An all-new Toyota Innova will be launched later this year, and it will use an all-new platform and powertrain. However, this time around, the Japanese brand will keep the outgoing model on sale alongside the new one, rather than phase it out as it had done with the first Innova.
- Current-gen Innova Crysta to remain on sale
- Will continue with diesel engine and ladder chassis
- Likely to be targeted more at fleet services than private buyers
Why the current Innova Crysta will not be discontinued
The next-generation Innova (codename: 560B) will be a radical departure from the current Innova Crysta, as it will use a monocoque chassis, petrol-hybrid powertrain and front-wheel drive. It’s for precisely this reason that the current Innova Crysta will not be discontinued and will instead live on alongside the new model.
The Innova Crysta’s tough ladder-frame chassis (shared with the Fortuner and Hilux) affords it a solid and comfortable highway ride that’s great for long distances, the ability to haul heavy loads, and a certain go-anywhere ability with its generous ground clearance. Then there’s Toyota’s venerable 2.4-litre diesel engine that has excellent low-end torque that, again, makes moving big loads effortless. These are all traits that simply won’t be as strong in its monocoque-chassis successor, and Toyota knows there are some Innova loyalists who will want that.
Then there’s the Innova Crysta’s sister model, the Fortuner SUV, which remains a hugely popular and profitable product for Toyota in India. Since the two share a platform and production line, discontinuing the MPV would make the SUV less viable to produce on its own, so it’s something the brand simply cannot do.
Innova Crysta to be positioned alongside new model, not below it
There’s another reason Toyota doesn’t want to give up on the popular Innova Crysta. When the original Innova replaced the Toyota Qualis in 2005, it moved up in price and positioning, and left a gap in the market that General Motors swiftly occupied with the Chevrolet Tavera. And when the first Innova was replaced by the Innova Crysta in 2016, there was a similar move upmarket, and it gave smaller MPVs like the Maruti Ertiga and Mahindra Marazzo freer rein on the slice of the market it had abandoned.
However, this time, the Innova Crysta will not be pushed below the new, 560B Innova, but it will sit alongside, and perhaps even above, it. This is, after all, a big MPV with large, powerful engines which today, at Rs 17.45 lakh-25.68 lakh (ex-showroom), is priced at the premium end of the spectrum.
It will likely be aimed more at fleet and commercial buyers to better differentiate it from the new model, which will be targeted at private owners, and this could mean a re-jig of its model range, with some of the top-end variants with premium features removed.
Innova Crysta to get a facelift to keep it up to date
Sources tell us that the existing Innova will be given a small visual makeover by Toyota’s design studio in Australia to bring its styling up to date with the rest of the carmaker’s range, and to help increase its appeal to new buyers.
Under the hood, the Innova Crysta is expected to carry forward its 2.4-litre, four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine that develops 150hp and 343Nm (360Nm with auto box). The current 5-speed manual and 6-speed automatic gearbox options are also expected to remain unchanged. Toyota may, however, drop the petrol engine, as the diesel is far more popular with fleet buyers.
Toyota’s future plans
In terms of upcoming launches, expect a new version of the Toyota Urban Cruiser to follow soon after the new Maruti Brezza, which is set to launch this year. Additionally, Toyota and Maruti Suzuki are also co-developing a new midsize SUV, with Toyota’s SUV codenamed D22 and Maruti’s model codenamed YFG. Both SUVs are expected to be launched in India in quick succession around the 2022 festive season, and then, of course, there’s the new Innova that will come this year as well.
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