Yaris Cross starting up in petrol mode?

[dcweather]

1 hour ago, Cyker said:

For some bizzaro reason, with the Yaris the base-spec got analogue dials and all the others got a digital dash, but with the YC it's the other way around!   The lower specs get the Yaris' binocular-style digital dash, and the higher specs get a weird digital analogue dash, I think similar to the Corolla!

 

I think the Clio hybrid's rated mpg is slightly higher, and the 0-60 is about 2s quicker than that so pretty quick, but in real life the mpg is still short of the claimed.

The Yaris is one of those rare cars that it's actually fairly easy to beat the claimed mpg, esp. in summer - The recent warm weather has given me a boost and I'm at 73mpg so far after 70 miles on this tank! And that includes a run where I was bombing it down a fun country lane   

I've not tried any of them, but I find generally french cars are nice to be in. I just wouldn't want to own one long term  

 

Where are you? it must be positively tropical if you're getting 73 mpg!! I'm getting 53 mpg on short slow journeys and 58 on norml ones. it's 8C. My Cross Excel has the single dash display, no circular dials.

[Chas G]

4 hours ago, dcweather said:

What version Cross is that - the display is nothing like my Excel.

22 yaris cross icon. Tropic of Ruislip.  

[Cyker]

1 hour ago, dcweather said:

Where are you? it must be positively tropical if you're getting 73 mpg!! I'm getting 53 mpg on short slow journeys and 58 on norml ones. it's 8C. My Cross Excel has the single dash display, no circular dials.

Sadly just London!!

But I drive a lot; I find short journeys doesn't really let the hybrid system show its full potential, as it'll just be getting to operating temp before being turned off. It's not so bad in summer, as the engine starts off warmer, and doesn't cool down as fast, and it's very noticeable when I'm doing lots of site-to-site hops, as in summer it'll start almost still at operating temp, but in winter it has to go through the whole heat up process every time.

Aside from last week it's been very mild down here so I've been able to not use the heater so much, which also helps!

[MikeSh]

Location: Other/Non-UK

9 minutes ago, Cyker said:

Sadly just London!!

Does make some sense actually. It's like visiting a foreign country 🙂

[dcweather]

12 hours ago, Cyker said:

Sadly just London!!

But I drive a lot; I find short journeys doesn't really let the hybrid system show its full potential, as it'll just be getting to operating temp before being turned off. It's not so bad in summer, as the engine starts off warmer, and doesn't cool down as fast, and it's very noticeable when I'm doing lots of site-to-site hops, as in summer it'll start almost still at operating temp, but in winter it has to go through the whole heat up process every time.

Aside from last week it's been very mild down here so I've been able to not use the heater so much, which also helps!

I'm only just outside London in Essex and yes it has got a bit milder so why am I getting 53-58 mpg?(although that does seem more in line with others on here at the moment than your figures) With my other two hybrids I found short journeys the big plus. I could nip up to Tesco and back, even from cold, and barely come out of EV. As we still have the 2014 Yaris hybrid it is easy to compare on these short journeys and the older one stays on EV longer.

[hind]

What temperature is set in the older car? Does it warm the cabin with the same speed? 

[Cyker]

7 hours ago, dcweather said:

I'm only just outside London in Essex and yes it has got a bit milder so why am I getting 53-58 mpg?(although that does seem more in line with others on here at the moment than your figures) With my other two hybrids I found short journeys the big plus. I could nip up to Tesco and back, even from cold, and barely come out of EV. As we still have the 2014 Yaris hybrid it is easy to compare on these short journeys and the older one stays on EV longer.

As I said it's probably the short journeys vs my longer ones, and also the use of the heater while not moving - My commute is minimum 30 minutes and then I'm jumping from site to site throughout the day, and on the way home I take a long circuitous route on faster roads because I'll be fed up of driving in urban traffic all day  

I do suspect the older generation ones have longer EV time as they have higher capacity batteries - All the previous gen owners say they can set off on EV-only, but on the newer ones, or at least the Mk4 Yaris, the engine seems to almost always fire up shortly after you turn the car on for whatever reason.

