What's Bad

Don't be put off by flimsy feel of doors. The strength of the car is where it should be, in the structure and underneath.

M/Ms will not ascend very steep hills such as 1:4 without manually changing to 1st.

Do not open the glass hatchback in a high wind because a sudden gust can catch it, twist it and shatter it.

See also:  Peugeot 107 and Citroen C1. 

What to Watch Out For

See also:  Peugeot 107 and Citroen C1. 

Exhaust back boxes may only last two years before rusting through.

Water pump failures are common at about three years old.

Clutches seem to let in water, leading to surface corrosion and premature wear and can last as little as two and a half years, becoming quite a big issue at £650 a time.

Water leaks into load area via extractor vent. Have also been water leaks into load area and rear via misfitted rear door and hatch seals or rear light seals, otherwise reader feedback so far very positive.

'Whirring whine' from 1.4HDI may be failing timing belt tensioner, which is a roller bearing device like the idler pulley, but with a reddish rubber/nylon damper. Gates cambelt kits include this part. Wise also to replace waterpump which it driven by the timing belt

One report of a transmission oil leak.

Reports of leaking waterpumps on 1.0 petrol engines at about 3 years old.

Clutches seem to let in water, leading to surface corrosion and premature wear. Can last as little as two and a half years. TSB to replace 180mm clutches with 190mm clutches. All fitted with 190mm clutch from January 2009 facelift. See Recalls.

Rear wheel brake cylinders prone to failure. One case after 4 years and 4,000 miles. Another just 2 months from new.

On 5 door models the glue holding the rear door windows to the hinge eventually fails and the windows fall out.

Well used key operated drivers door and boot doorlocks may only last just over 3 years.

Cat converters may also fail after 2 - 3 years.

Reports of power steering failures at 3 - 4 years old, costing £650 for a new motor, though may have been caused by drivers burning out the motor by holding it on lock.

Water leaks into load area via extractor vent. Have also been water leaks into load area and rear via misfitted rear door and hatch seals or rear light seals. More leaks reported through radiop aerial seal and passenger door seal.

'Whirring whine' from 1.4HDI may be failing timing belt tensioner, which is a roller bearing device like the idler pulley, but with a reddish rubber/nylon damper. Gates cambelt kits include this part. Wise also to replace waterpump which it driven by the timing belt.

One reader experienced all the regular problems, with a March 2007 Aygo over 3.5 years: "In the life of the car, the following have all been done under warranty: 2 x clutches 1 x water pump 1 x anti-roll bar bushes 1 x stabiliser link bushes 3 x Leak investigation (the boot is damp - carpets replaced also under warranty). This seems to be a standard fault on many Aygos. (This is also an on-going, and separate, issue)"

21-2-2011: Report of parking brake caliper seizing, wearing out rear brake disc, pad and clutch.

3-3-2012: Reader reported clutch noise on 107 just over 3 years old. Quoted £ 664 to replace. In addition the dealer also found: radiator bottom joint rusty cost £ 314, water pump leaking cost £ 256, rear suspension mountings pierced cost £143. The car had been serviced by the same dealer just 5 months previously and the service report attached to the invoice showed no defects whatsoever.

8-7-2012: Red paint on plastic front bumpers seems to be peeling off. Toyota has offered some owners a 50% contribution to recrtification.

28-7-2012: Clutch and waterpump failures common on 2005 - 2009 C1s, 107s and Aygos. Bigger, stronger clutch fitted in production from 2009.

11-2-2013: Mysterious engine fire of 2009 Aygo left standing for 30 hours previous to fire wrote the car off.

Recalls

29-1-2010 Sticking Accelerator Pedal recall announced on AYGO (Feb 2005 - Aug 2009). Customers who experience the problem should phone 0800 1388 744. Must also apply to Citroen C1 and Peugeot 107.

Unknown date TSB: "the vehicle manufacturer has issued a technical bulletin regarding clutch noise issues and premature clutch wear on the Toyota Aygo-1.0, Peugeot 107-1.0 and Citroen C1-1.0. In cases where a customer complains of slipping clutch, noise from clutch during stop and go conditions orabnormal smell from clutch a service directive has been issued to replace the original clutch with a larger diameter clutch assembly. The original 180mm clutch will now be replaced with a larger 190mm clutch with increased clutch cover mass to rectify premature wear and noise issues."

See also:  Peugeot 107 and Citroen C1. 

Next: Road Test »