The Toyota C-HR: real crossover appeal
Well, yes, yes, yes, and yes is the response to all of the above, as Toyota really has chucked its normally implacable demeanour well and truly out the window and come up with something which is not only very different from the pack, but also embraces the Japanese giant’s long-standing love affair with the hybrid format.
Welcome to the world of the Toyota C-HR. Yes, the Coupe High Rider. We may scoff at the beautiful naiveté of this car’s name and we may whitter on about the ultimate fruitlessness of the whole hybrid-as-saviour-of-the-planet argument, but this car is going to be a serious player on the Irish market before long.
In fact it already is. In the two full documented months of sales here this year, the C-HR has already ratcheted up sales of some 898 units, nearly one-third of the way towards Toyota’s stated ambition of selling 3,000 units here annually.
And to think that the august members of the Irish motoring press corps laughed when Toyota coughed up that seemingly outlandish figure.
But think about it. The prospect of making a seemingly radical-looking crossover for all those downsizers, empty nesters, couples in their late 30s or early 40s, singles, young couples with no kids, or whatever other potential customer profile you’d like to mention, sounds like a good way to generate a bit of added business.
Well, tie in Toyota boss Akio Toyoda’s stated aim that there will no longer be any boring cars coming from his factories and the massive worldwide growth in SUV sales — not to mention the company’s long-standing commitment to the whole hybrid cause — and you can begin to see where the C-HR is coming from.
Throw in the fact that this car is actually one of the better hybrids to drive and is wrapped in a very unusual skin — unpredictable lines, swooping design signatures for a truly funky, yes funky, overall look — and you have something that is appealing to a very broad church.
This is not just a suck-it-and-see effort from Toyota. Far from it. No, it is a very specific, very focussed and very ambitious car that has opponents such as the king of the crossover, the Nissan Qashqai, very firmly in the cross-hairs.
But then, in what has become the fastest growing market segment in the motor industry, the C Segment Crossover is the one every company aspires to be successful in.
Toyota’s aim was simple: Make a radical looking car that drives every bit as well as it looks, give it an environmentally friendly badge of honour with hybrid power and sell it at a reasonable price. Wham — they’ve got a contender.
On the subject of hybrid, regular readers will know that it does not cut much mustard in this particular parish, but if people are willing to swallow all that ‘green’ nonsense that the car companies are pedalling, then it is no surprise that the format is moving quickly away from the mere toehold it once had in the sales charts.
The fact is that worldwide regulators are now forcing companies down this path by fining them large amounts of money if their corporate CO2 emissions are above certain levels and yet people still believe car makers are doing this for the benefit of the planet. But that’s nonsense; they are doing it because it is financially wise to do so.
The move down this path is compelling to witness — even with a jaundiced eye. Here in Ireland alone, Toyota is in the process of spending a €1.7m marketing budget on their hybrid products and have already this year seen a 128% increase in hybrid sales across their C-HR, Auris, and Yaris ranges.
That the company has now gotten a firm hold of the buying public is a credit to their persuasiveness.
And the C-HR tester we had recently is a very good reason why this is the case. It ticks so many boxes for so many people in terms of the look and attitude of the car and it also lures them in thanks to its’ tax and VRT-friendly status.
It is, to these eyes anyway, a good looking and stand-out-from-the-crowd car and one which never fails to draw comment from passers-by. That comment might not always be good, but the fact it kick-starts debate is always a good sign of a car which is going somewhere.
It is also nice to drive and certainly not the insipid and anodyne experience that was so much part and parcel of so many previous hybrid efforts from Toyota. The company has gone a long way towards making hybrid driving something which is nearly pleasurable. It is also packed with an armoury of driver assistance tools.
The combination of factors such as decent handling and ride — even if performance is slack enough — has made this car appeal not simply to tree-huggers and environmentally sensitive types, but to a broad range of people who might not previously have been too bothered by the genre. In short, Toyota has brought hybrid into the mainstream — and you better get used to it.
Of course one of the main planks of their argument, apart from the green ones, is that the system allows for massive saving to be made on fuel costs. That is, of course, only if you drive like my doting maiden aunt.
Regular driving, by me, resulted in figures which you should get from any modern car. I got a figure of 6.1 l/100km on one motorway spin to Dublin — that’s around 45mpg, and which is no great shakes.
Certainly around town, you can dramatically increase that figure because you get to use a lot more of the electric end of the operation. But do be warned that any heavy-footedness is going to mean very ordinary consumption returns.
Inside and out, the C-HR is new, fresh and innovative. It may be the rear passenger space is not the greatest and the headroom in particular is not great for those of the lanky variety, but this is a car that will appeal more to families with smallies than with grown up kids.
In fact, in the case of families with grown-up kids, it is they who will be doing a lot of the driving. And they’ll feel cool doing so.
I’m still not convinced about the value of hybrid drivetrains and believe my scepticism to be justified.
That said, in this C-HR Toyota has made a car with much broader driving appeal than any previous hybrid I’ve driven.
And do you know what — the best of luck to them.
Colley’s Verdict
- From €26,895 to €32,950 as tested.
- Passable version of hybrid technology.
- Pretty well kitted-up even from standard.
- Best in class.
