High Hopes For Toyota's New Wagon

Illawarra Mercury

Saturday March 25, 2006

BARRY PARK (The Age)

TOYOTA has launched its new-look Tarago people mover in a way that should help the car maker claw back some sales from rivals.

The eight-seater wagon, a more rigid re-skin of the previous model, adds 10kW to its 2.4-litre four-cylinder engine to produce 125kW of power at 6000rpm and 224Nm of torque at 4000rpm. Missing, however, is the 3.5-litre V6 released in Japan.

The engine, using a drive-by-wire electronic throttle, is mated to a four-speed automatic transmission, with MacPherson struts at the front and a torsion-beam rear suspension.

The redesign has lowered the height of the Tarago's floor by 10mm, and added 20mm to the interior's width. Another 30mm has been shaved from the vehicle's overall height.

Features include driver and front passenger climate-control airconditioning, rear-seat cooler, electric power-assisted steering, tilt and telescopic adjustable steering column, cruise control, MP3 CD-tuner, remote central locking, power windows and a full-sized spare wheel.

The Tarago GLi will retail from $48,990, with optional enhanced safety pack - vehicle stability control, traction control, a pre-crash seatbelt-tensioning system, a variety of airbags and electronic brake assist - adding $1500 to the price tag.

The GLX, which includes the safety pack, stability and traction control, roof rails, front and rear parking sensors, six-CD stereo, 17-inch alloy wheels and rear seat climate-controlled airconditioner, will sell from $51,990.

Toyota has lost ground to rivals ahead of the new Tarago's launch, despite shedding almost $6000 from the price of some of its older models late last year. The car maker sold just 58 Taragos last month, compared with 287 sales for Kia's Carnival and 233 for Honda's Odyssey.

This compares with 134 for the Tarago, 382 for the Carnival and 296 for the Odyssey in January.

© 2006 Illawarra Mercury

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