New Yaris Hybrid Review

[GOZO]

Ok

Having bought my first new yaris 12 months ago Diesel 1.4 auto T Spirit and was really pleased with it as I was getting 58mpg I was seduced by the looks and technology of the New Yaris Hybrid. So a rush of blood completly ignoring the commercial sense following a test drive in July I only went and bought the top of the range Pearlescent White T Spirit Protection Pack etc etc 19k and took delivery a week ago.

My thoughts to date

1. Wow - the looks are great and it is a comletly different car to the old yaris but also the standard new yaris. The refined coachbuild of the Hybrid makes it look special but also feels a more robust sturdy car

2. Internal fit out is great crusie contraol, dual climate, sat nav , bluetoot, great steering wheel compared to my old, split leather seating, great looking dash especially at night

3. The technology of the electric and the seamless move from electric to petrol and electric to petrol is unbelievable

4. The sound or lack of it at any speed especially electric only is weird but also great - even petrol heads have got in and went wow purely because it is different

5. Only minor snag is getting 58mpg on a regular 1 hour flattish run to work 36 miles ie 72 miles per day I am getting 58mpg the same as the old and was hoping for more - Irealise to get in the 70's you need to do town driving to make more use of the electric

However all in all exceptional

[BassaJay]

Having had mine for 1 week I am also thrilled with this car and endorse your comments fully. The only minor disappointments for me were the absence of a front driver's arm rest with blue stitching and non electric panoramic roof blinds although Toyota's spec details listed them as standard at the time I ordered. Regarding the mpg, I believe a small diesel would at least equal it on the open road but the Yaris Hybrid really comes into its own in the urban envirionment Great mpg, low emissions, silent low speed running & no DPF to worry about. This is my first hybrid and I am certainly a convert to the breed. There have been some good reports but also some fairly scathing reports from the motoring press not only with the hybrid but also the mainstream Yaris - completely unfounded IMO - not certain which planet some of those are from. There is no substitute for trying a car yourself and I find it difficult to believe that anyone, including those biased hacks, could not be seduced by the Yaris Hybrid's charms.

Not sure if you are aware but there is a Touch & Go map update available. Mine has the previous version but since the car is so new the dealer will provide the update FOC following liason with Toyota UK. Downloaded via the website's owner section it costs £109. Hope that helps.

Enjoy your fantastic new car.

[Teemu]

Welcome! I have had Yaris Hybrid from July and really love driving! I agree also with your comments and think you can improve the mpg after you have driven a bit more. Check the forum's Hybrid section for more talk about Hybrids!

[GOZO]

wish they could get iPhone messages working

[Devon Aygo]

wish they could get iphone messages working

I'm assuming you have the "& Go" nav option added to your Yaris? As the SMS message function only works in conjunction with this the only problem being none of the iphones are compatible with the SMS functions, I have attached the Toyota bluetooth compatibility site address

http://www.toyota-eu...th_connect.tmex

Cheers

Devon

[Devon Aygo]

wish they could get iphone messages working

I'm assuming you have the "& Go" nav option added to your Yaris? As the SMS message function only works in conjunction with this, the only problem being none of the iphones are compatible with the SMS functions, I have attached the Toyota bluetooth compatibility site address

http://www.toyota-europe.com/own/bluetooth/bluetooth_connect.tmex

Cheers

Devon

[Askho]

Just got my T3 hybrid a couple of weeks ago. Wanted the T Spirit or T4 but can't get them without the privacy glass. I HATE privacy glass so had to settle for the T3. So far a little disappointed with the mpg. Used mainly for short journeys and driven very light footed, but only getting 57mpg. Will run it in a bit more and see if things improve.

[ecodriver]

We got our Yaris Hybrid T4 at the end of July. I find it a relaxing car to drive, but hope the fuel economy improves slightly. After taking it on holiday to the Yorkshire Moors, with 1 in 4 hills, and along the A1M at high speeds we got 58.7mpg which, I suppose, isn't too bad. I reckon it will improve with a few local trips around towns.

