Sport 1.2T Business Edition TSS 5dr Estate

Better than most reviews would let on

We shortlisted the Auris Touring Sport because we have an older dog who needs a low boot lip to get into any car. What we found is that compared with most other cars on the market, the Auris offers a well-packaged, practical and thoroughly recommendable car.

The 1.2 turbo engine is really good - it pulls surprisingly strongly even from fairly low revs, is keen to respond and has more than enough power to hustle the car along. The 6 speed manual gearbox is a smooth shifting affair which feels far more precise than we expected it to, and is easy to navigate around with no notchiness or crunching into reverse. We tried the hybrid which was impressive, but the 1.2 feels more eager, lighter and faster in every way. Average MPG is still 45-48 for mostly urban driving which has really impressed us.

Ride is generally very composed and the car doesn't roll around too much, but soaks up potholes and bumps. Refinement is excellent - very little engine noise at all makes this a very good motorway car, and having a 6 speed 'box keeps revs down at high speed.

Inside is again nicer than we though from a Japanese car. The dash isn't fancy but still looks clean and tidy, controls are nicely weighted with no nasty surprises and there's a decent range of adjustment in the seat and steering wheel. Seats are comfortable and I find them supportive enough for longer journeys.

In terms of kit the only thing we missed at first was Apple CarPlay, which isn't available at all. Toyota's own infotainment system is fairly good though, and the satnav's ability to download live traffic through the mobile phone gives us really good quality routing. Bluetooth works every time, climate control is easy to use and has the important Auto mode, and the auto headlights and wipers work well.

All in all, we really like the Auris and, with the 1.2T manual setup, I really can't recommend it enough.

Report as offensive