[fuel_addict]

Originally Posted by vid6639

I agree that the Etios gearbox is one of the better Toyota ones. It's lighter and throw is very precise, even better than the Altis I have.


Engine was extremely tractable and even in second gear pulls effortlessly. Infact over a speed breaker where the Altis has to be in 1st the Etios comfortably pulls from second.

I disagree on this. The Altis chugs over most speed breakers in the 2nd gear. The cars pulls easily from there. In fact, I have crossed some mild ones in 3rd gear too.

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by fuel_addict

I disagree on this. The Altis chugs over most speed breakers in the 2nd gear. The cars pulls easily from there. In fact, I have crossed some mild ones in 3rd gear too.

I drove the Etios over the exact same route which I drive the Altis daily. For the speed breakers I went over I need 1st gear and a slow speeds cause they are huge bumps. If I fly over I will hit the bump even in the Altis or my Figo.

I took the Etios on that road and I slowed down to the same speed but the car did not complain being in second and just pulled without any hesitation. The Altis stalls if I do that.

What I'm trying to say is that the Altis has amazing low end torque and is supposed to be the most drivable city car. The etios actually does an even better job.

[Virtualaman]

Originally Posted by amalji

In Trivandrum, the cost was 7.12 Lakhs for V variant ( including tax and insurance ). Such high difference in pricing at Bangalore ?

In Thane and Mumbai the on road price (all inclusive) of the V variant is Rs 7.52 Lakh and Rs 7.55 Lakh respectively.

Originally Posted by amalji

Very true. I slowed down the car to dead slow on 2nd, and it was ready to pull when I pushed down the pedal from there.

I agree with that completely. Like it has been said many times by many before, Etios pulls away from any gear very smartly.

[Mpower]

OK, confirmed that the 2011 Yaris also has single wiper. In fact the arm and blade looks identical to Etios.
http://www.autocar.co.uk/CarReviews/...3-2011/254945/

[xingamazon]

Originally Posted by Mpower

OK, confirmed that the 2011 Yaris also has single wiper. In fact the arm and blade looks identical to Etios.

Hey this pic looks different from the one that I saw in the Car and Bike Show.

Is this a different one, moreover where is the T Badge is that the badge of their Chinese partner?

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by xingamazon

Hey this pic looks different from the one that I saw in the Car and Bike Show.

Is this a different one, moreover where is the T Badge is that the badge of their Chinese partner?

I have seen this badge for Toyota cars which are sold in Singapore via Parallel importers (not imported through authorised dealers).

[bharatbs]

Guys please check out the Etios in Malaysia: Vios - Gallery - Exterior | Toyota Malaysia


It is known as VIOS in Malaysia and it has much better interiors comapred to Etios in India. I dont know why Toyota thinks that people will pay between 5-7 lakhs for a car and dont care about the interiors.

[AutoIndian]

Originally Posted by bharatbs

Guys please check out the Etios in Malaysia: Vios - Gallery - Exterior | Toyota Malaysia


It is known as VIOS in Malaysia and it has much better interiors comapred to Etios in India. I dont know why Toyota thinks that people will pay between 5-7 lakhs for a car and dont care about the interiors.

Thank you for sharing the link. Yes the interiors of the Malaysian version, Vios, definitely look better. The MID font size is legible. However I noticed that the kerb weight is at 1020kg for the MT & 1050 for the AT. So here the Indian Etios seems to be leaner & meaner at 930kg or is it that the Etios is on a diet sheet metal & chassis?

[Surviving Brain]

Originally Posted by bharatbs

I dont know why Toyota thinks that people will pay between 5-7 lakhs for a car and dont care about the interiors.

But, I know the reason

No matter how bad the interiors are, Toyota know that people will still find themselves happy buying this car.

After all it's a Toyota, right?!

[vb-saan]

Originally Posted by bharatbs

Guys please check out the Etios in Malaysia: Vios - Gallery - Exterior | Toyota Malaysia


It is known as VIOS in Malaysia and it has much better interiors comapred to Etios in India. I dont know why Toyota thinks that people will pay between 5-7 lakhs for a car and dont care about the interiors.

This is an entirely wrong information. Etios and VIOS are two entirely different models.
VIOS sedan has been in the SE Asia market for many years (If I remember right, it used to be known as Soluna in Thailand). It is Toyota's entry level sedan, competing with the likes of Honda City, Mazda 2 sedan etc. in this market. Its not a built to cost car, but just a smaller version of the Altis, based on the same platform as of Yaris hatchback.

[lamborghini]

So wouldn't it have been more viable for Toyota to bring in the Vios instead of the Etios?

[Vid6639]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

So wouldn't it have been more viable for Toyota to bring in the Vios instead of the Etios?

No cos the Vios would have been priced similar to ANHC and Vento. The Etios seems to be loosely based on the Vios but is heavily stripped down.

With the Vios they would have never been able to achieve the numbers they are targeting.

Vios would have been ANHC territory and hatch would have been Jazz/Polo territory. Both at the premium end of the segment and not real volume players.

With Etios and Liva they are targeting a way bigger market. Etios sedan is priced similar to top end variants of premium hatches and goes upto lower end of premium sedans.

The Liva will target buyers of small cars like swift, Figo as well as high end hatches like Polo and i20.

The strategy is bang on I would say. Both products are not without their flaws but both are Toyotas.

