Toyota Belta

This article is about the Yaris sedan, for the Yaris hatchback, see Toyota Vitz

The Toyota Belta (referred to in North American and Australian markets as the Toyota Yaris sedan or Toyota Vios in South Asian markets) is a subcompact sedan manufactured by the Toyota Motor Corporation. It is basically a redesigned and sportier version of the discontinued Toyota Platz, and is similar to the Toyota Vitz. The Belta went on sale in 2006 equipped with 1.0 to 1.3 L engines (in Japan), and in 2007 in North America equipped with a 1.5 L I4. In an effort to boost sales and gain popularity among youths, Toyota has created a MySpace profile of its North American Yaris/Belta vehicle as part of its advertising campaign.

The Vitz and the Belta share underpinnings with each other. However, while the Vitz was designed at Toyota's European design studios, the Belta was designed at Toyota's Japanese design studios – two completely different design projects for similar cars marketed toward different demographics. While the outgoing Vitz and Platz models look and feel virtually alike (the only things the cars do not share is the front clip, lights, rear doors, and bodies from behind the B-pillar), the new Vitz and Belta are much more subtly related. Sharing a similar but different dashboard, they do not employ the same components. The cars only share a frame and the drivetrain options. The sheetmetal is completely different. The Belta has increased in size over the previous generation, its interior volume larger than the 2001-2008 generation Toyota Corolla.