The Vellfire has built a reputation for themselves as the pinnacle of luxury MPV travel. Now in its fourth generation, the latest iteration of Toyota’s flagship people carrier might just about be the most ultimate version of the nameplate yet.

With an increasing number of manufacturers starting to realise the Asian appetite for MPV or Van-based luxury travel, competition in this space has seriously hotted up. To keep the Vellfire competitive, Toyota has equipped this latest version with levels of build, materials and equipment the nameplate has never seen before.

And yet it manages to do all of this, whilst still flying under the radar. Well, for the most part anyways.

Subtle Luxury on the Outside

The car has styling that is generally very sleek and clean. Angular taillights and a large chrome grille have been added to help justify the Vellfire’s not-insignificant purchase price. Aside from these details, the only other flamboyant touch on the outside are its alloy wheels.

Otherwise, it takes on a traditional MPV silhouette, albeit tweaked to be befitting of its $291,888 (before COE) price tag. There are strong creases and swage lines on its profile to break up the visual bulk. Without them, it’d be difficult to break up the visual bulk, which you’d expect, considering the car is over five metres in length.

Panel fitment is excellent overall, and the front doors close with a surprisingly reassuring thud. The rear sliding door mechanism is also silky smooth, very quiet and exudes a sense that the Vellfire is a quality product.

Not-So-Subtle Luxury on the Inside

It’s clear from the off that the car has been built around its middle-row occupants. Here, you find a pair of captain’s chairs, which are ventilated, fully-powered and have built-in massage functionality. But what sets this apart from the previous Vellfire is the sheer amount of included technology that the VIP occupants have access to.

That’s because each captain’s chair has its own removable smartphone-esque screen, which enables them to have control over many of the car’s functions. The car has all-round power blinds from the middle row back, and it even has roof blinds to block sunlight out should you not want it.

Infinitely customisable ambient lighting, and its quality JBL sound system further drives home the point that this is no ordinary Toyota. As expected, there are copious amounts of room on offer, and even third-row passengers would be able to get comfortable. Whilst most three-row cars tend to have fairly underwhelming last-row seats, the Vellfire’s rear bench is still cushy, offers excellent support and more room than the second row of some hatchbacks.

The Drive

Powering the Vellfire is a 2.5 litre naturally-aspirated four-cylinder engine assisted by a hybrid drivetrain. The car develops a combined 247 bhp, which is then sent to its front wheels via CVT transmission. Both the petrol engine and electric motor develop about the same amount of power (188 bhp vs 180 bhp), and you can really appreciate just how well integrated the entire powertrain is when you are on the go.

The electric motor does most of the heavy lifting off the line, switching to the petrol engine at higher road speeds. The CVT also isn’t a hindrance to the experience when driven sensibly. However, hard launches expose a flaw in the choice of transmission, as there’s an un-luxury-car-like drone when you really request for excessive amounts of torque.

Otherwise, it rides well, corners decently and even has fairly solid brakes all things considered. It is even decently fuel-efficient too, with us returning an average of about 14 km/l over our weekend test drive.

A New Chapter in Luxury MPV Travel

With compelling alternatives now popping up for sale globally, Toyota has had to pull out all the stops to keep the Vellfire competitive. And it has done so admirably, with quality and equipment levels that probably set new benchmarks for its class. 

In fact, there aren’t very many other cars in this category that can outdo the Vellfire. Which is why Toyota felt the need to build the Lexus LM, which is essentially a Vellfire but on steroids. However, considering that the Vellfire is already a package that is this competitive (and expensive), is there really a need, especially in Singapore, for a car that is even more luxurious?

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