[Jan&tone]

regarding the economy of the Yaris hybrid - if it is anything like the Prius and Auris, the economy will improve with age and experience - age of the car (around 3000 miles) and experience of driving a hybrid....

- I've just bought the Yaris Hybrid after 5 years with Gen2 and Gen3 Prii....

[Madasafish]

Well having driven a Prius 2 T Spirit for a few hours, I today test drove a Yaris Hybrid T Spirit from my local dealer Pinkstones, Stoke on Trent. (as usual they were efficient courteous and very helpful although I arrived unbooked in pouring rain!)

Summary impressions:

1. Very quiet and very composed on rough surfaces (especially compared to my Mark 1 Yaris d4d).

2. Nice handling. Even when accelerating hard and the engine kicked in , it was MUCH quieter than the Prius (software upgrades I believe to make it less noisy).

3. The single front wiper was great in the pouring rain: cleared the screen a treat.

4. Comfortable seats . I used the height adjustment on driver's seat (as on mine) to sit higher.

5. The leather bits in the seats were cold and uncomfortable. (9C outside).

6. Nice fan and heating controls But like Mark1 struggled to keep screens clear in rain.

7. Easy to drive:( I like autos.)

8. Great acceleration from rest and good brakes.

9. More boot space as standard.

10 Liked the rear parking camera but .. I could live without it.

11. The rear boot missed a board included in the brochure so when you fold the rear seats the floor is not flat. BAD. Abysmal when the brochure shows it is flat. (Weasel words exclude Toyota liability - the Toyota Prius/hybrid forum has disgruntled owners complaining).

12. Felt far more balanced and not nose heavy like the D4D

13. The T3 has no privacy glass. The T4 and T Spirit come with it as standard. I HATE privacy glass.

14. The T Spirit has 16^ alloys vs 15^ wheels on T3 (steel) alloys(T4). The turning circle is 1.8 meters greater as a result on the T Spirit.

15. I costed replacement tyres: Michelin Energy from ATS - £77 on T3/4. £155 on T Spirit. Plus balancing etc..

16. Service costs in line with normal Yaris: £119.c £179, major £249. Every 10 k miles.

Conclusions: The T Spirit has horrible cold leather and worse turning circle and expensive tyres and privacy glass.. which all say to me no. And worse fuel consumption due to the bigger wheels.

The T4 has privacy glass - a No.

The T3 has steel wheels and no leather steering wheel cover. New trims and a leather cover for under £160 would improve the looks.

A boot panel board at £60 is essential if you carry loads (I do)

Overall I enjoyed driving it and will buy one. But anyone who does not do their research is going to be mightily upset at the omissions /errors in the brochure.

I'll probably buy a T3. Waiting list quoted 6 weeks. No discounts.

Hmm... Not a satisfactory buying proposition for someone brought up in a purchasing environment.

I may decide to wait.

In conclusion:

Toyota have produced a nice hybrid but their brochure could be storing up future ill will amongst new owners. The T Spirit makes no economic sense.

[Jan&tone]

........... The T Spirit makes no economic sense.

maybe, but it sure is nice to own !

[BassaJay]

........... The T Spirit makes no economic sense.

maybe, but it sure is nice to own !

+1

[Chris81]

At 58mpg, do any of them make economic sense given the huge purchase price? Of course not.

[Parts-King]

. The T Spirit makes no economic sense.

Does any car?

Horses for courses, some people want basic cars, others want all the toys, you pays your money...............

Kingo

[Jan&tone]

At 58mpg, do any of them make economic sense given the huge purchase price? Of course not.

Chris - seriously mate, with that attitude why does anyone buy a Rolls Royce or a Ferrari!! it's purely a matter of personal choice. i cannot for the life of me see why someone living in London buys a Range Rover - it will rarely, if ever, see any muddy fields or mountain tracks, but it's their choice, as it is our choice to buy a hybrid. Yes, they cost more than the equivalent non-hybrid, but hey who cares, it's one in the eye for the government - no road tax - and if you can eke out the go-go juice to 70 or 80 mpg without pushing our black smoke from the blocked dpf then why not!!

