Toyota Rush

The Toyota Rush gets off to a good start when it comes to delivering road presence. By midsize SUV standards, the Rush is quite large. At 4435mm in length, it is shorter than the Honda BR-V but is longer than the Renault Captur or Hyundai Creta. It’s also taller than its closest rivals and at 2685mm, has a larger wheelbase as well.

In terms of its overall stance, the Toyota Rush does look a bit MPV-like. It’s easy to draw parallels with the Toyota Avanza, but thanks to its large size and butch design elements, it does look tough. Up front, it sports a plus-sized, multi-slat front grille, sleek full LED headlamps and large fog lamp enclosures. In profile, you can really appreciate the Rush’s size, given its length and the 220mm of ground clearance. Sporty looking 16-inch wheels and body cladding add some visual weight to the SUV, while a single shoulder line cuts through the door handles to make it look sharper.

The rear end sports LED tail lights and like the front, black cladding and a skid plate. Complete with the roof rails and roof spoiler, the Toyota Rush is an attention grabber.

On the inside, the Toyota Rush sports a clean and functional layout. Unlike many new Toyotas, the Rush’s cabin layout is straightforward with the touchscreen infotainment system taking centre stage. The Rush, nicknamed the “Baby Fortuner”, gets a black interior contrasted by light beige trim on the dashboard and doors. Much like the Yaris, the Rush also sports faux stitching on the plastic trim to make it look like leather upholstery. However, the Rush is only offered with fabric upholstery.

In front of the driver is a tilt-adjustable steering, and an analogue speedometer and rev counter, with a digital multi-information display in between. In the second row, the Rush features a 60:40 split rear seat with adjustable headrests for three passengers. The rear row has been smartly laid out with cupholders placed near the power window switches on the doors, along with bottle holders and map pockets. The middle occupant also gets a little more knee room, thanks to the roof-mounted rear AC vents. There are independent vents for each second row occupant along with speed control for the blower. Utility is also improved with a reading lamp and a 12V power socket placed between the rear seatbacks.

The second row seats can be adjusted by sliding them back and forth. Access to the third row has also been taken care of, as the second row seatback folds down and the seat itself does tumble forward. Space in the last row is best suited to kids as there isn’t much kneeroom even for a short adult. However, last row occupants do get cupholders, some additional storage space and a 12V charging socket.

Boot space with all three rows up is only enough for two duffel bags but with the rear seat folded down, you do have 609 litres of storage space. While the third row seats don’t fold flat, you can fold them up using a designated strap (they fold away towards the second row). The full-sized spare tyre, though, is placed onto the undercarriage, like it is in the Renault Captur.

Technology

The Toyota Rush has a decently loaded features list. Goodies include push-button start with a smart key, a touchscreen infotainment system, 8-speaker sound system and two-zone climate control (select markets) with rear AC vents. The Rush also comes equipped with LED headlights and tail lights.

Safety is a strong aspect for the Toyota Rush. The car received a 5-star rating in the ASEAN NCAP crash tests and is available with features like front, side and curtain airbags, ISOFIX, ABS with EBD, hill-start assist, vehicle stability control, rear parking sensors and a rear camera. The Rush also comes equipped with front fog lights and auto headlamps.

Internationally, the Toyota Rush is available only with a 1.5-litre petrol engine, good for about 104PS of power and 136Nm of torque, with the option of a 5-speed manual or 4-speed automatic transmission.

The Toyota Rush is a highly anticipated SUV that would challenge the likes of the Hyundai Creta, Honda BR-V and Renault Captur. Revealed in 2018, the new Toyota Rush is a model built specifically with emerging markets in mind. Currently sold in Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and South Africa, the Rush is a midsize 7-seater SUV that looks like a promising product for the Indian market.

However, Toyota India has made it explicitly clear that it has no plans to launch the Toyota Rush here. While there are many reasons why the Toyota Rush isn’t being brought to India, there are three major reasons why it hasn’t been launched here yet. One, it is styled more like an MPV rather than an SUV. In essence, it does look like a lifted Toyota Avanza, much like how the Honda BR-V looks similar to the Mobilio. This is not a design language that’s accepted by most Indian buyers.

Two, Toyota will have to make a separate production line for the Rush since it rides on a ladder-frame-type chassis that it doesn’t share with either the Innova Crysta or the Fortuner. Investment aside, body-on-frame vehicles have disadvantages when it comes to handling and fuel efficiency, since they’re heavier and usually, not as stable to drive. While India loves the SUV look, we do expect car-like behaviour for daily usage.

And lastly, the compact SUV space is still largely driven by diesel engines. However, this demand is already dropping and Toyota expects it to plummet after the BSVI norms come in, since the new regulations will make diesel cars significantly more expensive. With that in mind, investing in a diesel-dependent car doesn’t make economic sense in the long run.

Instead, the brand could opt to introduce the TNGA (Toyota New Global Architecture) platform-based C-HR. The Toyota C-HR crossover has already been spotted on test on Indian roads in its petrol-hybrid avatar and would rival the likes of the Jeep Compass, Tata Harrier, Hyundai Tucson and the top variants of the Hyundai Creta. That said, Toyota will most likely wait for the BSVI norms to kick in across India, which puts the launch timeline only in 2020 or later.