The 2017 Gaikindo Indonesia International Auto Show (GIIAS) is underway and there are some exciting cars on display. The thing about the Indonesian car buyers is that they have a strong affinity towards their people carriers. Their people carriers are flashy, in-your-face and exuberant to say the least. With a thrifty use of chrome, gaudy design elements coupled with a practically usable package, what’s not to love. Here are the top seven people carriers showcased at the Indonesian motor show.
Mitsubishi Xpander
The star of the show was Mitsubishi’s new flagship MPV, the Xpander, which made its public debut at the show. The new fascia is straight out of ‘Predator’ movie with a lot going on in every inch of the grille and bumpers. Taking cues from the Mitsubishi XM Concept, the Xpander is a full-blown seven seater people carrier that takes on the segment leader, Toyota Avanza.
Wuling Confero
Wuling Motors are the newest entrants in the Indonesian car market and they brought a theme ‘My Wuling My Home' to the stage of 2017 GIIAS. They showcased various variants of the Confero MPV with its personalisation features. The Confero is a boring-looking yet very practical MPV and it comes with 50,000 kilometre or 2.5 years of warranty.
Toyota Voxy
Toyota has a significant presence in Indonesia. And at the GIIAS stage, Toyota had a plethora of products on display. But what grabbed the eyes most was the Voxy MPV with its larger-than-life cascading grille and double-layer sleek headlamps. It's luxurious on the inside, feature-loaded and spacious as well. It's a baby Vellfire, ladies and gentlemen!
Toyota Sienta
Another Toyota gracing the GIIAS is the Sienta, which looks nothing less than a concept car. The bulbous front end is curvaceous and looks like a toy car rather than a people carrier. There is a lot going on in the Sienta – upfront there are curves, mesh, chrome, and matte inserts, while at the rear there’s a spoiler, and diffuser – all stuck together on a three-row MPV, sitting on 17-inch blade-style wheels. The Sienta is an MPV for the boy racer in a family guy.
Toyota Venturer
The Indonesian version of the Innova Touring Sport, the Venturer was also present at the GIIAS 2017 and sported new body graphics and sporty decals. Interestingly, the fancy patterns of the decals on the side is actually paying a homage to the silhouettes of every generation of the Toyota Kijang. Right from the first-generation 1976 Kijang, each generation gets a different gradient of grey colour until the last black silhouette of the current generation Innova. How cool is that?
Daihatsu Thor Grand Custom
Daihatsu Thor is just a rebadged Toyota Tank which donneda new look for the GIIAS. The square-ish MPV went full JDM with the chrome grille, gaping front bumpers, lowered ride height and contrasting roof and wheels. Carrying the name of Norse God, this puny MPV isn’t on sale in the Indonesian market at the moment, but on the GIIAS stage, the carmaker showed that this little people carrier can still grab some eyeballs.
Toyota Alphard
Another Toyota, the Alphard, is one of the few cars on sale that can give a luxurious hotel suite a run for its money. There are acres of lavish space on the inside, while the imposing exterior is hard to miss. The wall-like chrome-laden grille gets a contrasting blue highlight especially for the GIIAS stage. The sliding doors, captain seating, more chrome and practical space is what defines the Alphard. The Indonesian market is truly blessed to have MPVs such as the Alphard.