The car is incredibly frugal in most situations but there are some which are less favourable; I have a colleague who averages 34mpg in his hybrid Auris, which shocks all other hybrid Auris owners as they tend to get double!   But that's not the fault of the car, it's because he lives at the bottom of a hill and has to crawl up it in traffic every morning, which is a worst case scenario for almost any car. One time he drove it to France and back and that doubled the mpg!  

Anyway, hang on 'til it gets warmer and see how you get on then!

I tend to get mpgs more on the high end as my journeys are particularly favourable for diesel and hybrid drivetrains, and I'm also using 15" rims which have less inertia and drag, and they suit urban driving much more than the ridiculous 17" rims mine originally came with!

[dcweather]

1 hour ago, Cyker said:

As I said it's probably the short journeys vs my longer ones, and also the use of the heater while not moving - My commute is minimum 30 minutes and then I'm jumping from site to site throughout the day, and on the way home I take a long circuitous route on faster roads because I'll be fed up of driving in urban traffic all day  

I do suspect the older generation ones have longer EV time as they have higher capacity batteries - All the previous gen owners say they can set off on EV-only, but on the newer ones, or at least the Mk4 Yaris, the engine seems to almost always fire up shortly after you turn the car on for whatever reason.

The car is incredibly frugal in most situations but there are some which are less favourable; I have a colleague who averages 34mpg in his hybrid Auris, which shocks all other hybrid Auris owners as they tend to get double!   But that's not the fault of the car, it's because he lives at the bottom of a hill and has to crawl up it in traffic every morning, which is a worst case scenario for almost any car. One time he drove it to France and back and that doubled the mpg!  

Anyway, hang on 'til it gets warmer and see how you get on then!

I tend to get mpgs more on the high end as my journeys are particularly favourable for diesel and hybrid drivetrains, and I'm also using 15" rims which have less inertia and drag, and they suit urban driving much more than the ridiculous 17" rims mine originally came with!

Could be worse - you could've got 18" like on my Excel 😂

[Mojo1010]

Done a 34 miles city journey today, computer say just over 70 mpg. Not quite cyker's 73mpg. Heater on 20c recirculation most of the time. Mine is MK4 hatchback. 

[Cyker]

I'm back down to 71 because I got annoyed being stuck in a log jam of slow drivers and trucks trying to overtake said slow drivers on the M1, and have no self control  I didn't think I had the accelerator pinned long enough for it to hurt my tank average that much though...!

It was a lot of fun though  

It just picks up so fast when you give it the beans!   It's something I loved about my Mk1 D4D too - Although they both aren't actually very fast cars, they *feel* like they're much more powerful than they are  

 

[Primus1]

I find that if you turn off the radio and make neeeeooooww noises, it’s faster still🤭

[Jimota]

On 1/29/2024 at 6:45 PM, anchorman said:

Has that elephant ever roared or is it in the mind of the nut behind the wheel 😉.  
 

The economy of these things always takes a hit in winter.  My Lexus is not brilliant right now.  It’s largely because I want it hot inside and although I could improve the figures dramatically by turning the heat down, if anybody thinks I’m freezing my nuts off in a luxury car to save 10mpg, they can think again. It’s simple physics.  If you want heat, the only way of generating it is to use the engine.  

Don, I’m at the opposite end of the scale.  Presently in rural Western Australia and the temperature hasn’t dipped below 40 degrees all week.  I’ve been here just over 2 months and hired a Toyota Corolla hybrid hatchback to get me around the countryside.  Great car but I prefer the elevated driving height of my Yaris Cross.  Average fuel consumption is 72 MPG (after converting from KPG) but I’m sure I could get another 10 MPG as well, if I was stupid enough to turn off the air conditioning.  The heat is really oppressive and unbearable, so much so, that I keep 2 industrial sized flasks containing iced cold water in the boot.  Sweating your nuts off is one thing but dehydrating and possibly suffering from heat stroke is another.  There really are times when your comfort and safety overrides the desire to squeeze as much fuel as you can from a gallon container.

Petrol prices fluctuate as much as back home but I managed to find a local filling station charging 95 pence per litre.

