2021 Toyota new cars
Big SUVs look set to be Toyota's headliners in 2021.
Toyota weathered the storm of 2020 fairly well, with sales down ever so slightly, though not significantly.
With the GR Yaris as the headline-grabber of the year, the true volume was left up to models like the RAV4 and newly introduced Yaris Cross light SUV.
The headline act for 2021 will be the new Kluger, bringing a fresh face to line up against new large SUVs, including the Kia Sorento and Hyundai Palisade, in the first half of the year. A hybrid option will be available for the first time in Australia, and if the RAV4 hybrid is any indication, the petrol-electric Kluger should be a sure-fire sales hit.
A revamped and refreshed Camry range is also expected arrive in April 2021. The four-cylinder and hybrid models continue, but the V6 will be retired. Although medium sedans are relatively low volume, Toyota currently holds around two thirds of the market and will be looking to maintain that success into 2021 with improved safety features, revised infotainment, and a more modern battery pack for hybrid models (introduced as a running change in late 2020).
The GR Yaris juggernaut continues into 2021 with the arrival of the more focussed Rallye Edition, adding lightweight BBS wheels, Torsen differentials front and rear, and 'circuit tuned' suspension. The GR Yaris Rallye is set to start rolling into customer garages in March 2021. New stock of the regular GR Yaris is also on the way, due to arrive in the second half of 2021.
Finally, less of a retail reality, but an interesting glimpse of a potential path for the future. Toyota's hydrogen fuel cell Mirai has entered its second-generation, and a fleet of 20 vehicles is earmarked for Australia, strictly as an evaluation fleet. The large sedan offers the benefits of zero tailpipe emissions, like an EV, but with five minute fill times to top up the hydrogen tanks – albeit with a limited refuelling infrastructure right now.
The new Mirai's arrival is set to coincide with the opening of a hydrogen refuelling centre at Toyota's Altona site in Melbourne, late in 2021.
The other eagerly anticipated new model from Toyota is the much talked about LandCruiser 300 Series. The flagship off-roader has generated a storm of speculation, with new details constantly surfacing. It is expected the new-generation LandCruiser will ditch the current turbo diesel V8 in favour of downsized six-cylinder power, in both turbocharged petrol and diesel formats. Production of the 200 Series looks set to wrap in March 2021 and while the new model hasn't received a locked-in introduction date, don't expect a long hiatus.
Model | What's new? | Segment | Due |
Kluger | New model | Large SUV | Q2 2021 |
Camry | Update | Medium car | April 2021 |
GR Yaris Rallye Edition | New variant | Light car | March 2021 |
Mirai | New model | Large car | Late 2021 |
LandCruiser 300 | New model | Upper large SUV | Unconfirmed |
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