Joining dots suggests baby Cruiser will be Jimny based
Ever since Toyota showed a glut of electric car concepts last year, speculation has been rife on all sorts of new EVs coming up. Shockingly however, of the vehicles shown, a growing number of them have already come to life, but as combustion powered cars.
The Electric pickup, for instance, has turned out to be the look of the the new Tacoma bakkie. Which is also expected to share pretty much everything with the new Hilux when it comes. An electric Land Cruiser shown that day, has now transpired to be the new Prado. And an edgy electric coupe SUV has just shown up as the all-new petrol CH-R.
Now it’s all ado about another car in that EV line-up, which some are calling the Baby Cruiser. Others say it will be the Land Hopper and there’s also a story on it being FJ Cruiser. We’ll go out on a limb and just say that it will be called what it said on its concept numberplates at that reveal. The Toyota Compact Cruiser. But without the EV. Akio Toyoda most certainly will have the last laugh on all that!
What will Toyota’s Compact Cruiser be?
Anyway, back to Compact Cruiser. What will it be? Well, the speculation all accelerated around some further hints and suggestions as to a baby Land Cruiser at last month’s Japan Mobility 2023, expo. The little 4x4 they tell us, will draw inspiration from the Land Cruiser’s off-road capabilities. But it will be built on a much smaller platform.
Toyota’s teaser styling of course suggests exactly how it will look. Complete with a new Prado-like face and stepped window line. Japanese sources suggest both combustion and hybrid powertrains. And what would speculation be if it did not include an EV aspect? But scratch that for now.
Those same sources speculate that the new baby 4x4 will be based on a soft Corolla Cross or RAV4 platform. But hang on a second. Have they all not missed a crucial prospect? Toyota has enjoyed huge success in markets like South Africa, India and elsewhere with its recent switch to Suzuki-based small cars and SUVs.
Toyota already shares many Suzuki products
Witness the Suzuki Celerio based Toyota Vitz entry car, the Toyota Starlet based on the Suzuki Baleno and the Toyota Urban Cruiser that’s based on the Suzuki Grand Vitara. All of them great sellers in all those markets. With both Toyota and Suzuki badges on their noses. Now open your field of vision a touch, and ponder for a second the Suzuki Jimny?
Would Toyota really spend the billions of yen reinventing the wheel when it can achieve precisely the same ends by simply rebadging Jimny as Compact Cruiser and be done with it? Just as it did with Vitz, Starlet, Rumion, Urban Cruiser and the rest, present and future?
Knowing Toyota like Auto does, we’d be pleasantly surprised if the forthcoming Toyota Compact Cruiser, or whatever they call it, will not simply be a rebadged Suzuki Jimny. Which has of course only just emerged as a 5-door too. Just about at the time Toyota would want that for Compact Cruiser? Let’s wait and see! – Michele Lupini