Final comment.  My son has been looking after my car back home and despite the freezing and horrible weather there have been no issues far no issues with the 12 volt Battery. 
 

Well done Toyota.
 

 

 

[anchorman]

10 hours ago, Jimota said:

Don, I’m at the opposite end of the scale.  Presently in rural Western Australia and the temperature hasn’t dipped below 40 degrees all week.  I’ve been here just over 2 months and hired a Toyota Corolla hybrid hatchback to get me around the countryside.  Great car but I prefer the elevated driving height of my Yaris Cross.  Average fuel consumption is 72 MPG (after converting from KPG) but I’m sure I could get another 10 MPG as well, if I was stupid enough to turn off the air conditioning.  The heat is really oppressive and unbearable, so much so, that I keep 2 industrial sized flasks containing iced cold water in the boot.  Sweating your nuts off is one thing but dehydrating and possibly suffering from heat stroke is another.  There really are times when your comfort and safety overrides the desire to squeeze as much fuel as you can from a gallon container.

Petrol prices fluctuate as much as back home but I managed to find a local filling station charging 95 pence per litre.

Final comment.  My son has been looking after my car back home and despite the freezing and horrible weather there have been no issues far no issues with the 12 volt battery. 
 

Well done Toyota.
 

 

 

Absolutely and the same for me.  I never turn off the AC even in the depths of winter and by leaving the climate control in auto it takes care of the temperature all year round.  I’ve done my share of old vehicles freezing me in winter and cooking me in summer so if it costs few bob to sit comfortably, so be it.  The other thing that is a distant memory is spending the weekend repairing old cars so that’s another benefit.  If I’m living in an era of reliable comfortable cars, I’ll take advantage of it.  

[dcweather]

Have now had two quite long drives with ambient temperature at 13C. Have got 60.5 mpg on those runs which were a good mixture of constant 50, up to 72 mph on motorway, country lanes and a 15 minute stop start traffic jam. So a big improvement there indicating, as people above have said, that temperature is a major factor and to a greater extent than my other hybrids. The other thing was that the petrol engine keeps turning on every now and again in traffic jams and even sometimes at traffic lights. The others did that occasionally to charge the Battery I assume but not folowing a long charging run. All my petrol cars had stop/start in those situations. A bit annoying for a very , very noisy tickover engine to keep cutting in.

[TonyHSD]

1 hour ago, dcweather said:

Have now had two quite long drives with ambient temperature at 13C. Have got 60.5 mpg on those runs which were a good mixture of constant 50, up to 72 mph on motorway, country lanes and a 15 minute stop start traffic jam. So a big improvement there indicating, as people above have said, that temperature is a major factor and to a greater extent than my other hybrids. The other thing was that the petrol engine keeps turning on every now and again in traffic jams and even sometimes at traffic lights. The others did that occasionally to charge the battery I assume but not folowing a long charging run. All my petrol cars had stop/start in those situations. A bit annoying for a very , very noisy tickover engine to keep cutting in.

This engine cutting in is part of the Toyota hybrid experience, everyone get’s used to it with the time. The tick over  is noisy as it’s not just an idle but engine gets loaded to recharge the Battery. 

[Cyker]

The most common reasons for the engine to start up when not moving is some combination of the traction Battery dropping past 50% charge and the engine getting too cold - It is quite annoying, as it's so rough compared to the 4-pots, to the point I change my routes to avoid traffic jams as much as possible, and try to coast even longer and turn off the heater/AC where I can't - It does wonders for the mpg  

It's one reason I was considering the new 130HP engines, as they put a balancer shaft in it, which the original ones don't have (Apparently there is a counterweight on MG1 but it only seems to smooth things out while the car is moving; When it's stationary it's much rougher!), so it should be much smoother, but the price difference is too much vs the lack of compelling stuff on it...

 

[anchorman]

7 hours ago, Cyker said:

The most common reasons for the engine to start up when not moving is some combination of the traction battery dropping past 50% charge and the engine getting too cold - It is quite annoying, as it's so rough compared to the 4-pots, to the point I change my routes to avoid traffic jams as much as possible, and try to coast even longer and turn off the heater/AC where I can't - It does wonders for the mpg  

It's one reason I was considering the new 130HP engines, as they put a balancer shaft in it, which the original ones don't have (Apparently there is a counterweight on MG1 but it only seems to smooth things out while the car is moving; When it's stationary it's much rougher!), so it should be much smoother, but the price difference is too much vs the lack of compelling stuff on it...

