Today is all about the Honda City facelift, which made its world debut in Thailand yesterday. It may be just a minor refresh, but arch-rival Toyota isn’t going to let Honda enjoy the spotlight all to itself. Toyota has an ace up its sleeve as well, and the Bangkok Post reports that a facelifted Vios will be launched in Thailand next week.

In March last year, the Vios was given a update that didn’t alter the compact sedan’s looks, but gave it an all-new heart. The update, which arrived here in October 2016, gave the Vios a new 1.5 litre Dual VVT-i engine and a CVT automatic gearbox with seven virtual ratios to replace the long-serving four-speed auto.


With the technical update already checked, this round of updates has to be a facelift in the more traditional sense – with design updates to keep the Vios looking fresh next to the City. Last April, Toyota wheeled out a Vios facelift for the China market – that car’s big-mouthed face is very similar the aggressive new look of the 2018 Toyota Camry that was unveiled in Detroit this week. Will ASEAN get this fearsome face?