Following the success of the Perodua Alza’s / Toyota Veloz’s contract manufacturing arrangement, Perodua is set to build another Toyota-badged model at its Rawang plant.

According to materials sighted by WapCar, Perodua is working on a yet-to-be-launched D03B model. Said model was also mentioned alongside the D66B, which we already know is the project code for the Perodua Nexis.

The Nexis name is yet to be confirmed by Perodua but it is believed to be D66B’s marketing name, based on trademark filings made by Perodua. When launched later this year, it will be positioned above the Perodua Ativa.

Just as the Toyota Veloz is a Perodua-built twin of the Perodua Alza, the Toyota Yaris Cross is rumoured to be a twin of the Perodua Nexis.

Note that this Daihatsu-developed, DNGA platform Toyota Yaris Cross for Southeast Asia is not related to the Toyota-developed, TNGA platform Toyota Yaris Cross sold in Singapore, Australia, Japan and Europe.

In Thailand, the Toyota Yaris Cross is sold exclusively as a full-hybrid, powered by an electrified variant (2NR-VEX) of the Toyota Vios’ 2NR-VE 4-cylinder engine. In Indonesia, the model is also available with the Vios’ regular 2NR-VE 1.5-litre petrol engine. However the bulk of the sales come from hybrid variants.

With the Perodua Ativa priced from RM 62,500 to RM 73,400. It is reasonable to expect the higher range D66B Perodua Nexis to start from circa RM 80k.

As for the D03B Toyota Yaris Cross, don’t expect it to be cheap. Looking at the RM 20k gap between the Perodua Alza and the Toyota Veloz, we expect UMW Toyota Motor to price the Yaris Cross at circa RM 100k. That’s reasonable, in the context of Toyota’s model spread, because the Toyota Vios is already priced between RM 89,600 to RM 95,500. The Yaris Cross, being an SUV, will of course be priced higher than a similar segment sedan.

The 1.5-litre Yaris Cross will slot nicely below the 1.8-litre Toyota Corolla Cross, which starts from RM 130,400.