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Facebook post reveals new Yaris

MORE ZEN?: Toyota new Yaris looks less like a bubble-shaped city car and more like a proper compact hatchback. Better inside too.
MORE ZEN?: Toyota new Yaris looks less like a bubble-shaped city car and more like a proper compact hatchback. Better inside too.
Images and details of Toyota’s third-generation Yaris have leaked, courtesy of the brand’s Hungarian Facebook page, although a few official details and images have since been released.

The new sub-compact B-segment challenger from Toyota is (obviously) larger and features sharper styling details, compared to current car’s rather ovoid shape and curvy shutlines.

With the current (second-generation) Yaris has been on sale globally since 2005 and is now a compact hatch that looks decidedly aged against more contemporary rivals such as the Ford's Fiesta, Chevrolet's Spark and the Mazda2.

The Yaris, with its peculiar ergonomics (especially the central instrument binnacle and orange-faced dials) has become a design anachronism and Toyota’s new model has been specifically designed to address most of these ageing issues in the hope of reinvigorating sales.

BIGGER AND BOLDER

The new car is a substantial 100mm longer (including a 50mm longer wheelbase that gives 35mm more rear legroom and features a 20mm lower roof. The design aesthetic is less shapely but neater, with (larger) more rectangular headlights and a new grille finish.

KEEP IT SIMPLE: Toyota's often-misunderstood central binnacle has been binned for a more conventional and sleek-looking dash.

The new Yaris's most profound design change is in its cabin architecture and detailing. Gone is the central instrument binnacle in favour of a much neater (and, give thanks, a white font) collection of dials mounted behind the steering wheel. An infotainment display now takes up the centre-fascia section.

All things considered, it’s a huge improvement both ergonomically and aesthetically, although it does come at the expense of ultimate lockable stowage capacity; as the second-generation car’s double-glovebox will no longer feature.

As for multimedia connectivity, the Yaris will debut Toyota Touch & Go with a 6.1-inch touch screen for easy operation.

Few mechanical details have been confirmed but potential Yaris customers should expect a continuation of Toyota’s small engines plus one new addition. Entry-level should be the current one-litre petrol (51kW/93Nm) with a second petrol option configured to 1.3-litre capacity and producing a neat 74kW, thanks to trick valve actuation and camshaft adjustment technology.

Markets with appropriately clean diesel fuel should also have a 1.4-litre D4-D, 66kW/170Nm turbodiesel.

The new Yaris is expected to debut in Europe in the third quarter of 2011.
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