If we all bought the cheapest we could, then the roads would be clogged up with ka's, Hyundai i10's and fiat 500's

[coolbloke1324]

I've just purchased one, gettting it delivered tomorrow. The dealer seemed very VERY desperate to sell one to me, to the point where they "knocked off" a load of the price. My thought now is... do they know something I don't like... is there a second edition being released with a better spec or something? Anyone know? I can still back out and wait...

[suffolk40]

How much off did they offer?, if its under 10% off list you can do better, if its over then they really want your business.

I don't think there is a refresh due any time soon on the Yaris.

[Parts-King]

I can still back out and wait...

How does that work then???

You have agreed to buy the car, signed a contract, have it delivered but you think you can just cancel it? Interesting

Kingo

[coolbloke1324]

I can still back out and wait...

How does that work then???

You have agreed to buy the car, signed a contract, have it delivered but you think you can just cancel it? Interesting

Kingo

For sure. I'd loose my £500 deposit but I'd gladly do that if I was about to buy an older edition if a new one was coming out in a month or two. I've only given a deposit so far, car is being delivered to the dealer today.

[Parts-King]

Yes you would lose your deposit and you could also be sued for the additional costs incured by your dealer. Signing a purchase order and paying a deposit amounts to a contract, you should have been checking if there was a newer model due out BEFORE signing and agreeing the purchase

I think you are fortunate in your case as there is no imminent update as far as I am aware

Kingo

[MikeSh]

The dealer seemed very VERY desperate to sell one to me, ...

Probably more to do with it being nearly the end of the month, it's not long to the new registration year, and the salesman may be on his hols for a chunk of August and wants to get ahead.

[coolbloke1324]

Well I got the car, so far I like the drive, all seems fairly standard. I like the smooth ride and silent running in EV mode, but I'm a bit disappointed by the MPG I'm getting... I tried to drive *REALLY* economically... like SUPER SUPER economical, not accelerating quickly, leaving tons of space in front of me to allow regen braking and no sudden stop-starts, etc etc... only got 52mpg on an extra-urban run to the office and back over 50 miles, average speed 32mph, and I even drove at 60 instead of 70 on the dual carriage ways.

I also separately drove it like I would drive my Insignia, heavy footed and speedy and that returned 40mpg over 25 miles, max speed 70mph, average 38mph.

Those numbers are pretty unimpressive compared to the official stated averages. Extra-urban at 76mpg... hmm... I've have to be driving at 20mph the whole journey I think. The dealer said that it takes a while to bed in over 3000 miles but I'm concerned that the reason I purchased the car was because of the high stated mpg figures and that the car will never reach them.

I'm also feeling a little annoyed at the moment since the mpg returned during my very economical drive was so close to the previous Yaris we owned (non hybrid old 57 plate) that it makes the new purchase almost pointless. We only purchased this because it was advertised as being able to achieve 76mpg...

Does anyone else have experience of driving past the 3000 miles and if so, is there is any difference in mpg?

[FROSTYBALLS]

In advertising car manufacturers have to use the fuel consumption from the official EU testing which is obtained under laboratory conditions, and bears little relation to 'real world' mpg. Yes the drivetrain will loosen up after 3000 miles or so.

The Honest John real mpg information for the Yaris Hybrid, shows owners acheiving 78% of the official figures - between 51 and 67mpg.

[Parts-King]

I have been in a Yaris Hybrid for a few days in this warm weather and I can get 62 MPG with A/C on etc. You have to get used to being very light on the throttle but you will get used to it. NO brand new car is going to give up its best MPG in the first few thousand miles, but it will loosen up. Get used to very gentle pull ways, try not to stop by giving plenty of room to the car in front and try to keep the car rolling, the figures are acheivable

Kingo

[Yolina]

Had my Yaris hybrid since October last year, and I am currently getting real-life 73mpg (calculated by me, not the car) average over a tankful :) I'm mostly on a mix of 30/40/50mph roads though. I can take it for a little drive down the motorway tomorrow and let you know what the computer gives me mpg-wise for that trip. I have a T4 so slightly more economical that the T-Spririt