 

You do have an asset that’s worth more money and it is invariably safer, it has new tyres and no requirement for an MOT.  It doesn’t compensate the depreciation but it does have some benefits.  

[dcweather]

I find it quite incredible actually. The mk1 10 year old hybrid doesn't do it and nor did the Captur. How is this an improved hybrid experience? It was one of the best things about a hybrid. You could sit in a traffic jam silently thinking of all the petrol the other cars are using. Now it looks like after a couple of minutes I've got to sit and listen to a clattery engine. It's like going back 20 years before stop/start technology! We get a lot of traffic queues round here. Then when it gets on the open road i have to turn the radio up because of the road noise! If you like the quiet life the Cross Excel is not the car for you! A classic case of " if it ain't broke don't fix it!" The stuff about tyres, no MOT etc applies to any new car. It's not an asset any more than any other car is on a PCP plan and I will get rid of it as soon as i get some positive equity. The list of gripes is so large now that I know I'm never going to love it. Such a shame for Toyota to take such a leap backwards from a ten year old version and the hybrid competition.

[Jimota]

Sorry to hear about your experiences with the Yaris Hybrid, especially since you have been an existing customer and have obviously been loyal to the brand.  All I can say is that I moved from Volkswagen Audi Group to Toyota 14 months ago and have never regretted the change over.  Sometimes even the most reputable brands have reliability issues with a small number of their products and understandably, customers choose to leave them.  Hope you have a more positive experience with your choice of car in the future.

 

[anchorman]

21 hours ago, dcweather said:

I find it quite incredible actually. The mk1 10 year old hybrid doesn't do it and nor did the Captur. How is this an improved hybrid experience? It was one of the best things about a hybrid. You could sit in a traffic jam silently thinking of all the petrol the other cars are using. Now it looks like after a couple of minutes I've got to sit and listen to a clattery engine. It's like going back 20 years before stop/start technology! We get a lot of traffic queues round here. Then when it gets on the open road i have to turn the radio up because of the road noise! If you like the quiet life the Cross Excel is not the car for you! A classic case of " if it ain't broke don't fix it!" The stuff about tyres, no MOT etc applies to any new car. It's not an asset any more than any other car is on a PCP plan and I will get rid of it as soon as i get some positive equity. The list of gripes is so large now that I know I'm never going to love it. Such a shame for Toyota to take such a leap backwards from a ten year old version and the hybrid competition.

A leap back in your opinion.  Many here love them and I too think it’s a huge leap forward.  It only starts up at this time of year to work the climate control but if you wait until spring it will do it less and less.  Everybody’s fuel consumption goes through the roof in summer because the engine hardly runs - certainly in traffic.  There’s another bloke on here that’s decided his is going in September, not because he’s had problems but because he’s expecting them after joining this forum.  You can get some useful stuff off forums but don’t look for broken finger nail because it’ll definitely be cancer of the leprosy.   

[dcweather]

3 hours ago, anchorman said:

A leap back in your opinion.  Many here love them and I too think it’s a huge leap forward.  It only starts up at this time of year to work the climate control but if you wait until spring it will do it less and less.  Everybody’s fuel consumption goes through the roof in summer because the engine hardly runs - certainly in traffic.  There’s another bloke on here that’s decided his is going in September, not because he’s had problems but because he’s expecting them after joining this forum.  You can get some useful stuff off forums but don’t look for broken finger nail because it’ll definitely be cancer of the leprosy.   

