After completing 10 months of sales, Toyota continues to lead among non-national brands in Malaysia, with a cumulative volume from January to October 2022 reaching 79,308 units. The brand has consistently been a market leader throughout the year, especially in the pick-up truck segment.
Continuing the positive upward trend which started at the beginning of the year, the October sales volume of new vehicles delivered by UMW Toyota Motor (UMWT) was 9,281 units, (9,175 of Toyota brand and 106 of Lexus brand). It was the third month of sales volume being above 9,000 units this year. Compared to the sales volumes in September 2022, the October sales volume of 9,281 units was 0.5% higher.
At long last, UMW Toyota Motor (UMWT) has launched the Toyota Veloz, a crossover MPV that takes over from the Avanza in the B-segment. The Veloz is a notch higher with a more premium image than the Avanza, reflecting Toyota’s ongoing aim of delivering ever better cars.
It’s no secret that the new Veloz is a similar model to the new Perodua Alza and it is even assembled in the same factory near Rawang, Selangor. It isn’t the first time UMWT is using Perodua’s factory also assembled the first Avanza as well as the Rush. It’s a practical approach when the model is similar as there is no point duplicating assembly for a smaller volume at another plant.
Shared models are nothing new in the industry and have been a practice for many decades. In earlier years, the sharing was usually between different brands of the same manufacturer. However, as model development grew much more expensive, it made sense to collaborate and share the costs. The advantages in this include cost-savings in many parts as the suppliers can have orders with bigger volumes for the same part or system.
However, the Veloz does cost more to Malaysian consumers at RM95,000, compared to the Perodua model which has a price range of RM62,500 to RM75,500. That the Veloz costs more than the Alza will raise the question of why anyone would want to pay more for what is essentially the same product. This is where brand preference and loyalty come in and while Perodua is the market leader in Malaysia, Toyota is also a strong brand with a longer history in the market. Interbrand’s assessment of brand value for 2021 placed Toyota at the top of the list among carmakers and seventh among all companies worldwide.
Now that we’ve got that point out of the way, let’s look at what the Veloz offers. Only one variant is available so they’ve loaded it with everything and customers won’t need to make a choice of which variant to buy. But they will have to choose one of 5 body colours, two of which have a black roof.
As supply improves, the car companies are able to deliver more vehicles to waiting customers and many have seen significant increases each month. These include UMW Toyota Motor (UMWT), which reported a total of 9,091 units comprising 8,961 units of Toyota vehicles and 130 units of Lexus vehicles. The total volume was 37% higher than what was achieved in July (6,637 units).
Cumulative deliveries for the first 8 months of the year reached 61,639 units (Toyota and Lexus combined), 62% higher than for the same period in 2021 when the cumulative volume was 38,085 units.
The company is looking forward to even better numbers in coming months as it will soon launch the new Toyota Veloz MPV. Since bookings opened in June, some 5,200 orders have been collected for the 7-seater MPV which will take over from the Avanza.
July looks like a ‘MPV month’ with at least three new MPVs to be launched in the month or if not, early in the next month. We already know that the updated Nissan Serena S-HYBRID will be launched in early July and with Perodua having opened bookings for its all-new Alza from yesterday, it is likely to be in showrooms by the end of July (going by the usual time-frame).
And today, UMW Toyota Motor has announced that it is accepting orders for the all-new Toyota Veloz, the 7-seater MPV launched in Indonesia last November. Depending on the market, the Veloz is considered as a new model line or as a successor to the Avanza. In Malaysia, UMWT says it will replace the Avanza and comes with the highest specification and advanced features. The estimated price is given as RM95,000, without insurance.
The Veloz is considered more as a crossover with a SUV character but also having the spaciousness of a MPV – the best of both worlds. Like the Toyota Rush, it will be assembled locally at the Perodua plant, which makes sense since the new Alza is also having the same platform as the Veloz. It’s not known how many variants there are although the option of a two-tone colour scheme with a black roof suggests that there may be a high-end version.
With an entirely new style and a larger body size, the Veloz of generous interior space said to be comparable to a-segment MPV. The seating in the premium-class cabin is also flexible in layout, allowing more cargo or people to be carried. One reason for the increased spaciousness is that, unlike the Avanza, which had rear wheel drive, the Veloz has front-wheel drive
A 1.5-litre Toyota 2NR-VE petrol 4-cylinder engine powers the Veloz and this is coupled with a 7-speed CVT, so fuel efficiency should be pretty good. The CVT also offers sequential shifting for those who prefer to be in control of the gears in use.
As with many of the models sold by UMWT, the Veloz will come with Toyota Safety Sense technology. This is a suite of active safety systems that will help the driver be alerted of potential accidents and even act if he or she doesn’t respond in the correct way (eg with Automatic Emergency Braking).
A convenient feature is the Electric Parking Brake (EPB) which replaces the long and traditional handle that has operated the mechanical brake for decades. With the EPB, very little effort is needed; in fact, just a slight pull with a fingertip on the small tab will activate the brake. The Veloz will also come with a wireless charging pad (Qi standard) for compatible smartphones.
“We are extremely pleased to announce that the All-New Toyota Veloz will soon be launched in Malaysia. At UMW Toyota Motor, we are committed to go that extra mile for our Toyota customers and ensure that they experience only the best. With the SST exemption ending on June 30, 2022, commencing the order-taking for the All-New Toyota Veloz today is a token of appreciation to our customers for their support towards the Toyota brand and enabling them to drive the car of their dreams. We hope that Toyota fans and other potential buyers looking to purchase a car for their family will take the opportunity to do so and leverage on the SST exemption before it ends,” said President of UMW Toyota Motor, Ravindran. K.