Toyota Etios Liva.

With the news of the upcoming Honda Brio to try and conquer the more prudent and environmentally conscious urban commuters, the Toyota has prepared a plan up their sleeves. The name is Toyota Etios Liva.The Toyota Etios concept was first introduced at the 2010 the New Delhi Auto Expo and specifically designed to cater for Indian market. The Etios sedan is powered by 1.5 liter engine while the hatchback called the Liva is powered by 1.2 liter engine. The hatchback version is the one slated to compete with Honda Brio for the Indonesian market.

Toyota Liva is powered by 1.2 liter DOHC 8 Valve gasoline engine capable of producing up to 80 hp maximum power. With the small engine Toyota have decided not to use the VVTi (Variable Valve Timing) technology which at the moment available to all Toyota car, including the current Toyota hatchback being sold in Indonesia, the Yaris.

This is probably a wise move to press the price down without sacrificing performance too much as even without that the Toyota Liva fuel consumption is an excellent 17 km/ litre and the light curb weight allows a 0 to 100 km/ h in less than 12 seconds.

The size of Toyota Liva is just a little bit longer than but not as tall as the Toyota Yaris. As a comparison the Yaris is 3,750 mm long, 1,695 mm wide and 1,520 mm tall while the Liva is 3,775 mm long, 1,695 mm wide and 1,490 mm tall. This means that though it is cheaper the Liva can still accommodate 4 adults without any problem.

At the moment Toyota Liva is assembled in Bangalore in India and if PT Toyota Astra Motor intending to bring the Liva to Indonesia then Toyota needs to also assemble it within the country. This will obviously require a major investment from Toyota part as well as the possibility that Liva might take some market share from the very successful Toyota flagship the Avanza rather than the Yaris.

With a total curb weight of 890 kg, the Liva is also a lot lighter than the Yaris at 1,035 kg. This will add an extra efficiency to the 1.2 liter engine compare to 1.5 liter the Yaris has.

The exterior does leave something to be desired, especially if you compare it with the Yaris which many people purchased simply because it looks good. The 14 inch wheels give the fragile impression and the hatchback slope looks weak. Standing side by side the Yaris though older will still look more modern than the Liva.

The Liva interior is still Toyota standard but some features are missing which is probably required to keep the price down. Everything you need is there such as centrally mounted meters with tachometer equipped with other important indicators but no digital fuel reading and such. The manual air conditioner, CD player displays, adjustable steering wheel and even the audio control at the steering wheel. Live don’t have so many pockets and cup holders but other than that the interior is pretty much the same with the Yaris.

All in all you get what you pay for but if Toyota managed to keep the price just like the Indian version which is around Rp 140 million for the top of the line, then it is a bargain compare to the Yaris at more than Rp 240 million for its top of the line.