Ten years ago, the typical America traditionally viewed hatchback models as fuel- and cost-efficient vehicles that were a lacking in the style and power departments. Catering to this opinion, Toyota built no-frills vehicles like the Toyota Matric compact hatch for the U.S. market, while European markets received the Toyota Auris, a significantly more sophisticated compact hatchback that Toyota knew was too expensive to appeal to North American buyers when it first debuted.
Today's Toyota Matrix should be scheduled for a refresh soon, and with Toyota bringing a brand-new Auris hatchback to the 2012 Paris Auto Show soon, we're wondering possibility that this vehicle could also be the replacement for the North American market's Matrix.
Though the current Toyota Matrix is certainly holding its own, it's being forced to compete against newer, sportier hatches from other automakers. It's also not as fuel-efficient as many other new Toyota models due to the fact that it hasn't been redesigned or refreshed in quite some time.
The all-new Auris, for its part, is more leaner and more stylish than ever before. Fuel economy ratings have yet to be announced, but we expect them to be quite impressive due to the vehicle's 1.8-liter hybrid engine and 1.3 and 1.6-liter four-cylinder choices for the European market. Based on these figures, we'd certainly love for the Auris to make its way across the ocean!
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