Here's an interesting story. I met a guy at Ravindu showroom the other day. He was looking at the car closely and was a bit unhappy at what he saw. Casually spoke to him and he was like man the car feels a bit cheap and not premium like ANHC. Was expecting a bit more but ANHC is 2.5L more just for the premium feel. The Honda is good but I trust the badge on the Etios and you can't go wrong with a Toyota.

I know Honda also has a brand image and all that but the big T just works when it comes to no nonsense practical cars.

Another example. My boss sold his 6 year old Corolla. Was looking around for a car to replace. Guess what he got. A new Altis.

My other boss is looking at selling his old Qualis done 1.5L kms. Guess what he's getting. An Innova most probably or Fortuner.

ps: Sorry for the OT posts and I'm not a Toyota fan. I hate how boring the cars are to drive and completely devoid of any feel. I pick my Ford Figo keys over the Altis any day.

[vijaythacker]

Originally Posted by vid6639

I agree that the Etios gearbox is one of the better Toyota ones. It's lighter and throw is very precise, even better than the Altis I have.

What I did find was that it does not slot in easy in high rpm's. You can't rev till redline and slam in higher gear. It needs to be eased in else does not slot in.

Had a short drive of the car and was very impressed. For 7.66L you get the V variant that loses the red upholstery, side skirts, audio controls on steering wheel compared to the VX at 8.2L.

The i20 Asta is 6.8L in comparison. Instead of a fully loaded hatch the Etios is a way better option.

Engine was extremely tractable and even in second gear pulls effortlessly. Infact over a speed breaker where the Altis has to be in 1st the Etios comfortably pulls from second.

Suspension is stiffer and has lesser travel than the Altis. As a result the car oscillates lesser over undulations. Insulation in wheel well is non existent and even when you drive over sand you hear the sound of sand/mud in the wheels.

Steering is way better than the Altis. Has more feel and is great to hold.

Space is fantastic. 3 of us sat in the rear of the Etios and then later on in the Altis. The Etios has more space for 3 abreast as well as way more legroom than the Altis.

I know I'm comparing with Altis and is in a different segment and all that but you just cant help comparing if you have an Altis especially when you find that the Etios is actually a bit better than Altis in some aspects.

Yes you end up compromising on quality which is very poor. Sheet metal feels very flimsy, door handles look like they will fall off, no plastic cladding around front seats, poor upholstery, very poor instrument cluster, horrible sunshades(Figo even has better) and very tacky red colour scheme in VX.

well i quite agree completely to your thoughts as i felt the same with my TD of etios of VX variant and felt V is much VFM variant.Was disappointed with few things though, sound insulation was not that great and noise was audible inside cabin, doors felt like tin box while closing also boot lid as well.

BTW got one free tshirt from toyota for test driving Etios.

[parsh]

I got a chance to check out Etios and TD it while in Pune in the weekend.
Here are my 2 bits about the car.

Exterior:
Looks pretty bland at first glance but still not so much down and out. Quite a resemblance to Indigo from Front (sideways) and Logan from rear at first look.

Look closer and you find neat lines running along the side and on bonnet, and starts giveing the car a good perspective once noticed.

The rear though Logan-like still seems to have a good presence with its nicely clustered lights and a wider one than Logan. The boot certainly seems to be one of the biggest selling point.

You try to sound the sheet metal and it sounds tin-like.

Overall, I felt it was digestable given the choices.

Interior:
The floor carpet is definitely a let down and so are the plastics which feel cheap. Toyota should have done better even if to keep the costs down and to compete with the likes of DZire and Manza.

Overall arrangement of the console seems good. However, the Speedometer is bit of a showcase and looks pretty cheap and fake. They should have done better with it. Moreover, the G variants do not have Tachometer, quite surprising.

The Rear legspace is enormous even with the front seats pulled all the way back. The flatness of the bottom also helps in putting legs properly for the rear middle passenger.

The one thing that struck me badly is the arrangement of speakers. one pair of speakers is located on the Dashboard at either ends and the other pair is located in the front doors. NO speakers in the rear door. Additionally, there is no provision to install speakers in the rear doors. This diminishes the sound effects on the rear and increases unncessarily to the driver. And you are left with no option to install the rear parcel tray speakers.

Overall, the build looks solid and quite palatable.

Drive:
Superbly smooth all the way through all the gears. We drove fully-loaded, passengers with 3 adults and 2 kids in the rear sitting comfortably. Experimented on the uneven tarmac road on side with lots of potholes and natural speedbreakers.

There was hardly any complaint from the rear passengers. As with most of the Toyota's it picks up very well at lower speeds even from higher gears and on the inclines, inclines were essentially flyovers where I drove.

However, the Steering feels absolutely toy-like, free-wheeling, transmitting no response to the driver even at higher speeds (checked upto 80).

I was initially averse to the single wiper until I saw the work done by the single wiper. The double arm single wiper cleans out pretty much most of the screen without any worry to the driver.

I was also averse to the centrally mounted instrument cluster but that does not seem to hinder the driving either.

My plus point of looking at Etio and later Liva is the Toyota quality (barring the interior quality) and the A.S.S. which gives you worry-free ownership.

Still, I would have loved to see better interior quality on seat material, plastics and carpet.

[Spectre]

Kudos and many thanks for such a brilliant review.
Very suprised that many doesnt like the looks for this sedan. I kind of like the design. A black or dark shades will make it look all the more better.
Looking forward to the diesel version