Toyota Innova

Like the exterior, the interior of the Toyota Innova also manages to hide its age, thanks to the premium-looking trim elements and the eye-catching asymmetric layout of the dashboard with a large 9-inch screen for the infotainment system in the middle.

Behind the leather-wrapped steering wheel, the Toyota Innova has a classy-looking instrument console which has a 4.2-inch TFT MID in the middle of chrome-ringed analogue dials. However, we would have loved to see a more modern full-TFT screen here, given the changing trends. Both variants of the Innova have wood and silver trim for the instrument panel and fabric-wrapped door trim with silver and piano black elements, with the X variant also getting wood trim on door panels.

While the G variant has fabric upholstery for the seats, the X variant feels more luxurious with the combination leather upholstery for the same. The second-row seating arrangement of both variants of Innova also differs – a flat bench with a 60:40 split-folding facility in the G variant and captain seats with a one-touch tumble in the X variant. In both variants, the Innova gets armrests in the second-row seats, a reclining function for the seats in all three rows and 50:50 split-folding third-row seats. 

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Premium-looking wood and piano black inserts

Con: No full-TFT screen for the instrument console 

Features and Technology

The Innova might not be as modern and up-to-date as the Innova Zenix in terms of features, but it still has more than sufficient features that are expected from a traditional MPV customer.

Both the variants of Toyota Innova are equipped with features like a 9-inch touchscreen infotainment system, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 6-speaker audio system, a USB charging port, automatic climate control with rear AC vents, driver seat height adjustment, a wireless charger, a tilt and telescopic adjustable multi-functional steering wheel and a push start-stop button. The X variant feels slightly more luxurious with its leather seats, roof ambient lighting, a digital video recorder, and an 8-way power-adjustable driver’s seat. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Large and easy-to-use touchscreen infotainment system

Con: No ventilated front seats and sunroof

Boot Space and Storage

Despite having a three-row arrangement, the Toyota Innova offers a good boot space of 300 litres with all three rows up, which makes it one of the largest boot compartments in the three-row MPV segment. And if that’s not enough, the boot space is expandable to 587 litres, after folding down the third-row seats. 

Besides offering supple ride quality, the Toyota Innova further bolsters its practicality with several small storage compartments and spaces in its cabin. Both variants of the Innova come with a centre console box with a soft lid, lower glove box, cooled upper glove box, a sunglass holder, front seat back pockets, second-row seatback tables, bottle holders in door panels and cup holders in all three rows.

Pros and cons:

Pro: Huge boot space in all seating configurations

Con: Nothing much actually

Even though it is now almost a decade-old product, the Toyota Innova still looks premium and smart. Some credits go to Toyota for the regular exterior updates it gave to the Innova, especially with the more premium X variant which gets a few sporty-looking elements on the outside. 

The front profile of the Toyota Innova looks authoritative with the large trapezoidal grille, which has chrome with grey paint finish in the G variant and dark chrome with gloss black finish in the X variant.

The Innova gets large, sweptback headlamp clusters, which pack in halogen multi-reflector headlamps in the G variant and LED projectors in the X variant, with both featuring auto on-off and follow-me-home functions. These headlamps also come with bulb-type DRLs in the G variant and LED DRLs in the X variant. The front bumper of the Toyota Innova has triangular fog lamps on its corners, which are LED units in the X variant. 

The sportier-looking X variant of the Toyota Innova looks fancier with additional highlights, including front and rear bumper spoilers, over-fenders and rocker lower mouldings. While the G variant has 16-inch silver alloy wheels, the X variant rides on larger 17-inch machined alloy wheels. Both variants also come with chrome-finished door handles and electrically adjustable and foldable rearview mirrors. 

The size and proportions of the Innova feel even bigger with the large-sized window panels, including the huge rear three-quarter panels. At the back, the Innova has huge wedge-shaped combination tail lamps, with a gloss black panel between them in the middle of the boot lid and a roof-mounted spoiler with an LED stop lamp. 

The colour options for both the variants of Toyota Innova are Super White II, Silver Metallic, Medium Silver Metallic, Bronze Mica Metallic, Phantom Brown Metallic and Attitude Black Mica, with an additional option of Crimson Spark Red Metallic for the X variant. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Aerodynamic and sleek design with nice-looking headlamps

Cons: No modern LED inserts in tail lamps

While the naturally aspirated petrol engine is not as fuel efficient as the hybrid powertrain of the Innova Zenix, it offers decent efficiency, especially in highway driving conditions. The Innova's fuel efficiency goes up to 11 km in highway driving conditions, while the city efficiency comes to around 8-9 km.

Pros and cons:

Pro: Decent fuel efficiency on highways

Con: City efficiency could have been better

Based on Toyota’s legendary and rugged IMV ladder-on-frame platform and equipped with a double wishbone suspension at the front and a four-link suspension at the rear under its skin, the Toyota Innova has an impeccable ride quality, which feels well-cushioned on longer journeys. The supple ride quality of the Toyota Innova is one of the prime reasons behind its success and its continuous run, despite the arrival of the monocoque chassis-based third-generation Innova, the Innova Zenix. 

Complementing the ride quality further is the decently high ground clearance of 200mm, which is good enough to tackle bad roads. The alloy wheels on offer – 16-inch in the G AT and 17-inch in the X AT variants – also contribute to the excellence of its ride quality. That being said, the turning radius of 5.4 metres isn’t the Innova’s forte.

Pros and Cons:

Pro: Excellent ride quality

Con: Large turning radius 

For the Malaysian car market, the Toyota Innova is being offered with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder naturally-aspirated petrol engine as the standard powertrain. Offered with a 6-speed torque converter with sequential shifter as the standard transmission, this petrol engine produces a maximum power output of 139 PS and a maximum torque output of 183 Nm.

While this naturally-aspirated petrol engine is known for its bullet-proof reliability and refinement, it is not much known for its performance, which feels below average, especially as the speeds rise. There are three drive modes on offer, though – normal, eco and power – to suit your driving preferences, as and when needed. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Smooth and reliable petrol engine

Con: Could have had a stronger top-end grunt

The Toyota Innova might be missing out on the full suite of advanced driving assistance functions as the more premium Innova Zenix. However, it does get a blind spot monitoring system with rear cross-traffic alert as standard in both of its variants.

Other standard safety features available in both variants of Toyota Innova are ABS with EBD and brake assist, vehicle stability control with traction control, hill start assist, front and rear parking sensors, seven airbags and a panoramic view monitor. 

Pros and cons:

Pro: Almost all safety features are standard in both variants

Con: No ADAS features in any of the variants

Competitor Comparison

The closest rival to Toyota Innova in terms of size and price positioning is the Nissan Serena and Citroen Grand C4 SpaceTourer. There are a couple of more premium alternatives to the Innova, including Kia Carnival and Hyundai Staria. Toyota also has the Innova Zenix, which is a more modern alternative to the Innova in its stable. 

Conclusion and Final Verdict

With the arrival of the Innova Zenix in 2023, many people were questioning the relevance of second-generation Innova. However, the consistent sales and excellent customer feedback of the second-gen Innova encouraged Toyota to soldier on with it. This MPV might be old now in terms of market appeal, but still feels desirable due to its immense practicality and comfort, especially over long-distance journeys. The premium cabin and bullet-proof reliability only add more essence to its aura.