European-spec 2012 Toyota Yaris Previewed [Gallery]

Japanese automaker Toyota might be changing focus to hybrids for the European market in the near future, but conventional-powered models are still in the spotlights for now. Several photos of the all-new Yaris for Europe leaked on the internet today, courtesy to the automaker’s Dutch subsidiary, so we expect an official statement to follow soon.

The model made its debut in Japan earlier this year bearing the ‘Vitz ‘ designation, and it seems like not much is changed for the European version.

As you can see form the adjacent images, the new Yaris sports Toyota’s new design language, with more angular headlights and more prominent creases in the body, despite the fact that the overall lines are not that different from the previous model.

We already knew exterior dimensions are also slightly differences. It is 100mm longer and 20mm lower, while the wheelbase has been increased by 50mm. It is also lighter by around 30 kilos, which contributes to both performance and fuel efficiency, while rear legroom has been enhanced by 35mm.

However, the most noticeable changes are made inside the car. For example, the instrument cluster is now placed in front of the driver, replacing the digital instruments with conventional gauges, while the double glove box has been eliminated.

The all-new Yaris is expected to be offered with two gasoline options, a 1.0-liter developing 68 horsepower and a 1.3-liter with 93 horsepower, with the latter employing start-stop function. A diesel and a hybrid version are likely to be offered as well, but only starting with 2012. All European-spec models will likely be offered as standard with a five-speed manual transmission,

According to the Dutch Toyota subsidiary, official details and pricing are to be released sometime next month. For now, we’ll let you take a look at the images from the gallery below and see if there is anything you don’t like.