TOYOTA has given its new small sports utility vehicle, the Urban Cruiser, its European debut at the Geneva Motor Show, the latest addition to its 4x4 vehicle heritage.
The new model is aimed at the 'urban all-road' market, where European sales have almost doubled since 2002.
Scheduled to go on sale in the UK during the first half of 2009, Toyota says it responds to customer demand for stylish SUVs with lower fuel bills and CO2 emissions - the Urban Cruiser is expected to come in below the 140g/km emissions benchmark.
It draws on Toyota's history of SUV production, which began in 1951 with the launch of the Land Cruiser and went on to feature the landmark RAV4 in 1994.
A spokesman for Toyota said: "The new Urban Cruiser is designed as an aspirational urban SUV that is very close in spirit to the discontinued three-door RAV4 with its compact dimensions, clever packaging, practicality and four-wheel drive."
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