Introduction
- Toyota’s compact MPV gains a new 1.6 D-4D turbodiesel engine
- Made in Europe, exclusively for the European market
- More than 700,000 sales since 2002 launch of first generation model
- New wheel designs, interior trims and Trend grade, plus introduction of Toyota Touch 2 multimedia system
It’s only a year since Toyota gave Verso a significant mid-lifecycle upgrade, introducing styling, equipment features and handling revisions to strengthen the appeal of the compact MPV as a cut above in a market segment characterised by familiar, boxy, uninspiring-to-drive family transport.
Now it has gone further to widen the choice on offer to customers with the launch of the 2014 Verso, incorporating a new 1.6 D-4D diesel engine option.
Sourced from the BMW Group, but fine-tuned by Toyota to meet its performance and packaging targets, it is not only a highly efficient unit, it is also engineered for rewarding, flexible performance that belies its relatively small displacement.
The new engine leads a series of changes and innovations for 2014 that also include the adoption of the latest generation of Toyota’s on-board multimedia system, Toyota Touch 2. With its established benefits of touchscreen operation, Bluetooth, rear-view camera and USB connectivity, the system now benefits from a sharper, brighter display.
The new Toyota Touch 2 with Go system – a standard-fit feature of the new Trend grade model in the UK - ramps up the feature content with a new navigation screen design, use of TomTom HD real-time traffic information to deliver detour prompts to avoid hold-ups, and new connected services to gain better journey information.
These include access to Google Street View and Panoramio, a first from a high-volume manufacturer.
In the UK the 2014 Verso also marks the arrival of a new Trend grade model, with more impactful street presence with its “floating roof” effect, new smoke-silver finished 17-inch alloys and rear privacy glass. Its standard equipment list also includes the new Toyota Touch 2 with Go touchscreen multimedia system with navigation and front parking sensors.
New wheels, a new bronze metallic paint finish and new cabin upholsteries are also part of the 2014 Verso programme. And even the gear knob has had an upgrade – a small detail, but something a driver will touch a hundred thousand times or more in the course of just one year.
Verso is fundamentally a European model, developed by the teams at Toyota’s R&D centre in Belgium and its design centre, ED2, in the South of France, and manufactured at Toyota’s production facility in Turkey.
The 2014 Verso is available to order now, priced from £17,765. First customer deliveries are expected at the beginning of March.
Mehmet Kilic is a senior project manager at Toyota’s R&D centre in Belgium. He gives an insight into Verso’s specifically European character, its position in the highly competitive compact MPV market, and the thinking behind extending the model range, just a year after Verso underwent a mid-lifecycle upgrade.
What makes Verso different?
First of all, the modular quality of its interior and its ease of use, something that’s very important in the MPV segment. Looking at the profile of main customers, they’re very family oriented and enjoy a lot of sporting and social activities. So they need flexible seating and loadspace.
Then there is the styling. We’ve tried to introduce dynamism to a segment that traditionally favours rather static, boxy design.
So, in summary, Verso is a stylish and modular family car. It is also one of the most compact seven-seat MPVs available. When we ask our customers, they put this forward as one of the main reasons for purchase. They like the compactness, especially for driving in town, in combination with Verso’s maximised interior space.
What makes Verso a “full European” car?
To begin with, more than 95 per cent of Verso customers are European. In fact there is no Japanese Verso model, and the equivalent model in China looks nothing like the car we have here. In fact it was launched two years before our current Verso.
From a manufacturing perspective, about 95 per cent of all the car’s parts are produced locally. And, for the last three years, all the R&D activities for Verso have taken place in Europe. That makes us kind of independent from Toyota Motor Corporation in Japan; the leadership is here in Europe. That applies to the styling and product planning as well. All these aspects have been fully localised for the past three years. In all, between 350 and 400 local staff have been involved in the project.
One year on from the launch of the current Verso, what is your opinion now of the choices that were made during its development?
We put a lot of effort into getting the design just right. For an MPV, that’s always a difficult task; somehow you need to reconcile style with practicality.
The first six months’ sales figures suggest we have struck the right balance. The percentage of customers citing style as a purchase reason has nearly doubled, and we are now performing well above the segment average.
This has had an immediate impact on our ability to attract new business. Conquest sales in Europe are up six per cent to 57 per cent, of which 75 per cent come to Verso from another compact MPV. And 23 per cent of our customers are young families, the highest share in the MPV market. All in all, the improvements are helping us to increase our share and even our sales volume in a segment that has declined in recent years.
Why are you launching this new 2014 Verso, just one year after the model’s mid-lifecycle upgrade?
