Toyota Motor Corporation has released a 2-minute video featuring the new 4th generation Toyota Harrier following its launch in Japan just a month ago. While we may not comprehend Japanese, we can appreciate the SUV’s beauty on the move.
It may have retained somewhat the same form and silhouette as the previous generation model we reviewed, but the new Harrier seems to have undergone a strict workout regime and a dramatic cosmetic surgery.
The front end features slimmer headlights with sharper edges than before, while the grille panel has been significantly reduced in size – lending a sleeker, more edgy look – while still instantly recognisable as a Harrier.
On the side, the Harrier’s doors are more sculptured, with a profound character line that runs across the front and rear door handles – leading the eye to the new slimmer tail lights where the most significant changes, in our opinion, are at.
In fact, it’ll probably be the main selling point of the new Harrier – the only sales pitch every Toyota salesmen needs – as the new Harrier now comes with tail lights that stretches end-to-end across the tailgate. Now we usually refrain from the futile exercise of describing how a car looks but these little nip and tucks have effectively made the Harrier look less lethargic and more athletic.
Unfortunately, we’re afraid that it ends there. When it comes to actual athleticism, in terms of performance, we’re not quite convinced how the new Harrier would pull its weight (convincingly) with the omission of the powerful 2.0-litre turbocharged engine featured in the previous generation model we tested – the first of the Harriers officially imported into the country by UMW Toyota Motor.
On that note, if the response received by UMW Toyota Motor is anything to go by, after the company decided to officially introduce the Harrier in Malaysia along with a comprehensive warranty to stave off competition from local grey importers, stretching waiting periods to 18 months at one point, this one should cause the same stir – judging solely on its looks – in a good way, if not a bigger one.
