All-New Toyota Passo Raises the Bar for Fuel Economy, But Will It Show Up Here?

MANILA: Toyota Motors has recently blown the lid off their A-segment city car, the new Passo with brand new updates that will take the automotive world by storm. The rising fuel prices in Asian and Asia Pacific countries has proven to be a serious problem for their respective automotive industries, that has led to the popularity of fuel-efficient city cars. The all-new Toyota Passo has been developed by Daihatsu and features the same platform as their own Sirion compact hatchback. Being the market leaders when it comes to automobile sales across the globe, Toyota Motors certainly knows what the Asian buyers want from their vehicles and the same has been exemplified in the new vehicle.

Driving in busy traffic is sure a major concern as the continuous use of the clutch and brake takes a heavy toll on the fuel-consumption. While this problem can be solved through the use of automatic transmission, 17-19 kmpl of mileage is certainly not that impressive a figure when it comes to petrol engines. This is where the 2016 Passo excels despite of its relatively small 1.0-litre 1KR drivetrain as it drinks less than 5 litres of petrol for every 100 km travelled. This feat is achieved partially by shedding down the vehicle’s overall weight through the use of lightweight components and the inclusion of an advanced Continuously Variable Transmission. During its testing phase, the vehicle achieved an overall mileage of approximately 28 kmpl, which is a massive breakthrough when talking about a gasoline powertrain.

The use of a CVT gearbox not only improves the engine performance and efficiency by timely changing the gear ratios depending on the vehicle speed. The Toyota Passo is also supplied with a 4-wheel drive layout in addition to the front-wheel drive layout present on the base models. Talking about the variants, there are also some significant differences in the higher trims and entry level trims, that also have different interiors. Regardless, of all this the major question still remains whether the new Passo will be present in the Philippines or not. Although, Toyota Philippines have kept their lips sealed on this one, but looking at the rising demand for fuel economic vehicles in the country, it certainly looks like a high possibility. Hope is certainly the best of things.

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