Paris Preview: Toyota unveils new Avensis
Click above for high-res gallery with the new Toyota Avensis
Toyota will use the upcoming Paris Motor Show in October to unveil its redesigned flagship model for Europe, the Avensis. Think of it as the old country's version of the Avalon. Though we only have a rear 3/4 shot to go by, the new Avensis looks considerably more chunky than the current model, with a short deck lid, large rear tail-lights, a strong shoulder line and some interesting concave surfacing above the side sills. We don't know much else, other than that it will be offered with more powerful and cleaner engines when it goes on sale in Europe around January.
Toyota also announced that it will be bringing out the production version of its iQ city car and the Urban Cruiser for the Paris show. The Urban Cruiser is basically a ruggedized, soft-roading version of the Scion xD, while the iQ is based on the concept of the same name that debuted at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2007.
[Source: Toyota]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
k.w.a 4:34PM (8/29/2008)
that wouldve made a good looking corolla ( if it were smaller of course)
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That One Person 5:05PM (8/29/2008)
Uhh...if ANY of Toyota's NA American offerings look like this, I wouldn't have such a problem with them.
Heck, make the Yaris, Corolla, Camry AND Avalon look like this think.
Why the heck does Toyota give other countries great looking cars and we are stuck with the frumpy grandma mobiles?
philrocka 4:43PM (8/29/2008)
Toyota needs to put the Urban Cruiser front end on the xD ASAP. Looks way better.
I wonder how the Avenis would do as a Scion as well. With some sporty pieces and good handling it could be the Camry for younger families.
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tekdemon 4:46PM (8/29/2008)
The Avenesis is a Scion already (the tC), so it wouldn't be too surprising if it became a Scion. Still, I think it better belongs in the Toyota brand since Scion seems largely targeted towards teens and early twentysomethings (have you seen their ads?!).
Torrent 5:13PM (8/29/2008)
urban cruiser is fugly.
BoneHeadOtto 5:47PM (8/29/2008)
The xD in Japan is called the ist and has this front end. Not sure how the urban cruiser differs from the ist though. looks exactly the same maybe just lowered. I personally like the xD front end better. Looks less SUV like than this
tekdemon 4:44PM (8/29/2008)
That looks very nice...wonder if the front has been improved as well. I vaguely wish they would bring it stateside (as a 4-door Toyota and not just as the tC). Toyota is probably just worried that it would eat into Camry sales, but since small is in these days it could probably steal a few Mazda-6 and similar sales.
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Torrent 5:12PM (8/29/2008)
The Avensis is a little too boxy, but it is definitely better looking than the current Corolla. I'd prefer this to it.
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Kitko 5:13PM (8/29/2008)
I'm sorry, but from that angle the whole thing looks like a Mazda 3 sedan (roofline, doors) crossed with a Ford Mondeo. Which wouldn't be a bad thing if the badge was of the Nanjing Automobile Corporation. I'd expect more from Toyota.
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Red 6:36PM (8/29/2008)
You'd expect more like what, exactly? The 3 and Mondeo are two of the most elegant, sporty designs in their respective classes. I'm not quite understanding how you see some sort of derivative of either a bad thing. They could've done worse. Like the Acura grille.
You must be one of the ones happy there's no Supra in the lineup. C'mon....go ahead and admit it. ;)
tekdemon 10:06PM (8/30/2008)
Except it mostly just looks like an updated version of itself. Having lived in the UK before I assure you that it looks mostly like an improved Avenesis. How you see the mondeo in it is beyond me.
akns 5:47PM (8/29/2008)
Nice. Starting to look more like my BMW 550i.
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jgp 5:47PM (8/29/2008)
This looks so much better than the Camry.
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D 6:13PM (8/29/2008)
Um, the Avensis is a renamed Camry in some overseas markets (like Oz) - not an Avalon. In other markets, Toyota uses the Avensis bodywork but the Camry nameplate.
Prior to this refresh, the differences are in the front and rear bumpers/lights. The Avensis looks much better (imho) than the NA Camry.
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Markus 3:54AM (8/30/2008)
The European Avensis is not a renamed Camry. It fills a similar role here than the Camry does in the US, true. But it's one size smaller than a Camry. The Avensis is the successor to the 1990s Carina which was one step below the Camry which we still had in Europe back then.
The Avensis is midsize, competeing with the Mondeo, Laguna, Octavia, etc.
The Camry was a full size sedan and has dissapeared form the (german) market in the late 90s and early 2000s together will almost all other full size imports.
Markus 4:42AM (8/30/2008)
Um yeah, and just disregard all the typos. It's too early in the morning...
BTW, I miss the 1990s Euro Camry wagon, that thing was huge. Too bad the Japanese didn't have TDIs back then.
slotownbrian 6:19PM (8/29/2008)
TAXI!
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I_Hate_China_2 8:16PM (8/29/2008)
With a Muslim driver.
Tony 7:30PM (8/29/2008)
The Avensis is the European mid-sized sedan that succeeded the Carina in Europe (called the Corona elsewhere, but not sold in Nth America). It's designed for the European C market (Mondeo, Vectra, Mazda6, Accord Euro/Acura TSX). It was never the Camry (which is a bigger and more expensive car). The V6 Camry is sold in Australia & NZ as the Aurion with slight cosmetic differences (Camry name used for the 4-cyl version, visually identical to Nth America).
Did someone say TAXI? Well, due to its reliability (but Toyota-bland looks), it has been used a lot as taxis in Europe fitted with the turbodiesel engine, with not as many private buyers (who'd rather have anything from a Mondeo to a Mercedes C-class in its place -- yes, some versions of "prestige" cars are cheap enough overseas; less equipment and smaller engines, but that's fine over there).
The looks of this car are a major step for Toyota, whose cars in Europe are bought almost solely for dependability than desirability. It's actually stylish.
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Ken Stamper 8:04PM (8/29/2008)
The Avensis has quite a differnet market niche in Europe than the Avalon does in the US- I think calling it the Euro Camry is more like it. Anyway, this is a solidly handsome car.
I wonder if the next-gen Scion TC will be based on this chassis, as the current one is based on the previous Avensis.
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