BANGALORE, INDIA - The first pictures and information about Toyota’s new Urban Cruiser have surfaced on the company’s website, and the new compact SUV could be a good fit for the South African market.

It has yet to be confirmed whether Toyota SA has any plans for this vehicle, but when Toyota’s Indian Division Kirloskar Motor announced a tie-up with Maruti Suzuki back in 2018, it was also revealed that some of the resulting products would be bound for African markets.

The Urban Cruiser that we see here is a mildly reworked version of Maruti Suzuki’s Vitara Brezza, which is itself a slightly shorter and reworked version of the global Vitara model that we know.

While the Toyota shares its basic shape with its Suzuki twin, it does get a fresh frontal design complete with a large Fortuner-inspired grille. It is also available with a funky range of two-tone exterior paint colour schemes, including Groovy Orange, and buyers can also opt for distinctive diamond cut 16-inch alloy wheels.

As the pics reveal the cabin is largely a carry-over from Suzuki, and includes the latter’s SLDA touchscreen infotainment system.

Same goes for the engine, which is a normally aspirated 1.5-litre unit that produces 77kW and 138Nm and buyers can choose between manual and automatic transmission. The auto versions are also equipped with a mild hybrid system consisting of a battery and an Integrated Starter Generator.

This is not the first Toyozuki to see light of day, as the company has already revealed the Baleno-based Toyota Glanza hatchback, while Suzuki of Europe recently revealed an SUV based on the Toyota Rav4 called the Aross.

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IOL Motoring