The company known for the famous Tarago won’t offer a people mover moving forward, except for one best known as a maxi taxi.
Toyota has confirmed the Granvia, which was introduced as a de facto replacement for the Tarago back in 2019, has been axed as it doesn’t meet Australian Design Rule 98/00.
ADR 98/00 outlines specific performance requirements for autonomous emergency braking (AEB) systems. While the Granvia has AEB, the system evidently doesn’t meet these requirements.
This means any Granvias will need to be complied before March 1, 2025 to be sold on or after this date.
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Toyota has confirmed final deliveries will take place in March.
“We initially planned to upgrade the Granvia to meet the new standard but upon reviewing sales, market conditions, production complexity and future regulations, we decided not to proceed and to instead retire the nameplate,” said Sean Hanley, Toyota Australia vice president for sales, marketing and franchise operations.
“The people mover segment makes up just one per cent of the total market with buyers gravitating towards large SUVs. In the end we couldn’t make a compelling business case for continuing with the vehicle.”
Buyers after a Toyota people mover will instead have to get an enormous 12-seat HiAce Commuter, or one of the brand’s various three-row SUVs.
Toyota isn’t the only brand that has discontinued vehicles due to this incoming regulation, with others including Mazda, Mitsubishi and Suzuki.
The company cited low demand for the Granvia as another reason it axed the model.
The Granvia was Toyota’s worst-selling vehicle in Australia last year besides the hydrogen fuel-cell Mirai, with just 117 examples of the people mover delivered.
From its launch to the end of January 2025, Toyota has delivered 999 Granvias to Australian customers. Hyundai delivered that many Starias last year alone, while Kia sold more than 10 times as many Carnivals.
In its best year, 2020, Toyota delivered 276 Granvias. Looking at sales data dating to 1991, even in its worst year the Tarago sold considerably better.
In fact, the year after it was discontinued, Toyota sold more leftover Taragos than it did Granvias last year.
Toyota introduced the Granvia to Australia in 2019, the same year the Tarago was retired.
It was quite a different beast however, being larger, boxier, and more expensive, as well as rear-wheel drive and diesel-powered instead of front-wheel drive and petrol.
Closely related to the current-generation HiAce, the Granvia is 170mm wider and a whopping 505mm longer than the Tarago it replaced.
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Toyota Vellfire
It also had an initial base price of $62,990 before on-road costs which saw it priced roughly the same as a top-spec Tarago.
It’s unclear why Toyota didn’t bring the Alphard or Vellfire to Australia instead, given these people movers are popular used imports here, offer the option of hybrid power (which the Tarago also did, albeit in Japan), and are much closer in size to the old Tarago.
Not only that, but Toyota’s luxury brand Lexus has subsequently launched the LM, which is closely related to the Alphard and Vellfire.
Toyota offers various other people movers overseas, but these are either smaller (Voxy, Sienta, Noah) or only built in left-hand drive (Sienna).
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