2018 Toyota Rush SUV: A rival to Honda BR-V, Maruti Suzuki Ertiga in India?

• Toyota revealed the second generation Rush in November 2017
• The MPV-styled compact SUV is popular in South East Asian countries
• If launched in India, it will go up against Honda BR-V

Japanese carmaker Toyota had taken the wraps off the 2018 Rush SUV in Indonesia in November last year. As Toyota Rush's popularity increases in the Asian continent, there are rumors that Toyota Kirloskar Motor, the Indian subsidiary of Toyota, may launch it here.

Let's start with what the new Toyota Rush offers. The second generation of Rush comes with a redesigned face that now features a prominent grille with four chrome slats, similar to the last generation Innova. The swept-back headlamp, on the other hand, is reminiscent of India-spec Honda CR-V.

Muscular front bumper and plastic cladding around the fog lamps adds rugged looks to the new Rush. The compact SUV also gets LED headlamps and tail lamps, electronic retractable mirrors with LED turn indicators, 16-inch alloy wheels, shark-fin antenna, and a rear spoiler. The new Rush also boasts of massive 220mm ground clearance.

On the inside, the Rush gets a dual-tone beige and black finish. Interestingly beige is used only to highlight different aspects of the trims such as door panels and central area under the dashboard. A new steering wheel is another notable addition.

The jazzier Rush TRD Sportivo features keyless entry, push-button start and a 7.0-inch touchscreen infotainment with USB compatibility, radio, CD player and smartphone compatibility via Miracast and Weblink. On the safety front, it flaunts six airbags, ABS with EBD, stability control and hill start assist.

A rival to Honda BR-V, Maruti Suzuki Ertiga in India?

All these additions make the Rush a compelling case against the Honda BR-V and Maruti Suzuki Ertiga in India. But, Toyota has plans to bring it to India? We think it is highly unlikely. Even though Rush is an SUV, the design of the vehicle shows it has more MPV like character. Honda brought the same idea with the BR-V in India while it didn't go down well with the customers.

Meanwhile, Maruti Suzuki has good traction with the Ertiga MPV. The company will be launching 2018 Ertiga in the upcoming festive season. Having said that, we don't find a valid business reason for Toyota to bring the Rush in India rivaling 2018 Maruti Suzuki Ertiga.

Toyota Rush scores 5 star ASEAN NCAP crash test

The latest accolade to Toyota Rush is that it has earned a maximum of 5 stars in the ASEAN NCAP crash test. The Rush registered 84.03 points out of 100, performing extremely well in adult occupancy protection, child occupancy protection and in safety assist systems. 2018 Rush is equipped with six airbags, ABS, EBD, traction control, stability control and hill-start assist.