This is a “model year” car. The model year concept gives us an opportunity to introduce new and fresh qualities to a product every 12 months, helping it maintain as high a profile as possible in the market. This is the first time we have taken this approach with Verso.
And, again, this idea is tailored specifically to suit the European market. Typically a new model year would introduce new visual elements and possibly some new equipment features. But the 2014 Verso goes a bit further than that because we’re introducing a new engine as well, creating wider choice and giving us better access to the heart of the segment.
The model year concept also allows us to make product improvements. A simple example: this time we’ve changed the gear knob to give it a more tactile quality. It’s part of the car a driver will touch as many as 100,000 times a year, so if we can introduce a softer leather, better ergonomics… let’s not wait for the next generation to come, let’s do that now.
Drivingperformance
- Verso first Toyota to adopt new 1.6 D-4D 110bhp diesel engine
- New unit sourced from BMW Group and re-engineered by Toyota to meet its
performance and packaging requirements - First Verso engine to make use of stop and start technology
- CO2 emissions 119g/km, combined cycle fuel economy 62.8mpg
NEW 1.6 D-4D ENGINE
The new 1.6 D-4D diesel engine, making its Toyota debut in the 2014Verso, is sourced from the BMW Group. Toyota engineers have madeextensive modifications to the engine, including a newly-developed
dual-mass flywheel, revised engine mounts, and completely redesignedelectrical interfaces. It is fitted to a Toyota six-speed manualtransmission with stop and start technology, a first for the Verso
range.
It replaces the 2.0-litre D-4D engine in the UK line-up, offeringhigher efficiency and a 20kg weight saving. Maximum power is110bhp (82kW) at 4,000rpm and peak torque is 270Nm, generatedfrom 1,750 to 2,250rpm. Nought to 62mph acceleration is despatchedin 12.7 seconds and top speed is 115mph.
Fuel economy is eight per cent better than the 2.0 D-4D unit, with62.8mpg combined cycle consumption. CO2 emissions are lower by10g/km at 119g/km.
These figures are supported by the first deployment of a stop andstart system in Verso, in line with the efficiency principles of ToyotaOptimal Drive.
Toyota met a number of engineering challenges in order to integratethe engine into Verso’s powertrain, in particular with regard tothe use of stop and start, minimising NVH levels and ensuring quiet
running at cruising speeds.
The engine has been tuned to deliver a fast throttle responsethroughout the rev range, with good initial response at low rpm and,as turbo boost develops, linear build-up of torque. The improveddriveability the engine offers is also supported by the delivery ofstrong torque over a wider rev band, which means it will rev happilybeyond 3,000rpm without running out of breath.
Gerald Killmann, European Projects Director at Toyota’s R&D Centre in Belgium, discusses the new diesel, development goals, the main project challenges and the R&D needed to develop a true Toyota D-4D engine.
Why did you decide to source an engine, rather than develop a 1.6 diesel from scratch?
Considering that diesel passenger car sales are mainly concentrated in Europe, and that producing a new diesel engine would require significant development work, we came to the conclusion that, in this instance, the best solution was to co-operate with another manufacturer rather than develop a unit ourselves.
The next step was to define the selection criteria. We went looking for candidate engines that delivered the level of performance we required – torque, power, fuel consumption. And, of course, we also had to take into account whether the engine’s geometry was compatible with our car.
Engine hardware wasn’t the only driver, though. We also wanted to find a partner that is, like us, a technically oriented company, and which thinks in similar ways.
So, all things taken into account, the BMW Group turned out to be our ideal partner.
How has Toyota developed this engine?
The engine is probably the most interlinked component in a car. It interacts with a huge number of systems. In this case, we developed a host of new elements – a new dual-mass flywheel, an adapted gearbox housing, new engine mounts, new electronic interfaces and more.
When you install an engine in a car, it isn’t only a mechanical marriage, it needs electrical integration too.
Matching the electronics was a major task, because the engine control unit contains elements from both project partners and they all needed to be integrated into the car’s electronic system through our interfaces.
We had to adapt external engine components to meet the geometrical requirements of installation, and to cope with the thermal stress that comes from powering a relatively large and potentially heavily loaded car, air flow through the engine compartment was optimised.
What were your main targets when adding this engine to the line-up?
First of all, because it is family car, an MPV has to be comfortable to drive. On the other hand, looking at the vehicles that are already on the road using this engine, we recognised its dynamic performance. So we wanted to bring a combination of these aspects to Verso.
When you put a low displacement engine in a relatively large car, it’s essential that the engine delivers, so that was a key engineering target. We had to make sure that torque was available from low revs, and that it was also spread over a wide rev band.
This ‘stretchiness’ was one of our goals. It allows the driver to stay in the same gear for longer, at higher rpm during acceleration, without getting the feeling that the engine is running out of steam.
