Toyota Innova was launched in India in 2004 as a replacement for the Toyota Qualis MPV. The Innova was an instant hit in both private and commercial segments, which lifted the fortunes of the carmaker. Since the launch of the Innova, Toyota has not bothered much to update the vehicle, as it was leading the segment with good amount of volumes. Over the years, Toyota has only facelifted the Innova with minor updates and few features. The mechanicals remain the same as before.
Now that the competition in the MPV segment is getting stiffer, Innova has started feeling the heat. The Innova sales are now dwindling from 6500 units per month to current 4964 units in June. Drastic changes are expected in the next generation Innova which our sources confirm will arrive in 2016. The second generation Toyota Innova will get an improved last row, new exterior styling, better driving dynamics and some new additions like roof mounted antenna (instead of manual one above the driver’s door), double blade wipers, new multimedia system and so on.
The next generation Toyota Innova is also expected to be more powerful with some mechanical changes under the hood. At present, the Innova is competing with the likes of the Mahindra Xylo, Chevrolet Enjoy, Maruti Suzuki Ertiga and Nissan Evalia. Honda is expected to launch a Brio based MPV soon and Hyundai is also developing on an MPV for the Indian market. With increasing competition, Toyota released special edition models such as Innova Aero and Innova Chrome in order to boost sales.
