVs to the back burner. The bZ4X compact EV SUV has been launched in multiple export markets, including Australia, its larger bZ3X cousin (jointly-developed with GAC) is offered as a budget-focused option in China and the C-HR+ has just launched in Europe.And other EVs are reportedly either under consideration or in the early stages of development as the appetite for electric cars continues to grow, but at a far slower rate than many manufacturers initially believed it would.One long-standing Toyota city-car favourite, seemingly ripe for electrification, is the Yaris and Toyota Motor Europe’s Director of Marketing and Product Development Andrea Carlucci has confirmed an electric successor for the sub-compact five-door is in the company’s plans.Speaking at this week’s launch of the pure-electric C-HR+, Mr Carlucci told Autocar a Toyota electric supermini is likely to arrive in the latter part of the decade but made the point that new EVs in higher volume segments will take priority.When asked about a Yaris EV he said, “This is the idea, but now it is not something we talk about”."We have deliberately decided to start in the fastest-growing segments. The right moment will arrive, but this is not quite now. There will come a time and a place.“For us, it is all about the right car, the right place at the right time. It really is. And at the moment, the expansion you're seeing are the right segments for Europe for us right now,” he said.Interestingly, like the C-HR+, the newcomer is expected to retain the Yaris name, as Carlucci told Autocar that future Toyota EVs would take "familiar" names from “current cars”.And Toyota is not alone in reevaluating its decision to designate its electric models with specific (in this case 'bZ') sub-branding, as Audi has massaged its ‘e-tron’ naming conventions and Mercedes-Benz has integrated its ‘EQ’ models into the brand’s broader model line-up.

Toyota has pulled out all the stops at this year’s Tokyo Auto Salon, unveiling three striking examples of its GR Yaris hot hatch under the banner of ‘Car-making at Nürburgring’.These include a competition test and research prototype designed to extend the car’s potential on road and track.The GR Yaris M Concept features a mid-mounted, 2.0-litre, inline turbo four-cylinder engine and a full race set-up enabling it to compete in 24 hour endurance events which Toyota has consistently used as test bed for new designs and technology, with company Chairman Akio Toyoda (aka ‘Master Driver’ Morizo) a regular competitor in around the clock races at (the Toyota owned) Fuji Speedway.In recent years the key focus has been development of a competition version of the GR Corolla powered by a 1.3-litre, three-cylinder combustion engine using hydrogen as a liquid fuel.And now, the GR Yaris M Concept looks set to join it, with a full-house GRMN (Gazoo Racing Meister of the Nurburgring) version a possible production car development.Toyota says the car will be “repeatedly driven to failure and then repaired in the extreme conditions of racing, with feedback from Morizo and professional drivers incorporated”.Question is, why? The 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine is expected to be the brand's new performance halo that will invigorate its sports car line-up.The fact the engine is mounted mid-ship in the Yaris Mule suggests that, like MG did with a Metro van prior to the TF sports car's launch, Toyota might be testing its new MR2 layout in public. Interesting.Also on display is another “evolved”, although slightly more conventional, GR Yaris racing car. It features Gazoo Racing’s newly developed eight-speed ‘Direct Automatic Transmission’ (DAT).Toyota claims the DAT’s optimised software senses driver brake and accelerator inputs to anticipate optimal gear shift points before changes in vehicle behaviour occur.To be run by Toyota Gazoo Racing (in collaboration with Rookie Racing) in the Nürburgring Langstrecken Series (NLS) this competition Yaris will mark Toyota’s return to the Nürburgring 24 Hours endurance race after a six-year hiatus.The final member of the GR Yaris trio is an Aero Package prototype road car featuring six body elements including strakes in the nose, vented fender flairs and a variable rear wing (with “situation-responsive” adjustable angle).

It’s no secret times are tough. The cost of living is sky high and cars don’t seem to be getting any cheaper. 

Can't afford a new Toyota nowadays? Too bad, as the company has reiterated that it will not return to the sub-$25,000 market in Australia. However, Toyota Vice President Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations, Sean Hanley, reckons the best solution for consumers is to buy a used Toyota, but only from a Toyota dealer that is participating in a particular scheme.

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The cost of entry to the Toyota Yaris light hatchback range has increased by $3700 following Toyota’s decision to drop all petrol-powered variants, except the GR Yaris hot hatch, in favour of a hybrid-heavy line-up.

Toyota is saying goodbye to its cheapest passenger variants as it abandons sales of petrol-only offerings of its smallest models.

Toyota has revealed a facelifted version of both the Yaris hatch and Yaris Cross small SUV in Japan.

Badge-engineered cars. It’s been happening almost as long as the industry itself. Some pull off the disguise so convincingly you’d never know their true identities, like John Travolta’s face-switcheroo with Nicolas Cage in 1997’s immensely silly/fun Face/Off. Others, meanwhile, are about as convincing as donning a Groucho Marx nose and glasses.