The Greenest…
1.5 Hybrid Design 5dr CVT [Safety Pack]
List Price
£22,630 - £29,705
Acceleration (0-62mph)
9.2 - 9.7 seconds
Top speed
109 - 109 mph
Engine Power
116 - 130 bhp
CO2 Emissions
92 - 98 g/km
Fuel Economy (Combined)
65.7 - 91.1 mpg
Reliable, well equipped, exceptionally safe.
Light weight engines, poor handling on longer drives.
The Toyota Yaris is attempting to attract the more mature supermini buyer, having, as it does, more substantial looks than its predecessor. The downfall for the Yaris though is that it doesn’t tick enough of the supermini boxes to make purchasing it over one of the copious amount of rivals on the market make sense. The engines haven’t got enough power and the steering isn’t responsive enough, although Toyota’s reliability record and the amount of equipment on offer may go some way to compensating for this.
The Toyota Yaris comes with four engines on offer, two petrol, a diesel and a hybrid option. The smallest of the four is a 1.0, 3 cylinder petrol engine, which while feeling whizzy enough round town has nothing like enough power for open road driving, and struggles its way from 0 – 62mph in 15.3 seconds. The larger of the petrol engines is a much better all-rounder, 1.33 litres and 98 bhp – thirty more than its smaller sister – which makes motorway driving a much more pleasant experience whilst keeping that round town zip that you need in a little city car. The Toyota Yaris diesel option does a decent job for those that prefer diesels, with the same 109 mph top speed as the 1.33 petrol and it can knock off 0 – 62mph in 12.6 seconds. The Toyota Yaris hybrid engine will do an impressive 76 mpg and should appeal to the environmentally conscience driver.
The Toyota Yaris is so designed to live in the city that taking it outside of the confines of the metropolis can be a bit of a nerve-wracking affair. The steering is light which makes those tight city manoeuvres pretty simple but get this car out on the open road and the Toyota Yaris’s handling feels extremely skittish and unsure. The suspension doesn’t help either, not quite doing enough to deal with bumpier road surfaces and leaving the driver feeling less than in control.
The supermini is no longer just the domain of young drivers who have just passed their driving tests and Toyota have realised this by making the new design of the Yaris a bit more masculine, longer and lower with a harder looking nose which gives the car a more substantial grown up feel than earlier versions of this model.
The new look Toyota Yaris has had its interior completely redesigned, the majority of the console is now behind the steering wheel and this leaves the cockpit with a nice spacious feel. The extra length has freed up space for rear passenger leg room and, despite the fact the car is lower, the head room has not decreased. The Toyota Yaris’s boot space is solid for its class and the rear seats fold flat meaning you should be able to fit all but the biggest loads.
The Toyota Yaris equipment levels are a bit of a mixed bag. The entry level Toyota Yaris T2 model is a little light in features and if you want something other than the very basic then you should aim for at least the next trim level up the range: the very well equipped TR. This has some very cool features including a touch screen stereo and reversing camera as well as air-con and alloy wheels. The SR trim level is meant to be the sport version and provides sport suspension and part leather trim. The Toyota Yaris T-Spirit gives you a panoramic roof which is a nice feature and dual zone climate control.
The Toyota Yaris earned a five star Euro NCAP rating which is no surprise when you see how much safety gear you get as standard. You get 7 airbags, which in a car this small makes you wonder how they have managed to fit them all in. You also get as standard all the driving assistance that you can hope for including emergency brake, ABS, and electronic brakeforce distribution.
Toyota has one of the best reliability records in the world and the Yaris has not bucked this trend. It also comes with a 5 year / 100,000 miles warranty so if you do have any problems you should be covered. It is competitive on the emissions and the fuel economy front, especially if you pay the initial extra and go for the diesel with which you can get an average of 72.4mpg. Residuals are competitive too so you won’t find yourself out of pocket if and when you decide to sell.
Reviewed by cars2buy