A second consideration was fast engine response, delivering sufficient torque even before the turbo cuts in. And not just a fast response, but also a natural build-up of torque so that it doesn’t feel like “small engine.., small engine… small engine…” and then whoosh as the turbo cuts in. The increase in torque had to be more natural and linear.
As a result, the driver gets access to very decent performance, without upsetting their passengers’ comfort with sudden bursts of acceleration as they go through the gears – something that’s important in a family car.
The NVH target was to be as good as the 2.0-litre D-4D engine and, in some areas, to perform even better.
And of course efficiency was important. We managed to cut CO2 emissions back by eight per cent, from 129 to 119g/km, compared to the 2.0-litre D-4D engine. And thanks to the smaller engine size and the use of a stop and start system, there is a noticeable fuel consumption advantage, particularly in urban driving.
How has Toyota quality been guaranteed?
The car is engineered like any other Toyota. The engine was subjected to all our durability tests, even though it comes from another manufacturer. From an R&D viewpoint, it may be an engine from another manufacturer, but our standards don’t change.
We have checked that it meets our durability requirements and have done all the necessary component redevelopment and testing.
What elements of the project are you most proud of?
Our goal was to ensure that the 1.6 D-4D model would deliver better CO2 performance without sacrificing comfort, driving pleasure or real-world usability. Three elements contribute to the achievement of that aim.
First, we managed to control the transmission of engine vibrations to the body very well. I am extremely happy with the level we achieved, especially under stop and start operation.
The second factor was engine response, the linear torque build-up and the high availability of torque over a wide rpm range. Often with a diesel, once beyond 2,700 to 2,800rpm, the drop off in torque hits you like a barrier. The 1.6 D-4D on the other hand lets you continue happily well beyond 3,000rpm, almost like a petrol engine. As a driver, it’s nice to have that option, particularly when you have to pull into heavy traffic and need power to catch up with the traffic flow.
Third, we’ve also worked on gear ratio selection to combine dynamic performance with good fuel consumption and low noise levels at motorway speeds. That’s why we’ve made sixth gear a cruising gear, while lower gears, such as second and third, are designed for good acceleration, using the stretchiness of the high-revving engine.
Design
- New Avantgarde Bronze exterior colour
- New 17-inch alloy wheel with smoked silver finish
- New seat upholstery choices – dark grey cloth with silver stitching and light grey cloth with leather side bolsters
- New gear shift knob design
The 2014 Toyota Verso carries forward the fresh styling introduced in 2013 with the addition of details that raise the visual and tactile appeal of the car even further.
On the outside, customers can select a new Avantgarde Bronze metallic paint finish, which joins the collection of 10 different shades.
New wheel designs are also part of the 2014 Verso programme. Trend grade versions are fitted with a five-spoke 17-inch alloy that has a darker, smoked silver finish. A different 10-spoke alloy remains a standard feature of Excel grade, while at the other end of the range the Active models are fitted with new-design wheel covers.
In the cabin there is new dark grey cloth upholstery with contrast silver stitching for Icon and Trend models, and a light grey cloth with leather side bolsters, available as an option for Trend and Excel grades.
Mehmet Kilic, discusses the significance of the exterior and interior design changes for the 2014 Verso and the role of ED2, Toyota’s European design centre, in creating them.
How did you decide which elements to update for the 2014 Verso?
After the 2013 facelift we continued to refine a second colour interior that we had already been working on. With the 2014 model we are introducing that lighter interior, which shouldn’t only attract families, but also fleet and business customers as well. These drivers spend many hours in their cars every day, so a lighter, brighter interior really makes a difference. It might also been seen as more prestigious.
We also have a new 17-inch alloy wheel that’s quite robust looking, it has a bold design and the colour is not a standard silver, but a darker, smoked tone.
When you put these different elements together with the new Avantgarde Bronze exterior paint finish, the Skyview panoramic roof and rear privacy glass, plus the new 1.6 diesel engine and the upgraded Toyota Touch 2 multimedia systems, you end up with a new and very attractive package.
What was ED2’s involvement in creating the new designs?
They are one of our most significant partners in product development, especially for a job like this. A car has around 2,000 parts and as we are only changing between two and five per cent of them, we need to gain maximum impact from those changes.
The exterior colour is the number one element from a communication point of view, and that’s where ED2 comes in. Which colours to select, why, what are the market trends and how will they stand the test of time?
This isn’t just an automotive issue, it applies to any product. Take the Pearl White colour we used to launch the 2013 Verso: you can see similar colours on smartphones, PCs, TVs. There’s a clear trend. Grasping that trend and making sure our products fit in, that’s the expertise ED2 brings to a project like this one.