Yaris Cross: When is a Yaris, not a Yaris

When Toyota released the Yaris, it was lambasted for no longer having an entry level car under 20k, and quite right too. It is a nonsense.

So, is Yaris Cross worth the money?

Yes, for so many reasons. Yaris Cross is a little taller, 20mm higher off the ground, 240mm longer and 10mm longer in the wheelbase. In fact, Yaris Cross is bigger. Yaris Cross also comes with a nifty AWD option, and that is the really clever bit. In fact, Yaris Cross is a completely different car and should have been called something different, so there, I’ve said it.

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ABOVE: Sexy Toyota Yaris Cross

Outside:

Toyota styling was seen as dull as ditch water. Driving a fridge would have been more exciting, but something has put a rocket up them of late.

In fact, Yaris Cross URBAN looks rather sexy. I can just see a muscled hunk heading off to gym in one. In fact, in our film, there is a muscled hunk heading off to gym in one.

Yaris Cross is bigger all round. While it looks more or less the same as her be-hatched sister, Yaris Cross has extra room. It isn’t just a matter of nicer extra lace and a couple of extra buttons on the frock, it is a different car which is obvious when parked beside each other.

There are a couple of clever tricks to improve aerodynamics too, giving all three models a cutting edge look about them. Our URBAN sits on top of the GX/GXL/URBAN tree.

What do you get for your money? Well, there are bragging rights. You can go to a dinner party and say I’ve got a top-of-the-line Yaris. Be wary though, because the next question will be, “oh, you’ve got a GR Yaris?” So, don’t do that, you’ll just look like a numpty.

URBAN gets smart entry, and I really like Toyota’s system. Some brands have nasty plakky buttons on the door handles. Whether they are chrome or not, they look tacky. Toyota has a touch locking sensor at the leading edge of the door handle, under a couple of grooves. The inner surface of the door handle has another sensor, and as you gently caress it, the doors unlock. It is much more sophisticated, and very handy in the rain

You can wave your foot under the rear bumper to raise the hatch, should your hands be full. And who doesn’t like their hands full?

There is full Lighting is LED on the top model.

While pov models have puny 16” wheels, URBAN gets a gleaming set of 18-inchers. Not so impressively, hybrid cars get a fix-it-yourself repair kit for flats. Yeah, forget it’s there. You’ll have less heartache if you do. If you get a flat, call for a hunk called Jack, after all, any port in the storm

The Cabin:

You’re in no doubt that you’re in an entry level car. Much of the trim is hard, and very far from luxurious. Doors have hard panels, some of which have fabric glued on. David didn’t care for it, but I thought it was tickety boo.

A cabin, that looks more or less the same as the cheaper Yaris hatch, could be a bit depressing were it not for the allure of off-roading buttons. Don’t get too excited. Toyota says this is not a proper off-roader, and like the RAV4, is better suited to camping, and slightly damp fire trails. Rocks and sand are to be tackled at your peril.

As such, Yaris Cross URBAN has its cap tilted towards an active Gen Z’er.

Electric seats are heated, and covered in a sturdy fabric and fake leather combo. Again, the look is not exactly premium. OK, only the driver gets powered adjustment, which is still cool. Sadly, touching the buttons makes the seat pound like a jackhammer. I suspect the mechanism needs a man in a white coat to come, because that can’t be right.

Somehow, the cabin feels more spacious than Yaris.

There is a plethora of cup and bottle holders, and the cargo hold will gather a gaggle of gym bags, with 390L of useable space.

There is a 5.7L box de glovè, and a little trinket tray under the touch screen, just big enough for a pearly necklace. Oddly, the centre vents are between it and the screen above. What a stupid place to hide them. It’s as if the designer was trying to keep them secreted away somewhere out of sight.

The touch screen includes Apple CarPlay/Android Auto and DAB. Sound is decent, but improves muchly when you plug your iPhone in. There are only 6 speakers which seems a bit mean, but cost cutting there, means oodles of tricky gadgets elsewhere.

Gadgets:

I had a, “well bugger me,” moment when I first got the spec sheet. It reads like an abridged copy of War and Peace.

There is far too much to go into here, so

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD FULL SPECIFICATIONS Yaris Cross_Specifications

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD Yaris Cross Brochure toyota-yaris-cross-brochure

Here are a few highlights for your reading pleasure –

Airbags – Most important is the centre airbag (see our film). Both sides of the front seats now have bags that deploy to stop you from hitting either the side of your car, or the side of your hunny.

AWD – Toyota’s designers decided that a conventional AWD system just would not do. The rear cabin has an almost flat floor, and that means there is no drive shaft from the gear box to the rear wheels.

