Perodua Myvi Reviews from UK and Ireland

This is my seventh Perodua of 91 cars and complements our other 2007 Myvi (see report "so far..", run now by my wife and my Parents 2010 Myvi (see "Toyota Passo...")

We have had great service from our Peroduas and feel the brand is almost a secret for those with insider knowledge. You get Toyota/Daihatsu engineering under the umbrella of a budget brand; in the same way Skoda used VW and Audi tech with a different brand image; the only difference is that Skoda is well advertised and well known, and Perodua is a mystery to most people.

The Myvi is sold in other territories as a Toyota Passo and Daihatsu Boon, and in the UK as a Daihatsu Sirion and Subaru Justy. Detail differences are obvious, such as the lights, mirrors, bumpers and fabrics, but the oily bits are identical on 1.3 versions, which all use the 1298cc Toyota Yaris twin cam VVTi unit. Under the skin, the ECU and electronics are all Daihatsu stickered and most parts are interchangeable, meaning part supply is easy enough.

We ran two identical 2008 Sirions (see "Easily...") and were highly impressed with the total quality of these and the extra kit over the Myvi; Isofix, side 'bags, boot-light, clock, rear headrests, maplights, trip computer, economy gauge, 5 year warranty/breakdown cover etc, but Daihatsu are no longer available in the UK and the 2009 price difference was £3000 more (like-for-like model) for the Sirion.

The Myvi gains LED rear lights and LED indicators in the mirrors and looks less gawky as the bumpers are more stylish, plus the rear end is much tidier with the number plate on the bootlid, not on the rear bumper. The interior trim is much more attractive too and the Myvi looks much more upmarket with the combination of better looks, better trim and the LED lights.

This 2006 Mocca silver (dark grey) car has total history and looks absolutely as new. I bought it privately off ebay with 35,000 miles for less than £3000 including 12 months MOT, road tax and the costs of fetching it.

I have driven it for 2,000 miles and have fully inspected it throughout for issues:

1/ Steering needed centering; done

2/ Tyre pressures slightly out; done

3/ Door switches lazy; need modifying; see 2007 report

4/ Boot lift struts lazy; see 2007 report

5/ Key remote lazy; £1.00 CR1616 battery fitted; done

6/ Wiper blades poor; need replacing.

Otherwise fault free, very quiet running, starts instantly, 50mpg, looks and drives as new with zero rattles or wear.

I will have to fit my LED sidelight W5Ws and Extreme Brilliance H4 headlight bulbs, hardwire the TomTom and source a Daihatsu Sirion parcel shelf lift string, otherwise not much else to do.

It has been much admired; people seems to love the dark grey/slight coffee tinge metallic finish (called Mocca silver) and I much prefer it to the colour that replaced it, which my Parents have on the 2010 car-Medallion Silver; this has a bluey tinge and looks cheaper.

Another Perodua, another Myvi, another report...!

My life seems to be sourcing and selling cars for myself, family and friends, and we just cannot match the Myvi on price with anything else.

Highly recommended! Updates to follow..

No faults. Only problem encountered has been vandalism - passenger side wing mirror kicked off.

This car replaces our ten year old Perodua Kenari. Some motoring journalists are very negative about Peroduas, and we would have found their comments off putting, when choosing our Myvis, if it were not for the fact that their reviews of the Kenari are not realistic - we like our new car so much we have started a blog http://www.myvi-magic.blogspot.com

We have to be able to get elderly in-laws with limited mobility in and out, often we carry large and awkward objects, and access has to be good for a large dog:

The in-laws are able to get into the car easily, the doors open wide, with a good clearance between the rear seat and door pillar to allow feet to be pulled in.

The rear seat folds flat to the boot floor, there is no virtually no lip (lip is protected by plastic, and not just scratchable paint), and the tailgate opens with an easily accessible rectangular shape, allowing objects almost as wide as the car to be carried easily.

The rear 60:40 split seat allows 2 adults and a large dog to reside comfortably in the back.

The car is comfortable, easy to drive, but I do find the engine too quiet, and sometimes think it's stalled! Fuel consumption is about 50 MPG.

Overall (after 2,600 miles), there is nothing that I would fault this car on (other than not having a clock), and I will add comments over time to say how we are getting on.