Toyota Vellfire

EXTERIOR

Toyota Vellfire for the world. Not that long ago we liberally accused Toyota of being boring — no such criticism can be thrown the Vellfire’s way with its outrageous styling. Viewed head on it is like nothing else, vast slabs of chrome slapped across the width of the short and stubby nose, with a further protrusion of chrome in the centre that Toyota describes as a Samurai warrior’s crown. The chrome slabs are interspersed by full-LED headlights, sharply cut by said Samurai’s katana.

On the styling front everything has been thrown at the nose because the profile is a vast and slab-sided. It’s practicality over everything else, and of course more chrome — hyper chrome, as Toyota describes those 17-inch wheels. And the rear has another chrome slab across the width, so big and so shiny that all of Toyota’s test track was reflected in it. To repeat myself, this does look like nothing else, and is all the better for it. After all nobody wants to fly under the radar these days

INTERIOR

Toyota Vellfire subjects its occupants to. Unlike the Mercedes-Benz V-Class the Vellfire’s second row doesn’t swivel so your minions cannot grovel at your feet while you read them the riot act. That apart the Vellfire’s middle row is the most amazing thing stuck into an automobile. We talk of business class seats in the S-Class and 7 Series; the Vellfire is first class. These are like the La-Z Boys at home, if you have a really, really high quality La-Z Boy. Let us first slide the front passenger seat out of the way via controls on its side and then sink into the wide, comfy and plush armchairs in the middle. These chairs slide, manually and individually, while the rest of the controls are electric. A missed trick is the lack of a massage function, you only get heating and cooling. It does recline to near-flat, the ottoman (leg rest) slides out and extends to support your feet and you can really, really stretch out within that three metre wheelbase. There’s actually so much space that if you haven’t been needlessly greedy with the second row leg room, three people can fit in the third row. In fact your two big burly body guards can comfortably sit in the third row with not just enough knee, head and shoulder room but more importantly enough hip room for the heat they’re packing.

ENGINE, PERFORMANCE, BRAKING & HANDLING

There’s no diesel engine in the Vellfire and what we get for India is the 2.5-litre petrol that makes 115bhp and 198Nm, mated to a hybrid powertrain with a 105kW motor on the front axle and a 50kW motor on the rear axle. This is all-wheel-drive, but the AWD is there not for any off-roading nor any WRC-like cornering but to ensure safety and stability. The total system output is 194bhp and that makes the 2.2 tonne, primarily front-wheel-drive MPV, get a reasonable move on.

Like all Toyota hybrid powertrains, the Vellfire too gets a CVT gearbox and it gets moving silently on pure electric power. It will stay in electric mode if you’re very light with the throttle, though when the petrol engine does kick in you barely feel or hear it. The refinement is fantastic and sound insulation lovely; you’re absolutely cocooned from the rest of the world.

SAFETY

The Toyota Alphard and Vellfire have been awarded the highest rank awards in JNCAP’s safety assessment. JNCAP tested the ADAS aspect of the Alphard and Vellfire and awarded the duo with the “ASV +++” score, as the luxury MPVs from Toyota scored full points (141 out of 141).

CONCLUSION

The Vellfire is rather easy to drive, despite its sizeable proportions. Visibility is good, you sit up high, and there’s not much in the way of a bonnet in front of you. I cannot really comment on the ride quality as we only drove it on the short test track at Toyota’s factory but I suspect it will be lovely and keeping in step with the positioning and purpose of the Vellfire — and that is to pamper the boss.