This dealer-install vehicle protection package is also available for the Toyota Corolla Cross, Hilux and Fortuner.
While armoured cars are typically the preserve of the rich and famous, the common folk of Brazil too can apparently now enjoy the same level of protection on their cars. Such is as new dealer option from Toyota over there is currently offering a range of vehicle armour options on some slightly more mundane models, which incidentally includes the humble Corolla!
Toyota Brazil has partnered with local armoring experts Avallon, Carbon, Evolution Blindagens, and Parvi Blindados to offer this enhanced vehicle protection package. Interested customers can contact their local dealership to have their vehicle sent to the armoring company of their choice, even before taking delivery.
Now aside from the Corolla sedan, its crossover sibling is also among the models that are eligible for this enhanced protection package. The Hilux pickup and the Fortuner SUV are naturally on that list as well, but what is perhaps more surprising is that this armouring service is apparently available on both used and pre-owned vehicles, as long as they are not older than the 2020 model year.
Among the armouring work done to these Toyotas apparently include adding bullet-resistant reinforcements to their bodywork, made from specialised compounds. Thicker windows are also to be installed, with them reportedly rated to withstand rounds from small firearms and other weapons such as bats or metal pipes.
There has thus far been no official word yet regarding the exact level of vehicle protection these armoured vehicles receive, nor is there actually any inkling of how much these armour packages will cost. It is nevertheless known that the companies current provide a 5-year warranty on the armoring installation services and a 5- or 10-year warranty on the materials, depending on the specific components.
According to the United Nations Office On Drug and Crime, Brazil has one of the highest number of intentional homicides in the world with a rate of 21.26 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2021. This rate has fortunately been steadily declining in recent years, but for Toyota to offer a dealer-install armour package on their more mundane models still does not paint a pretty picture for peace in the country.
More interestingly too, a prior news report by SCMP on this particular topic from 2018 actually stated that the Corolla was to be the best-selling armoured vehicle in the country back then. Though it is worth highlighting for the aforementioned story to state that a bulletproof car in Brazil is as much about status, as it is actually being protected while on the road…
