Reports have been coming out from Japan
that Daihatsu is preparing a new MPV, and Indonesian media are linking that to
a new generation Daihatsu Xenia, which is the Toyota Avanza with a D badge. According to Japanese reports, picked up by Autonetmagz, the upcoming Daihatsu
MPV will have three rows of seats and six seats, which reminds us of the
Daihatsu DN Multisix concept that made two motor show appearances in 2017.
Apparently, the rumoured new model – which will
be underpinned by the Daihatsu New Global Architecture (DNGA) platform – will
have 1.0 litre turbo power as well as a 1.2 litre hybrid option. Toyota Astra
Motor has said that it will introduce an electrified model this year in
Indonesia – will it be a hybrid-powered Avanza/Xenia? While connecting the
dots, the report mentions a December 2020 debut
for this new model. Nothing has been confirmed, of course.
In October 2019, Perodua was caught
testing the a Mitsubishi Xpander, a Suzuki Ertiga and a suspect-looking Toyota
Avanza with a Genting Highlands climb. We said then that an all-new Alza could
very well share a platform with the next Avanza, as Daihatsu in Indonesia and
Perodua in Malaysia are all part of the greater Toyota family. Indeed, Perodua
produces certain T-badged models, and the NR engine it makes in Negeri Sembilan
is supplied to Toyota as well.
It’s pretty much the same arrangement in
Indonesia, where Astra Daihatsu Motor (ADM) takes the development lead in joint
Daihatsu-Toyota models (Ayla-Agya, Sigra-Calya and Terios-Rush) and
manufactures the budget Toyotas as well. A new Alza going the shared
underpinnings with ADM route also follows the trend where Perodua no longer
bases its core models on JDM cars (like the Alza and previous-gen Myvis), but
shares basics with its Indonesian counterpart while developing an in-house top
hat upper body design plus interior. The current Myvi is the best example of
P2’s R&D capabilities – the hatchback is unique to Malaysia and isn’t a
restyled Daihatsu. We could be looking at more integration, and the next Alza
could well be a mainstream Low MPV contender instead of a JDM oddity.
Now, it appears likely that the next-gen
Alza-Avanza will utilise the DNGA platform as well as some downsized turbo
engine, with a hybrid possibility. Not out of the world at all, because the
upcoming D55L SUV is set to pave the way for the platform and 1.0T engine in
Malaysia.
