Saw this arrival in the recent Motor Show 2020 and decide to give it a closer look as a friend is keen to get. Saw its BASE model, almost fainted as the gaps with the S trims are so wide apart but with a small gap in price tag, not sure how it makes sense to bring in at the first place. S trimmings comes with a 2-tone color which is similar to makes like Volvo XC40 and with a 17-inch rims (15-inch for base) too. LED front and rear lights with DRL to the S trims too. Nice. Interior is a mixture of cloth and leather seating material which is of good quality looks but no roof as options. Driving off is ok but no electric brake which is now a common sight across many makes out there. Understand that it comes with adaptive bend lights but didnt get to see it as test drive is in the daylight. Smooth drive in normal mode with adequate pickup too. In sports mode, relatively ok too. Only drawback in things to have is no front sensors at parking which is good to have for a semi high car like this and no auto hold too. Overall, its a small nimble crossover to have for its price tag (S$ 86k for S trim as at Feb 2020) but if you compare overall, you sure have more choices with this same amount.

Went to see this at Borneo showroom after catching a glimpse at Motor Show 2020. Skipped its other 1.6L petrol and tested this 1.8L Hybrid instead, as the SalesPerson mention is not much changes in engine for the petrol variant. First looks, stylish exterior design which is close to its more "Atas" Sibling, Camry which is understood as baby Camry for this. Inside the interior, still the plush comfortable Altis with much more gadgets than before like having BOTH auto headlights and rain sensors (finally) in Altis or in a typical Japanese make. Comes with interactive dashboard, which some brands calls it Virtual Cockpit that can be of much informative to driver, only worried if our local weather is hot all year round that can "Tahan" The heat to last for many years to come. PUSH START cant really hear anything as its hybrid and move off is a breeze with electronic brake cuts off once engage in Drive mode. Cruising is breeze where you see the safety gadgets at work, PCA and LDA which is elaborated below. A good to have seen in Camry is the DCC where you engage it at 60km/h and anytime a car in front slows down, it slows too, compares to other makes is just a normal cruise control (non-dynamic or non-adaptive). Auto brake hold is also another good to have too. Normal drive mode is seen as a smooth drive and pretty quiet but when you switch to Sport mode, the engine can be quite noisy when revved which could be due to poor insulation (cost cutting ?) in this generation of Altis. Parking is easy with the necessary gadgets in place too as with higher CG, is unlikely to brush the rear bumper at the back. Overall, for this 1.8L hybrid, if you do not mind its "Noise" When revved to overtake or general revving, its still a reliable to have as a Toyota. Being Toyota, for its reliability on engine, except can feel its thinner in material but compensated with other safety gadgets and those good to haves in this variant, definitely can still consider should you look at Japanese makes. Otherwise, this price tag can seem to be hefty when you look and compare with other sedan makes (year 2020 authorized dealers only between 1.4L to 1.6L) like Mazda 3 Astina Mild Hybrid 1.5L, Subaru Impreza 2.0L, Honda Civic 1.5L VTEC TURBO or even Skoda Octavia Ambition Plus 1.4L TURBO.

Owned the car for about 2 months now and its always nice to step in, close the door with a nice thud, press the start stop, open the sunroof if i feel vain and also take out the sunglass from the sunglass holder. All those that I never find in my previous car. Always thought a car should have about 150bhp and 200nm torque to be adequate but wow my opinions changed as this 1.5litre is adequate in SG roads. Handling is good but a AWD still gives more confidence in tackling bends. Looks wise, this 3rd gen 3 is really flaunting the aggressive face and sleek lines. Drive wise it is adquate but more power wil be better to filter out from lanes at low speed. You really need to rev it to get the power from the vehicle. Its quite sluggish <3K RPM. Overall, is a "Conti" Feel jap car that is sexy and abit high cost to run compared to my previous Impreza. But its also rather fuel efficient. I managed about 12.5-12.8km/litre with start stop off.