- toyota has confirmed that it's discontinuing the yaris sedan and hatchback in the united states after the 2020 model year.
- production of the car—sold in our market since the 2007 model year—will end this month.
- the automaker blames new regulations and slow sales.
the end is nigh for the toyota yaris. production of the mazda 2–based subcompact will cease before july, ending the nameplate's 14-year run in our market and leaving the c-hr crossover as toyota's sole subcompact offering.
the news, first reported by carbuzz, came from a corporate memo leaked on reddit, which has since been deleted. addressed to dealers and general managers, the document stated that "the yaris sedan and yaris hatchback will not be available for model year 2021."
we have confirmed this with a toyota representative, who told us: "the entry-subcompact segment has new regulations that require additional homologation. those regulations, coupled with declining sales in the segment, are some of the reasons behind the decision." we've asked toyota to elaborate on these regulations and will update this story if and when we know more.
there's certainly truth to the segment shrinkage. in 2019, toyota sold 21,917 examples of the yaris, about 5000 fewer than the previous year and a whopping 80,411 down from the model's peak in 2008. the honda fit, kia rio, hyundai accent, and nissan versa—key rivals in this segment—have also seen better days in terms of sales.
we expect covid-19 may have played a part, too, as reuters reports that toyota plans to limit vehicle production in north america—where the yaris is made, albeit in a mazda factory—by 29 percent this year to compensate for the lack of demand and supply-chain issues.