Toyota has discontinued the Yaris in India, and it was reported that the replacement for that B-segment sedan (called Vios in Malaysia) will be a rebadged Maruti Suzuki Ciaz named Toyota Belta. Well, here’s confirmation of both the model and the Belta name.
These are spyshots from India, near Maruti Suzuki’s Manesar plant, posted on TeamBHP. It shows a sedan that’s clearly and fully a Ciaz (some might see a previous generation City with a T badge), but with a Toyota badge in front, and another at the back.
On the left of the boot crest is the Belta mark, with a small ‘Toyota’ above it. Double-signed for an extra reminder that this is a Toyota. Although it’s not, and that’s OK. By the way, all the chrome bits are standard on the Ciaz facelift, which first surfaced in India back in August 2018. The alloys might be Belta-specific.
The expected kit list includes things like a 7.0-inch touchscreen head unit with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, 4.2-inch colour multi-info display, cruise control, reverse camera, dual airbags and ABS/EBD. The engine is a 1.5 litre mild hybrid unit with 103 hp and 138 Nm torque at 4,500 rpm. The NA petrol engine can be had with a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic transmission. In Thailand, the Ciaz is a 1.25L eco car with a CVT.
One of the Ciaz’s strongest points is space from the 2,650 mm wheelbase, which is long for a B-segment sedan. Ground clearance is a rather high 170 mm, which is not uncommon for India. According to local reports, these pics were taken at a dock, and these Beltas are left-hand-drive units for export, possibly to Africa (India is RHD like us).
The reason behind the rebadging is because Toyota isn’t a big player in India, like how it is in Thailand or Indonesia, and the big T has been tapping market leader Suzuki’s models to fill up its range. The fruits of the 2018 agreement so far are the Toyota Glanza (a rebadged Maruti Baleno), the Toyota Urban Cruiser (Vitara Brezza) and now the Belta. Maruti Suzuki also produces all the Toyota-badged cars. Click on the links to see the Suzukis and their T-badged twins.
GALLERY: Suzuki Ciaz, Thai-spec
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Suzuki rebadge becomes a vios keke. Should just standardize the cars and call it a ‘Japanese “car.
Toyota stole the tail lights from city?
Belta: I stole your predecessor’s tail lights
Current city: No issue. I stole G20’s tail lights too
Big mistake from Toyota, Maruti Ciaz are rust prone as few as 2 year old cars.