That's a fair point and I accept that. I will definitely still have the car by summer and I will see how it goes. I have made a point of saying that my specific gripes are ones that affect me and I have found inferior in some ways compared to previous cars. Others may be less concerned about things like high road noise or can afford to change the wheels, pay a £1000 for sound proofing etc but I'm not. I can literally go sit in the 2014 Yaris hybrid Icon then in the Cross Excel and see and feel that there has been a lot of penny pinching going on with the finish in the Cross Excel in comparison. I have also tried to mention the good points like how well it handles, the gadgets etc so people can make their own choice. People have mostly agreed and with some things have said it won't be like it in the summer. But isn't that a bit like saying you've bought a car with a sunroof but you can't close it so you can only use it in the summer! Surely you don't expect the performance and engine noise to be that much worse in winter when it wasn't before. (As you mentioned, the new engine and smaller Battery are rougher and makes it cut in more - so clearly that aspect isn't an improvement.)
One of my concerns was jolting on potholes with 18" wheels but I have found that better than expected, better than the Captur and an all round better handling experience.
I can't see how I could have put anybody off as my concerns are specific to me. That would be like me saying you are encouraging them to buy a car because you are not concerned about my issues. They will make their own minds up with more information. Nothing I have said about the car on here has been untrue - most people have either agreed  or explained the reasons for it. These are not faults or problems that you allude to. My wife's ten year old yaris hybrid has had none, touch wood and I have had none - they are design (mistakes in my view) features that I don't like. Like I have said (and much of this only applies to the Excel version) - your choice comes down to gadgets or noise in the end. Extra accurate information can only help people make the right choice. I don't believe you have ever driven a Renault Captur top of the range Etech hybrid in winter so at least any comparisons I make are unbiased.
Anyway, I will say no more till summer, and I wish everybody including yourself who have made useful and helpful contributions happy and safe motoring in their different Yaris's

[anchorman]

10 hours ago, dcweather said:

That's a fair point and I accept that. I will definitely still have the car by summer and I will see how it goes. I have made a point of saying that my specific gripes are ones that affect me and I have found inferior in some ways compared to previous cars. Others may be less concerned about things like high road noise or can afford to change the wheels, pay a £1000 for sound proofing etc but I'm not. I can literally go sit in the 2014 Yaris hybrid Icon then in the Cross Excel and see and feel that there has been a lot of penny pinching going on with the finish in the Cross Excel in comparison. I have also tried to mention the good points like how well it handles, the gadgets etc so people can make their own choice. People have mostly agreed and with some things have said it won't be like it in the summer. But isn't that a bit like saying you've bought a car with a sunroof but you can't close it so you can only use it in the summer! Surely you don't expect the performance and engine noise to be that much worse in winter when it wasn't before. (As you mentioned, the new engine and smaller battery are rougher and makes it cut in more - so clearly that aspect isn't an improvement.)
One of my concerns was jolting on potholes with 18" wheels but I have found that better than expected, better than the Captur and an all round better handling experience.
I can't see how I could have put anybody off as my concerns are specific to me. That would be like me saying you are encouraging them to buy a car because you are not concerned about my issues. They will make their own minds up with more information. Nothing I have said about the car on here has been untrue - most people have either agreed  or explained the reasons for it. These are not faults or problems that you allude to. My wife's ten year old yaris hybrid has had none, touch wood and I have had none - they are design (mistakes in my view) features that I don't like. Like I have said (and much of this only applies to the Excel version) - your choice comes down to gadgets or noise in the end. Extra accurate information can only help people make the right choice. I don't believe you have ever driven a Renault Captur top of the range Etech hybrid in winter so at least any comparisons I make are unbiased.
Anyway, I will say no more till summer, and I wish everybody including yourself who have made useful and helpful contributions happy and safe motoring in their different Yaris's

I don’t claim the Cross to be perfect but I do think both it and the Yaris are very good.  I could also see some shortcomings that could be fixed without a lot of cost like the sound deadening (I spent about £130 sorting mine out) and that tat interior light and the road runner horn.  However, I’m confident that any Toyota is a good long term investment and that’s where these car reviews fall short because most products are nice new but I’ve worked on a lot of car makes and types and not many if any come near Toyota for whole life cost.  Test them again at 5 years (60k) and 10 years (110k) and see what happens, things will look a bit different then.  Regarding the suspension, I found my Excel with 18 inch wheels perfect - exactly as I like it although it was AWD with multi link suspension so maybe that is different to FWD and the rear torsion bar set up.