written by on 20/01/2011
Hello. I bought my 10 year old Yaris GS 1.0 VVTi 4 months ago. It had 40000 genuine miles which took priority over it's tatty appearance and age. Yes it looks tired due to it's various scratches, dents and dull black paintwork, but it drives like new, without a rattle or bang and the engine at tickover is whisper quiet.
I bought a Yaris as no other small car in my price range could hold a candle to it. It is stupidly cheap to insure, reliabilty is second to none, it is relatively safe (4 star NCAP I believe?), fuel efficiency is amazing (I get 40mpg around town, 45-50mpg Motorway, and country roads 55mpg+), the 16v VVTi engine is superb and loves to be revved, it feels as quick as some 1.4's ive driven.
Some people have complained about a clunky gearbox, yes it does 'clunk', but in a positive manner, like a rifle bolt. There is nothing wrong here, I like its positiveness.
It has a trip computer which some premium cars don't even have, I love it.
Some owners have complained about noise entering the cabin. SO WHAT?! If you want silence buy a Lexus!!!! I personally enjoy hearing the engine whine away, and it's seriously not as bad as people say it is.
Handling is superb. I have owned alot of VW's with inert steering - no feel or communication to the driver. The lil Yaris has lots of feel, its short wheelbase gives you confidence, and I havent had it understeer in the wet yet!
Mine was built in Japan and I'm proud of this fact. Pure JDM!!! Most were built in France to the detriment of quality in some areas according to the Toyota forums.
Soooo easy to maintain, I changed the engine oil, oil filter, air filter and spark plugs when I bought it as a precaution, all of it took me an hour and saved me ££££££££££££'s in labour costs.
I love it, The humble Yaris is all things to all men.
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