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In the US, the Mazda 2 hatch will now be the ‘all-new’ Yaris

Just like the sedan version is rebadged as a Toyota

There is a Mazda car hiding somewhere in there. Really. PHOTO FROM TOYOTA

Last year, we told you how the Mazda 2 sedan was sold in the United States as the Toyota Yaris Sedan, which essentially makes it that market’s Vios. And now, Toyota has announced that the hatchback version of the 2 will now also do duty as the trunkless Yaris in America, replacing the previous model based on the XP130 Vitz (called Yaris Liftback in the Land of Uncle Sam).

Those are very familiar lines and curves, aren’t they? PHOTOS FROM TOYOTA

Toyota is calling this as the “all-new 2020 Yaris Hatchback,” but we all know it is still the fourth-generation Mazda 2 first introduced to the world in 2014. The “all-new” US-market Yaris will be officially presented at the upcoming 2019 New York International Auto Show.

So, do the Americans want the Mazda 2 more than the real Toyota Yaris? It looks like it, for sure. PHOTOS FROM TOYOTA

Like the sedan version, the “all-new” Yaris Hatchback will be equipped with a 1.5-liter four-cylinder gasoline engine that produces 106hp and is mated to a six-speed automatic transmission (no manual shifter is mentioned in the press statement).

The interior is very Mazda from the front to the back. PHOTOS FROM TOYOTA

So, just as we asked you last year: Do you prefer the locally available Yaris or this US-market Yaris Hatchback that is really just a Mazda 2 with Toyota branding?



Vernon B. Sarne

Vernon is the founder and editor-in-chief of VISOR. He has been an automotive journalist for 26 years. He became one by serendipity, walking into the office of a small publishing company and applying for a position he had no idea was for a local car magazine. God has watched over him throughout his humble journey. He writes the ‘Spoiler’ column.



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