You’ve seen photos of the Perodua Axia, the Malaysian market’s take on the Toyota Wigo. But while that model has been (mostly) revealed, we have yet to see what the Toyota-badged version will look like. With that, Toyota Indonesia didn’t want the world to wait any longer, so here it is.
All grown up?
It’s been nearly nine years since the Wigo was first launched in Southeast Asia. Since then, it has received several updates to keep it up to date in the competitive mini-hatchback market. But over the years, the competition has offered slightly larger models for about the same price, so for the all-new model, Toyota changed things up a bit.
Codenamed the D74A, the 2023 Wigo receives a comprehensive redesign and shifts to the Daihatsu New Global Architecture (DNGA) platform. That means the Wigo now shares its chassis with the Raize, Avanza, Veloz, and the next-gen Vios. As a result, the all-new Wigo is longer, wider, and taller than the outgoing model as Toyota claims.
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Is it any different from the Perodua version?
Very.
Toyota surprised everyone by giving the Wigo a unique front end compared to the Perodua Axia. The Toyota has larger headlights, a more prominent grille, a bigger grille opening, and wider fenders. The entire front bumper is different, too, taking cues from larger Toyota models such as the Vios and Avanza.
As for the rest of the car, it’s similar to the Perodua, sharing door skins, the rear quarter panel, the tailgate, and taillights. By the way, the new Wigo also gets the GR Sport treatment.
Wait, what?
Yup, even the mini hatchback gets a sporty variant. Granted, it doesn’t come with additional horsepower, but it does get a deeper front spoiler, gloss black highlights, and smatterings of GR badges from front to rear. It also gets two-tone color options and some, um, design inspiration from the GR Yaris.
Okay, let’s take a look inside...
If you were to compare the interior of this all-new model with the current one, the difference is night and day. There are more sharp lines and angles in there, giving it a more upmarket vibe. You’ll also see more elements from the Raize, from its digital instrument cluster to the floating touchscreen display. Speaking of the screen, it will vary depending on the country sold. We hope the Philippine-spec models get Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, among other things.
Under the hood
For the Indonesia market at least, the all-new Wigo uses a 1.2-liter engine that’s good for 86hp and 102Nm of torque. In essence, it's a detuned version of the 1.2-liter from the Raize. It will be intersting to see of the local market will get the 1.2-liter or stick with the carried-over 1.0-liter. On top of that, the Wigo finally has a new transmission. Gone is the tried-and-tested (but also old) four-speed automatic, replaced with a continuously variable transmission.
When can we expect it here?
It just launched in Indonesia, so we might have to wait a while before it lands in local showrooms. That said, we could have it here before the year ends if things fall into place. But given that the Wigo is one of the top-ten best-selling cars in the country, there’s a good chance that Toyota Motor Philippines is working double time to launch it here as soon as possible.
