Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP) has unveiled the all-new 2022 Toyota Avanza – one of their entries into the multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) class. The Avanza has been around since December 2003, and for this year’s version, it wowed the automotive industry with its impressively upgraded looks, innovated features, and developed functionalities.

How popular is Toyota Avanza in the Philippines?

Multi-purpose vehicles like the Toyota Avanza gets the attention of the majority in several countries, including the Philippines. This 7-seater MPV suits families and individuals looking for a spacious and trustworthy car at an affordable price. For the past years, the Avanza has been one of TMP’s best-selling cars. This year, Toyota steps-up the game by giving the Avanza an extensive makeover, not just its exterior looks but in several aspects. With its increased popularity, Toyota is expecting an increase on its annual sales for 2022.

Variants

The all-new 2022 Toyota Avanza is available in four variants in the country. Its base variant – the Toyota Avanza 1.3 J Manual Transmission, is priced at Php813,000, which is more affordable than its competitors. The Toyota Avanza 1.3 Manual Transmission is available at Php928,000, while Php984,000 for the Toyota Avanza 1.3 E CVT variant. Its top-of-the-line variant – the Toyota Avanza 1.5 G CVT, is priced at Php1,039,000, which is a bit affordable than its competitors’ top-of-the-line variants.

The Avanza is available in six colors – White, Silver Mica Metallic, Beige Metallic, Gray Metallic, Dark Blue SE, and Black Metallic. In addition to that is the Dark Red Mica Metallic that is only available in the Toyota Avanza Veloz, which is not yet available in the Philippines.

Exterior

One of the first noticeable upgrades in the 2022 version of the Toyota Avanza is its dashing exterior update. The all-new Avanza features a redesigned trapezoidal air vent grille that is now dominant in the front fascia of the refreshed model, which looks similar like in the Toyota Raize. Following modernity, the Avanza features a three-tier front lighting that is a standard in modern cars. The headlamp shape is redesigned into a sleekier thin LED, and below each side are halogen fog lamps.

Another noticeable change in the Toyota Avanza is its vehicle dimensions are bigger than its previous version. It now measures 4,395 millimeters long, 1,730 millimeters wide, and 1,700 high, that is significantly massive than before. The wheelbase is 2,750 millimeters, and the ground clearance is 195 millimeters.

At the side, you would also notice that the new Avanza has new character lines that lies all the way from the headlamps to the taillamps. For the wheels, a nice and new two-tone 16-inch alloy wheels add to its more athletic-looking side profile. At the back of the Avanza has some changes too. The new version has a flatter back profile than its previous versions. The rear strip lights are impressively designed to make the whole car look sophisticatedly upgraded. On the top are integrated spoilers and a shark’s fin antenna.

Interior

Not only that Toyota upgraded the exterior of the Avanza, the manufacturer has also done a complete overhaul of its interior cabin. The dashboard is entirely reworked and sculpted nicely to have a modern look. Now it’s got cup holders on both sides of the dashboard and 15 more all over the whole cabin, including arm rests, and the steering wheel is fully adjustable for a more comfortable reach position.

The seats are comfortably soft and bolstered, and it comes covered in fabric. The seats also have a brown tone that adds class to the interior cabin. One of the most nod-worthy upgrades of the Avanza is the flexibility of the seats. The second-row and the third-row seats fold flat, and there is a long-sofa mode which features a long couch-looking set-up for a more comfortable ride. Plus, the seats have gotten wider than before.

For the infotainment, Avanza has got a new floating-style 8-inch touchscreen display, which supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It also has 12-volt sockets and bottle holders from the front row to the third row.

The cargo space is improved with the third-row seats that completely folds flat than before, which adds more liters of cargo space.

Powertrain

The Toyota Avanza sits on top of a Diahatsu platform, like other MPV models of Toyota. It carries either a 1.3-liter 1NR-VE chain drive mill or a 1.5-liter 2NRVE that can produce 95-103 horsepower and 121-136 Nm of torque depending on the variant. Both engines are paired to either a 4-speed automatic transmission or a 5-speed manual transmission configuration. It has McPherson strut with stabilizer and a 4-link with lateral control rod for its suspension. And ventilated discs and lead-trailing drums for the brakes.

Safety and Security

With the reliable reputation of Toyota, you can make sure that the Avanza is also equipped with the necessary safety and security features. The Avanza comes with the driver airbag, front side airbag, passenger airbag, child safety locks, seat belt warning, crash sensor, anti-lock braking system, brake assist, door ajar warning, front impact beams, side impact beams, vehicle stability control, EBD, parking sensors, engine check warning, day and night rear view mirror, rear camera, hill-start assist, power door locks, anti-theft device, central locking, and engine immobilizer.

Also Read: Toyota Innova is Still the Best-selling Car in Its Class