2002 Toyota Yaris GS review from UK and Ireland

Nothing yet!

I'd never driven a Yaris before and was pleasantly surprised with it!

It is a very nippy car. It feels as quick or quicker than 1.2 engines I've driven (like Clio's, Corsa's etc), and is noticeably quicker than my old Fiesta 1.1

I love scooting around in this car. It's more at home in the city. The engine revs really sweetly and sounds smooth, and is actually a little sporty at high revs. I would imagine it would sound great with a big exhaust. Initially the car doesn't feel very quick, but it soon picks up nicely.

You can feel the difference at around 4000 rpm where it really picks up. This is the point where it sounds nice too, so I find myself chucking it around a bit more than I would usually. The economy still stays around the 38-40 mpg mark though, which is very good. If I can manage to drive more steadily, it returns 50+ mpg on a longer run.

Good points:

Small, quite quick, nice steering, brakes, short-throw gearbox, good ride, despite some critics reviews.

Bad points:

Poor visibility. I find the rear visibility quite poor, you look over your shoulder and there are large blind spots caused by the large pillars and small windows. The front 'A' pillars are also in the line of sight when cornering.

Seats. Comfortable enough, but lack support for quick cornering. Ride height is high so the car rolls a bit in corners, but it's still good fun.

Refinement. Whilst it's fun in a kind of raspy way in town, the lack of general refinement shows up at higher speeds. At 70mph the engine spins at 4000 rpm which makes it quite boomy. There is also a degree of wind and road noise, making this car feel a bit cheaper than it is.

I've driven a D-4D Yaris and these are actually quite a bit quieter at all times. They must have better sound proofing I would guess.

Overall, a great car! Reliability reports are looking good so far. Achieving the top award of the JD Power survey can't be bad!