Toyota's new 'premium' Yaris driven

You can't accuse Toyota of having taken an evolutionary approach with the design of its all-new Yaris, which has just docked on local shores.

Its sharper design works best at the front end, where straighter lines give it a more chiselled, sportier appearance. Toyota continues to offer both three- and five-door hatchback formats, but where the former hasn't strayed too far from its original design, the more practical five-door has a more Peugeot-like slanted rear pillar design. More prominent wheel arches and shorter overhangs round off the more squat visual attitude and the only area that strays on the conservative size is the rear end.

You'll also find something of a design revolution on the inside, where that silly central instrument pod has been ditched in favour of a more conventional design that places these essential read-outs directly in front of the driver. The dash has a simplistic yet sporty, almost Honda-like appearance and the materials seem of good quality.

Our launch-man Minesh Bhagaloo was impressed by the overall look and feel: "The build quality and solid finish are certainly areas worthy of mention in the new Yaris, which combined with the new look inside and out should tweak the interest of the young and hip out there."

It's not just a pretty face though - being 100mm longer, the new Yaris is more practical. This, and thinner front seatbacks have liberated 35mm more knee room for those in the back while better packaging has allowed the boot to grow by 49 percent to a rather decent capacity of 347 litres to the roofline.

You'll also find some useful improvement at the opposite end, beneath the bonnet, if you're talking of the 1.3-litre variant. The new Dual VVT-i engine puts out 73kW at 6000rpm and 125Nm at 4000rpm - the previous 1.3 only managed 63kW and 121Nm. This engine is also mated to a six-speed manual transmission, a CVT gearbox is optional, and Toyota claims a combined fuel consumption of 5.6 litres per 100km.

The 1-litre engine, however, continues at the same level as its predecessor, with outputs of 51kW at 6000rpm and 93Nm at 3600rpm and combined consumption of 5.1 l/100km.

"The new 1.3-litre engine performed adequately at the sea-level launch last week. It's responsive in town driving and happy to cruise along highways at the national speed limit. The sixth gear is overkill though," said Minesh.

"The 1-litre offering is more on the sluggish side, however, and with rear-seat passengers aboard it tends to wheeze up even small inclines."

Both engines are available with three trim levels - Xi, XS and XR. The former is the cheapest and comes with a six-speaker CD/USB/Aux sound system, remote central locking, reach and height-adjustable steering wheel with audio controls and a multi-information display. You will have to pay extra for air conditioning, however, as if anyone buys a car at this level without it.

If you can't stand to wind your windows up and down, the mid-range XS trim adds front electric windows as well as air conditioning, colour-coded mirrors and door handles, chromed grille and rear hatch garnish strip and 15-inch alloy wheels.

Get cushy with the bank manager, or hypnotise yourself into thinking that R200K is a reasonable price for a 1.3-litre hatchback and you might even want to indulge in the XR model. It is pretty extravagant on the equipment front, however, with automatic lights and windscreen wipers, automatic climate control, eight-speaker touchscreen audio system with Bluetooth, leather-covered steering wheel and gear lever, rear power windows and a rear spoiler. The 1.3 XR three-door even sports a panoramic glass moonroof.

The 1.3 XR also has seven airbags to complement its five-star EuroNCAP rating, while the rest of the line-up makes do with four airbags. Of course, ABS is standard across the range and the 1.3 XR also receives a stability control system.

Finally, buyers get to choose between 10 colours for the body, including five completely new shades - Dark Violet Metallic and Bubblegum Metallic (for the three-door models), Powder Blue Metallic, Lava Red Metallic and Mint Cream Metallic.

Take a deep breath before you look at the prices, though, especially considering that the 1.3-litre engine will be just about mandatory at Reef altitudes. The prices do include a four-year/60 000km service plan though.

PRICING:

1.0 Xi 3-dr - R124 000

1.0 Xi 5-dr - R130 000

1.0 XS 3-dr - R141 000

1.0 XS 5-dr - R147 400

1.0 XR 3-dr - R151 100

1.0 XR 5-dr - R157 900

1.3 Xi 3-dr - R157 000

1.3 Xi 5-dr - R163 000

1.3 XS 3-dr - R171 600

1.3 XS 5-dr - R177 600

1.3 XS 5-dr CVT - R189 000