Toyota Corolla becomes smallest car offering as Yaris departs
The Yaris has been offered as a sedan and hatchback, but Toyota confirmed it's the end for the model in the US.
The US will say goodbye to another small car as the Toyota Yaris heads to the automotive graveyard growing full of passenger cars. The Mazda2-based sedan's end of production follows news the Yaris Hatchback will also depart the US.
News of the Yaris' demise first circulated on Reddit via a memo sent to dealers informing them the subcompact car would not be available after 2020. Toyota confirmed the Yaris' discontinuation with Roadshow and a representative said, "June will be the last month of production for Yaris and Yaris Hatchback for the US."
When asked if we'll see a new subcompact car take its place, the representative told Roadshow, "There are no plans at this time to offer anything in that segment." Thus, the Toyota Corolla will become the smallest car the Japanese automaker sells in the US.
The Yaris first arrived in the US as the Echo in 1999. In 2005, Toyota swapped the name to Yaris and the model remained a Toyota-built vehicle until Scion's demise in 2017. With Scion out, the Scion iA turned into the Toyota Yaris iA, based on the Mexican-made Mazda2 , before Toyota dropped the "iA" suffix last year. The weird turn of events ended up being the only time a Mazda Demio was sold in the US, though Mazda had already dropped the name for "Mazda2."
Elsewhere in the world, Toyota's treated buyers to a totally new Yaris based on its own architecture. It also formed the basis of the hot GR Yaris hatchback and a Yaris-based crossover. While we won't see any new Yaris, America will more than likely see the GR Yaris' hot powertrain in the form of a GR Corolla Hatchback.
