Toyota enhances Urban Cruiser to tackle the spec war
There’s always been a catchphrase in the real estate business: ‘position, position, position. Now there’s another, but this one applies squarely to the car industry: specification, specification, specification!
Whereas the property version has become cliché over so many years of wisdom as it highlights that your best investment sits at the best sites, the car one is relatively new. It is testament to super-cheap Chinese brands flooding the market and offering ridiculous levels of specification for the money.
But wait, it’s no longer just the Chinese who do that! The traditional market has struck back, led by Toyota. A brand that’s never really majored on spec, South Africa’s leading car badge has always focused on quality, dependability and reliability. A philosophy that’s ensured it remains by far the top seller.
A new era of feature-richer Toyotas
But even Toyota has noticed the effect that upstart Oriental rivals have had on the market. Now, rather than wait until it’s beaten, the market leader has already taken to this new spec craze. Witness the newly re-fettled Toyota Urban Cruiser. A B-SUV success since 2021, it’s just been upgraded to herald a new era of feature-richer Toyotas in South Africa.
Designed to deliver value, comfort, and functionality, Urban Cruiser now benefits a considerable range of new features, updates and specification across its XS and XR variants. Aimed to enhance everyday comfort and practicality, its not just better. But Toyota is now also mastering the car specification art.
The Toyota advantage is however reputation. New car buyers need no longer fret about opting for an unknown, unproven brand to snare a true value for money deal. It’s now also available on the country’s favourite car brand.
Urban Cruiser gains a huge Toyota spec update
All Toyota Urban Cruiser models now step up from 7 inch to bigger and better to 9 inch multimedia for a more compelling, more immersive interface. Part of an upgraded infotainment system, improvements spread to dual rear USB-C ports. For seamless interaction and faster charging on every passenger’s mobile device.
Other Urban Cruiser XS boosts include a new premium leather-clad steering wheel with improved feel and feedback, a standard rear wiper and convenient luggage shelf strings in the boot. But the most obvious upgrade is a stylish new set of alloy wheels in place of the old steel rims. For significantly enhanced aesthetic appeal and road presence.
Over and above those XS upgrades, the range-topping XR also gains its fair share of extra specification and exclusive upgrades. Focused on safety and style, the XR steps up to LED headlamps versus the old halogens. This tech brings superior nighttime visibility, while new daylight running lights add a sexy new touch on the road, too.
Sold by Toyota’s vast national dealer network
Urban Cruiser also gains standard automatic light control and follow-me-home convenience. To confidently keep the headlamps lit a while after the engine is switched off after dark. All Urban Cruisers of course come standard via Toyota’s vast national dealer network with a flexible extendable 3-year/100 000km warranty and 4 year/60 000 km service plan. Plus full MyToyota digital and wi-fi access.
Always an unbeatable value bridge between the conventional hatchback and traditional SUV, the Toyota Urban Cruiser’s generous dimensions, robust stance and sexy looks already stand well apart from the bunch. Its proven 1.5-litre engine and manual or automatic transmissions deliver and efficient, yet energetic drive.
Starting at R342K for the 1.5 XS manual and topped by R373 1.5 XR automatic, the Toyota Urban Cruiser now also delivers levels of specification that were once only expected from Chinese upstarts. The difference is, this is a Toyota. And that’s huge!