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- Toyota Yaris 1.5 16V T Sport
- munturo's review
Have a picture of Toyota Yaris 1.5 16V T Sport?, please send it to us.
Picture courtesy of storm3000.
| Performance | 9.6/10  |
|---|---|
| Practicality | 9/10 |
| Reliability | 10/10 |
| Value for Money | 9.6/10 |
| Reviewer Rating | 10/10 |
| Overall Rating | 8.9/10  |
By munturo
on 17th Jul 2007
| Year Manufactured | 2001 |
|---|---|
| Length of ownership | 2 years |
| Doors | 3 door hatchback |
| Performance | 10/10 |
| Practicality | 8/10 |
| Reliability | 10/10 |
| Value for money | 10/10 |
| Overall value | 10/10 |
 munturo's recommendation | |
Everything on this car is a good point, apart from the standard CD player.
Bumps in the road get annoying when doing your day to day drive.
if your 5'11" or more tall then the center of the dash plays havoc with your right knee if sat in the passenger seat
Very poor standard stereo.
Overall my Toyota Yaris 1.5 16V T Sport is a fantastic little car, it is fun to drive and I love the fact that anyone will try to race it thinking it is only a Yaris, when really it's only a fraction slower then a standard Ford Fiesta ST in terms of acceleration out to 80-90mph.
Performance-
Have had many 'triumphs' in it: e.g. 1.9 turbo diesel Audi's, BMW 316 and 318, Toyota MRS, new shape Toyota Celica (not TS model), Hyundai coupe SE, (all in straight acceleration out to 100 or so mph) and the list goes on!
The way this car pulls through the mid range is far better than you'd think.
The car however just don't sound like it should sound, considering how quick it is, even with a Blitz SUS power induction kit, though the induction kit does make it sound powerful - it still isn't loud. There is a supercharger conversion for it, but that will only really help with acceleration as it does 122mph in 5th standard and I'd estimate that it will hit the rev limiter at about 135 or so mph. it badly needs a 6th gear, especially as its such a close ratio box, 55mph in second 78mph in third, short throw on the gear stick makes for fast shifting which helps, although it is a little notchy with press-on driving.
Overtaking is excellent in this car because the throttle response is instant and has no flat spots what-so-ever, it accelerates smooth and with consistency time and time again. It really is the type of car that begs you to press the go pedal a little harder with every journey.
Handling-
At a track or press-on driving -
At first it felt like it was on stilts as I'm used to driving very low sports cars. After a little more press on driving I found myself pressing harder an harder into bends, never seem to find the limits (takes a brave soul to do that!) and you almost never miss an apex, its like a terrier after a rabbit, the whole package just comes alive. After you've had a little practice and got used to the driving position you find yourself giving it a confident late break and throwing it around corners at speeds you wouldn't normally do in most cars. There is a little body roll but stiffens up when it gets to a certain point then just beds in and grips, its all relative and if you get one of these then I recommend that you put some Pirelli tyres on it, anything less is just suicide.
Off track or general driving -
Living with this car on a day to day basis however is a different story entirely. Every time you hit a bump in the road it knocks your teeth out. And if you hit speed bumps at more than 18mph then you will land on the moon. It's a very stiff ride, stiffer than a lot of sports cars I've driven. Its not until you put your foot down and get the vvti going when you take your mind off it. Parking is excellent as the turning circle is small so even the smallest of spaces is easy enough.
Brakes-
Brakes are extremely good an the abs don't cut in to early, it will stop from 100mph-0mph in the wet in 5.988 seconds and 4.758 in the dry, witch is fantastic. I will be upgrading wheels, tyres, and brakes soon, will let you know how it helps.
Overall the performance is excellent. The only downside is the break pads at the front will need changing every 8-10k miles on standard ones, they are about £22 for a set and £15-£20 fitting. The rear is better at only £18 a set of pads and last about 14k miles. I will be getting new ones soon as they need replacing again. Oh yeah, the break tests I mentioned were actually done with the disks in relatively bad shape.
Audio-
The standard stereo is rubbish, although security for the stereo is fantastic, to replace the standard stereo the entire dashboard has to come off, it isn't going to be stolen in a hurry that's for sure! That is why I didn't mind spending extra for a DVD head unit. The other problem is there are no speakers in the back, 2 in the doors and 2 in the dashboard but nothing in the rear as standard. The stereo sounds very tin like and it's not just a case of replacing the standard 15w max speakers. You need to sort out some better acoustics around the backs of the speakers and with the new vibe speakers I fitted it sounds 100 times better. Also if you're into subwoofers then you will be a little disappointed as the boot is not big enough for large subs. 1 or 2 x 10"subs or 1 x 12" subs is all you'll get due to the volume of air they need vs. the size of the boot.
Fuel-
I like the fuel consumption meter, I've managed to get a combined figure of 45mpg (really taking my time though not slow enough to annoy other drivers) my usual average is (reset every £20 of fuel I put in, for some reason I work in 20's) 41mpg or 36-39mpg if I want to show someone up now and again.
Sorry for the length of this review, guess I had a lot to say!
| Helpful | Unhelpful | Agree | Disagree |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Total Respect: 0
