2019 Toyota Alphard 2.5 SC CBU Grey Import Review.

Reviewing a grey import or recondition car will always be a slightly different experience from the typical official dealership car. For 1 the specification on the cars varies from 1 model to another. You also do not have as much warranty and fixed pricing. It all depends on the car itself. The car must basically sell itself. So why would you buy 1 given all previous related issue. Buying a grey import car over official dealer import car does come with some benefits. The major one is you will be paying a cheaper price tag with a more fully loaded feature car on what is essentially a newly registered car in Malaysia. Take this 2018/2019 Toyota Alphard 2.5 SC for example. An official one from Toyota Malaysia will cost you RM446,609.00 while the cheaper twin Toyota Vellfire goes for RM367,811.00. This unit that I'm reviewing is selling at RM309,000.00. Crazy huh? So, lets get to it then.

This Toyota Alphard SC spec is powered by a 2.5L 4-cylinder dual VVTI petrol engine paired to CVT and power is sent the front wheels. The engine makes 180 Ps and 235 Nm of torque. On the Exterior of this Alphard SC feature 18-inch dual tone alloy wheels. Up front there is an LED projector head lamp with LED Daytime running light indicator. There is also a LED fog light and the center large grill also houses the big Alphard logo with the forward radar sensor instead of the Toyota emblem. Towards the side you get chrome door handle and strip that runs the upper side of the window as well as body mounted side mirror. In the back there is a big 2 bar LED illuminated tail lamp with a large chrome strip in the middle of the tail gate. You also get an integrated spoiler as standard and rear indicator are sequential.

From behind the driver seat, there is a significant power boost compare to the previous generation 2.4L engine. Noise insulation is very good, and you feel very isolated from the outside world. All Alphard comes with a McPherson set up on the front with stabilizer bar and a multi-link double wishbone rear set up. This allows the big MPV to handle surprisingly well but at the same time provide exceptional comfort despite riding on those 18-inch wheels. Personally, from the driver seat it feels like driving a smaller car or crossover until you turn you head to look back on look in the rear view mirror to notice how massive the really is.

Inside is where the Alphard SC really shines. The term to describe it is luxuriously spacious! You are surrounded by leather upholstery and soft touch material. The front seats feature heated and ventilated. In the center there is a 9-inch touch screen infotainment system that also display the 360-degree angle camera. The driver seat is 10-way power adjustable with 3 memories setting and the center console is large and can be open from the driver and passenger side. In second row the infamous captain chairs are fitted. There is an electronic adjustment for recline and ottoman control as well side sunshade as well. Behind it there are 3 more seats available as well. The ceiling of this Alphard comes with 2 power operated sunroof, aircon vents, a flip down entertainment 10.2-inch screen and LED illumination with 16 different colour option. The only thing that I have issue is the lack of USB chargers for the second and third row.

Other notable feature on the Alphard SC include a power tailgate, power sliding side doors, tri-zone automatic climate control, automatic high and low beam, automatic power window on all doors, front parking sensors and tinted privacy glass. Safety features on the other hand are 7 airbags, ISOFIX child seat mount, ABS brakes with EBD, stability control, traction control, automatic brake hold, adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist, pre-collision warning system and tyre pressure monitoring system. Surprisingly, blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert is missing on this model.

As this is a grey import vehicle, pricing will be different on other cars depending your specs, year of made and engine type. The Alphard can also come equip with a 3.5L V6 Dual VVTi engine. So far other trim level that I am aware of are the base Alphard X, Alphard S, Alphard SA, Alphard Type Black and the top of the range Alphard Executive Lounge. This car also has a twin model call the Vellfire which have similar features but a different front end and tail lamps.