Our colleagues from Wapcar.my recently got their hands on a next-generation Toyota Vios Cup car in all its glory. They saw a sneak peek of the car during the Toyota Gazoo Malaysia Racing Festival in the last round of its sixth season.

However, they noted that the racecar spec Vios did not have a manual gearbox. Instead, it was rocking a continuously variable transmission. But it's not all sour grapes, as Toyota did install these vehicles with carbon fiber paddle shifters to spice things up. 

Fans of the manual transmission won’t have to worry as for the next season, the Vios cup cars will come with a 5-speed manual transmission. 

Also read: The 4th generation Toyota Vios AC100 race car for the Gazoo Racing Vios Challenge still has a CVT but not for long

What does it mean for the Philippines?

The same scenario might happen for the Philippine market once the new Toyota Vios arrives. For the Toyota Gazoo Racing Festival, celebrities and other promotional class racers may use the CVT-equipped models to help prolong the cars during the racing series. 

Meanwhile, seasoned pro racers will go head to head with the manual version of the sedan to keep things interesting. Toyota may even give these vehicles a racing clutch and a limited-slip differential for improved handling and cornering. 

Under the hood, the Vios Cup cars will have a 2NR-VE 1.5-liter four-cylinder Dual VVTi engine with stock internals that are good for around 106 PS and 138 Nm of torque. 

Similar to what they did with the previous generation of the Vios Cup cars, the newer models will come with a racing exhaust set added from the manifold to the back. The car will have a stripped interior to make way for safety equipment. 

It's still a waiting game to see what Toyota Motor Philippines will have in store as the local arm of the Japanese automaker has been quiet about the arrival of the next generation Toyota Vios.