Toyota Urban Cruiser compact SUV discontinued in India, Japanese automaker reveals WHY!

Toyota Urban Cruiser SUV is the rebadged version of the Maruti Suzuki Brezza and has been on sale in India for a few years bringing in good sales numbers for the Japanese automaker.

Toyota Urban Cruiser

The Toyota Urban Cruiser compact sports utility vehicle (SUV) has been phased out of Toyota Kirloskar Motor's product lineup in the nation, the company announced on Friday. The model is a rebadged Maruti Vitara Brezza, was debuted by the automaker in September 2020, and has since sold more than 65,000 wholesale units. The company stated in a statement that its product strategy is centered on introducing models based on consumer feedback in order to improve customers' mobility experiences further.

It added that the company continuously studies the market to understand the changing customer preferences and focuses on delivering them ever-better cars with enhanced and sustainable technologies.

"In alignment to this philosophy, we have decided to phase out the Toyota Urban Cruiser, firmly believing that our existing strong and sustainable product line-up in India will help us cater to the demand in the market," Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) stated.

Having registered cumulative wholesales of over 65,000 units, Urban Cruiser played a significant role in catering to first-time Toyota buyers, especially in Tier II & III markets, thus boosting TKM's efforts of reaching out to a new set of customers, it said.

In March 2018, Toyota Motor Corp and Suzuki Motor Corp agreed to supply hybrid and other vehicles to each other in the Indian market. As part of the arrangement, TKM sources Baleno and Brezza from Maruti Suzuki India and sells them as Glanza and Urban Cruiser after making certain changes in design and features. TKM will continue to sell Glanza while it is the end of the road for Urban Cruiser in the country.

Meanwhile, the company is also entering the CNG vehicle market with the launch of new models. The Japanese automaker recently launched the Toyota Glanza CNG and has announced the launch of its first CNG SUV in the form of the Toyota Urban Cruiser Hyryder CNG. The bookings for the mid-size SUV have also commenced for the consumers willing to buy the new car.