2019 Toyota Rush: Reasons to buy

The Toyota Rush is what happens when you take the existing Avanza MPV (2019 model is coming soon), pour in some of those juicy SUV styling cues, and then jack it the hell up. Now all you need to do is add some reasonable levels of practicality, decent people hauling skills, and price it aggressively enough. It seems like Toyota knew the formula and beat most of us to it, and they did that in a ‘Rush’. Jokes aside, if you strip away that SUV-like tough exterior shell, you’ll essentially end up with the platform taken straight from the Avanza.

In Malaysia, the 2019 Toyota Rush mainly locks horns with its closest (and cheaper) rival from Honda – the BR-V. So, let’s find out if the Rush is really worth the extra premium cost that it commands over the Honda.

Is it SUV enough?

There’s no beating around the bush when it comes to this one fact – most buyers don’t want an MPV even though they need one. This is one of the prime reasons why most choose to buy a crossover SUV, and ideally, one with three rows of seats. The aforementioned Honda BR-V manages to do this, but not very convincingly. The Toyota Rush, on the other hand, is far better at pulling off the “Look ma, I’m an SUV” trick. The Rush has three big advantages working in its favour – high ground clearance, tall body, and aggressive styling.

The front fascia has a sense of intimidation and sportiness about it. Toyota accomplished this by dressing the front end with a taut clamshell bonnet, modern and sleek LED headlights with integrated DRLs, and wide grille with four glossy black horizontal bars.

Meanwhile, the bottom half of the Rush looks butch and rugged with its aggressively-moulded bumper and faux skid plate. There are also subtle roof rails, rising shoulder and belt lines, flared fenders, deep wheel wells, a prominent rear spoiler, and a huge rear bumper extension with some fake vents, too. Of course, there’s also the obligatory black plastic cladding all around to add even more character. Add to all those the 17-inch alloy wheels, impressive 220 mm of ground clearance, and a 1,705 mm high roofline, the Toyota Rush’s SUV appeal is there for everyone to see.

Does it feel like an SUV from the inside?

It’s all well and good looking like an SUV from the outside. However, if that same feeling isn’t carried forward into the cabin – there would’ve been no point in doing all that in the first place. Thankfully, Toyota has managed to pull that off with the Rush. Once you haul yourself into the cabin, the high driving position of this ‘SUV’ becomes quite apparent. You certainly sit higher in the Rush than in the BR-V. Just as important is the amount of space that’s available for occupants in all three rows. Again, the Rush does justice to its advertised seven-seat capacity. All the rows offer more than adequate room for adults, and third-row passengers will fare better in the taller Rush than in the BR-V. With that being said, the Honda does offer up to 10 litres more behind the third-row than the Toyota.

The Toyota Rush scores pretty well when it comes to the general build quality, fit-and-finish, and cabin ergonomics. It also feels more like an SUV sitting in here than it does in the BR-V. However, it doesn’t necessarily feel any more expensive or better built compared to its cheaper rival. As for its features, the Rush can be had with automatic headlights, automatic AC, leather interior upholstery, split-folding second and third-rows, surround-view cameras, digital video recorder, and a 6.8-inch touch-infotainment system with six speakers and USB mirroring.

Powertrain and safety tech

The Toyota Rush is powered by a 1.5-litre four-cylinder engine that develops 104 hp and 136 Nm of torque. This is mated to a traditional 4-speed automatic gearbox and spins the rear wheels. The Rush takes a gingerly 13 seconds to crack the 100 kmph barrier, while top speed is only around the 175 kmph mark. More crucial, however, even the base variant of the Rush comes with six airbags, ABS with EBD and BA, plus electronic stability & traction control, hill assist, blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, and all-around parking sensors. The top trim adds further goodies such as pre-collision warning and braking, front departure alert, and pedal misoperation control.

In conclusion, for the extra RM 10,000, the fully-loaded Toyota Rush offers the beloved and preferred SUV styling and driving position, plus you also get more in the way of additional safety equipment than what’s available in the BR-V.