Toyota Australia has discontinued its Granvia premium people-mover in response to changing market conditions and upcoming regulatory requirements.
Low customer demand, along with the need for technical modifications to the model to meet a new Australian Design Rule (ADR) standard, prompted Toyota to re-assess the suitability of the Granvia for the Australian market.
Toyota Vice President Sales, Marketing and Franchise Operations, Sean Hanley, said as consumer preferences shifted away from people movers into the booming SUV market, the company had decided against upgrading the Granvia in line with the new ADR 98/00, which comes into effect on March 1st.
“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,” Mr Hanley said.
“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,” he said.
The discontinuation will take effect immediately with final deliveries occurring in March.
“We apologise to any customers inconvenienced by this decision,” Mr Hanley said.
Toyota Australia will work with our extensive Dealer network to assist affected customers.
The Granvia was available in six- and eight-seat versions, powered by a 2.8-litre turbodiesel engine. It was aimed at high-end hospitality, family and corporate buyers and since its introduction to Australia in late 2019, it attracted almost 1000 buyers.
