Smooth runner to broaden Auris appeal
I was — among many others I suspect — surprised and a tad confused when Toyota decided to ditch the ‘Corolla’ nameplate for what used to be the Corolla three and five door hatchbacks and decided to use the Auris appellation instead, aiming to re-energise the car with more ‘yoof’ appeal.
Sure, they made cars which now had considerably more visual appeal, but in reality, were no less conservative and staid than any Corolla which had preceded them. Still, Toyota sells large numbers of them to people who want untroubled and, largely, bombproof motoring and fair play to them.
But as a source of untrammelled motoring enjoyment, the Auris never did it for me and — despite its excellent sales figures — was never a match for such as its main rivals from Ford and Volkswagen. It was, and pretty much remains, a conservative car for conservative people.
In the last couple of weeks, however, Toyota has revealed a new generation Auris — more of a mid-life facelift really — and certain elements of the car caused minor ripples of interest in these quarters. Not least of these essentials is the new 1.2 D-4T turbocharged petrol engine which, having driven it here in Ireland, I feel sure will have a big marketplace impact.
We’ve been writing a lot in these columns recently about the growing numbers of three cylinder petrol engines coming into vogue, but Toyota has eschewed that path and gone for a four cylinder small capacity unit instead and it is very much the case here of vive la difference.
Three pot engines have their own very definite character traits — thrummy soundtrack and coarse running features — but by going the four cylinder route, Toyota may have stolen something of a march on the opposition with this new unit.
The first thing you notice about this 1.2 litre with some 116 bhp on tap, is just how smooth it is and you’d have to say that for the generation of car owners who were duped by manufacturers’ ‘diesel-is-best’ propaganda, when in fact diesel was the last form of propulsion they needed, this new option is going to appeal to a lot of them.
Already Ford and many others have gone down the three cylinder petrol route with considerable kudos and warranted success, but Toyota has put a new spin on things with this engine, and I can certainly see it appealing to a broad swathe of customers.
As I said it has 116 bhp on tap, but is perky enough to record a 10.1 second 0-100 kph time and a 200km/h top speed. It will also deliver 185 Nm of torque between 1,500 and 4,000 rpm, while returning 5.4 l/100 km (52.3mpg) economy. It also fits into Tax Band B1 for an annual tax bill of €270.
Along with a six speed manual ‘box, this Auris is as smooth as buttered silk and yet it offered a level of driver engagement which I thought was long since abandoned by Toyota.
On the road the car rolled along nicely and without any obvious distaste for Irish driving conditions and in fact, the word ‘smoothness’ was once again something which kept springing to mind.
Various facelifted elements — new front lights and upper and lower grilles and a revised rear bumper and LED lights — have sharpened up the look and in the interior there has been a lot of revised soundproofing, which adds to that overall smooth feel.
The interior has been revamped as well and, the faux leather dashboard inserts aside, the overall look and feel is very modern. One small quibble is that the 7” piano black touchscreen gets very paw-marked after a while.
The overall thing is that Auris has come a long in leaps and bounds and this new petrol engine is certainly going to add it to the car’s sales potential.
A very smart little car indeed.
