Toyota Innova Zenix To Get Made-in-India Powertrain

| Updated: Friday, September 30, 2022, 10:06 [IST]

Japanese auto giant, Toyota, has started accepting bookings for its latest Toyota Innova Zenix in Indonesia. Toyota dealers in the country have started taking unofficial bookings for the vehicle and it will be officially launched in November 2022.

Otodriver, citing sources suggests that the Toyota Innova Zenix will be assembled in Indonesia but its powertrain will be imported from India. Reportedly, the new vehicle will also be built at Toyota's manufacturing facility in Bidadi, Karnataka, India.

Toyota Innova History In India:

Toyota India replaced its popular Qualis MUV with the Innova back in 2005 to get rid of the 'Taxi Fleet' image. It failed miserably at that because despite being more expensive than the Qualis, the Innova quickly became a favorite among the masses and also the fleet operators.

The Innova ruled the MPV segment in India for the past 15-16 years and has seen multiple facelifts and powertrain revisions in its lifetime. Despite the lack of features such as the panoramic sunroof, heads-up display, 360-degree camera, ventilated seats, or ADAS, the Innova still sells a healthy number of units monthly. Much of it could be attributed to the trust that the brand has built over the years and the rock-solid reliability that Innova provides. With the introduction of the Innova Zenix, the brand would look to continue the legacy further.

Toyota Innova Zenix: Expectations

The Toyota Innova Zenix will be an all-new vehicle with a new design and will be based on a new platform, possibly the TNGA-C platform, which also underpins the current Toyota Corolla. It will be a monocoque platform as opposed to the ladder frame platform that the Old Innova and the Innova Crysta were based on. Also, the engine will power the front two wheels of the Innova Zenix as opposed to the rear wheels of the Innova Crysta.

Currently, the SUVs in India such as the XUV700, Creta, Seltos, MG Hector, Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara, and Toyota's own Urban Cruiser Hyryder come with a monocoque chassis and front-wheel drive setup. Now that the Innova Zenix will fall into this category it might lose the sublime ride quality offered by the ladder frame construction and also its driveability on mountain roads. This might even be a deal-breaker for some, especially customers from hilly areas.

However, on the bright side, the Toyota Innova Zenix will be powered by a 2.0-Litre Hybrid powertrain comprising two electric motors, which would offer a high torque output and fuel efficiency. Also, for regions like the Delhi-NCR in India, where diesel cars get only 10 years of lifetime versus 15 years for petrol, this could be an ideal product. Not to mention the impending stringent emission norms, which would eventually ring a death knell for diesel cars in India.

The Toyota Innova Zenix might arrive as the Innova Hycross in the Indian market and the company would be strengthening its hybrid cars portfolio in India. It will flaunt MPV characteristics and have a similar design as the Innova Crysta. Reportedly, it will be a 4.7-meter long vehicle with a wheelbase of 2,850mm, which is 100mm longer compared to the Crysta. The extended wheelbase combined with the changed suspension setup at the rear may offer improved leg space in the third row.

To sum it up, the Innova Zenix seems like an interesting proposition for the Indian market. Toyota views it as a stop-gap solution before its first electric car arrives in India. Also, with the current charging infrastructure and the low driving range of electric vehicles, a hybrid-powered vehicle seems like a better alternative.