Facelift for Toyota Yaris

One car is not the other. Likewise, the Toyota Yaris differs from market to market. Sometimes even very strong. For example, the previous generation Toyota Yaris was a Mazda 2 with different badges in the United States from 2019, while the Mazda 2 as a Hybrid is now a Toyota Yaris in Europe. The current generation Toyota Yaris, which you can only buy as a five-door in Europe – except for the intense GR taste – is just a size smaller in Japan. But there’s more. For example, there is a generation of the Toyota Yaris that is completely different from the model you know in Europe. The current Yaris that you can buy here is the so-called fourth generation (XP210). Since 2013, Toyota has been selling a Yaris that has never appeared here in Brazil, but also in countries such as China, India, Indonesia and Thailand: the Yaris codenamed XP150 (photos 33 and 34). That Yaris is now going under the knife for the umpteenth time after ten years.

The Toyota Yaris (XP150) as it was presented in 2013.

The Yaris of the XP150 generation has been specially developed for growth markets and is therefore based on the cheaper EPC platform that Toyota also uses under the Etios, which is also unknown here. This generation of Yaris went under the knife very radically in 2017 (photos 35 and 36) and was given a completely new front and a completely new rear during that side-by-side session. In 2020, the muzzle of the Yaris was renewed again and now the car is getting another facelift. A striking one too. Toyota gives the Yaris a new nose for the third time, this time complete with LED headlights that make the front somewhat reminiscent of that of the previous generation Prius.

In 2017, the Yaris (XP150) already went under the knife.

Although the headlights are completely new, Toyota has not had to adjust the front fenders. If you look closely, you will see that the new headlights where they connect to the front wings and hood simply follow the edges of these parts. Only in the part where the headlight dives into the completely new bumper does the shape of the light unit change. After all, adjusting a bumper is a lot cheaper than changing molds of sheet metal parts. Modifications at the rear are minimal and are limited to the arrival of a rear bumper with a diffuser-like panel in it.

Let’s face it, you can see some Prius DNA in this. However?

The Yaris story gets even more confusing. Based on this XP150-generation Yaris, there is also a sedan that – depending on the market – is called Vios, Yaris L, Yaris Sedan or Yaris Ativ. It still exists in various markets, but notably in Thailand, where the Yaris Hatchback has now been facelifted, the sedan version has been replaced by a completely new model developed by Daihatsu and now has a completely different basis.