How is all this alchemy achieved? It is genius, not magic. A power cable supplies current a second electric motor down the back end. Power shunting is done by a little lady under the dashboard. The real question is, why doesn’t everyone do this? A higher powered version can also be found in RAV4.

Don’t get too excited though. Power to the back wheels is minimal at the best of times, and at cruise, it is zero.

Head Up Display – This whiz-bangery that was once solely in the realm of sexy-suited fighter pilot, is now commonplace. BMW had the first HUD back in 2004. Since then, even a humble entry level cross-over can project pertinent points onto the windscreen.

Rear View Camera – This is not rare, and nothing to shout about, but what is cool is that it combines with rear cross traffic alert and emergency braking. It makes up for the crappy manual rear-view mirror.

Active Blind Spot Monitor – the electric steering works with sensors. If you don’t see the light flashing on the side mirror, Yaris Cross URBAN will try to gently persuade you back to your own lane.

Active Lane Centering – Keeps you from wandering outside the dotted lines. You can over ride it, but don’t, just don’t.

SOS/Emergency Calling – Yaris Cross will call for help if you can’t. Once the airbags deploy, Toyota notifies people who can help. If the airbags don’t deploy but you still need help, you can press the SOS button.

Traffic Sign Recognition – You get the speed zone displayed, and if you have the smart cruise Control activated, you can hit SET, and the car adopts the new speed.

The Drive:

I expected Yaris Cross URBAN to be ok. After all, Yaris was nice on the road. In fact, I liked everything about Yaris except the hideous price.

Yaris Cross is a different animal altogether.

For a start, AWD models have a more sophisticated rear end. Whereas all 2WD Yaris/Cross models have a torsion bar rear suspension setup, AWD cars have multi-link. It means a better ride, and vastly superior handling. I know what you’re thinking, most people won’t notice it, and you’re right.

You start off in EV mode. Only the front motor operates for almost silent running. Even after all these years, that still gives my inner sanctum a little tingle

If you give it a kick in the guts, the petrol engine fires up, and the rear motor adds a touch extra spark. It keeps the front wheels from sounding like a demented woodpecker.

There is only 85kw to play with, so Yaris Cross URBAN won’t be breaking land speed records any time soon. The CVT transmission is a curse that hybrid drivers just have to live with. Some CVT automatics will step up in fixed ratios like a normal gearbox, especially when you mash your stiletto to the floor.

Yaris Cross is not such a CVT. It screams its tits off until the car catches up with the sound. When you lift your foot off the carpet, the revs drop. In fact, the engine may cut out altogether. Even at cruising speed, EV mode cuts in when the petrol engine is not needed.

When slowing down, the batteries take otherwise wasted energy, to recharge. And, this is the most important thing a hybrid has over a full EV, it never needs charging. There are plug-in hybrids like the Range Rover of course, but that’s a story for another time.

Around town, Yaris Cross will spend a lot of time in EV mode, with the FWD models getting as low as 3.3L/100k. Our AWD car is claimed to have 3.8L/100k (comb). We got just a little more than that with a heavier hoof.

We took the Yaris Cross out along the highway, and it showed that it was far more comfortable cruising that it was in tight bends. Though the handling was good, each corner caused the traction control light to flash like a Christmas tree. I suspect it wasn’t quite right and needed looking at.

Around town is where Yaris Cross URBAN is going to be used most, and that’s where it was happiest.

Parking is easy, and doesn’t need any of that silly automated parking gimmickry. Let’s face it, no one ever uses it.

Yaris Cross is a small car that has every single conceivable goodie crammed in, and it feels good.

Conclusion:

Despite were a couple of little niggles, I loved Yaris Cross URBAN. It looks cool, drives well, and is stupidly cheap to run.

Warranty is decent. There is 5 years basic cover, and 10 years on the battery. You get an additional 2 years on the engine if serviced at toyota, and 7 years of roadside assistance. Toyota will also rent you a car, subject to conditions, if things go wrong.

I couldn’t recommend Yaris because the price doesn’t justify the car, but Yaris Cross made me fall in love with it, just a little bit.

 

Yaris Cross Pricing19

GX

  • 2WD petrol $26,990
  • 2WD hybrid $28,990
  • AWD hybrid $31,990

GXL

  • 2WD petrol $29,990
  • 2WD hybrid $31,990
  • AWD hybrid $34,990

Urban

  • 2WD petrol $32,990
  • 2WD hybrid $34,990
  • AWD hybrid $37,990

Premium paint                  $500

Two-tone paint                 $450

Engines/drivetrain

FWD, 1.5L Petrol, 88kw/145Nm

FWD Hybrid, 85kw

AWD Hybrid, 85kw

Fuel: 91ron

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