New Toyota Auris

Leonard Hofstadter

Pics here.

A BIG improvement on the current model both inside and outside (apart from the ugly rear), not that that was difficult.

Pity they're still not using independent rear suspension though (actually, some models will get it, but I very much doubt that any of the poverty spec Paddy spec cars will have it), so much for Toyota's promise to make their new more inspiring to drive than the current models, which seem to be designed to go out of their way to remove every sensation of driving pleasure.

cozzie55

captainspeed wrote: »

Pics here.

A BIG improvement on the current model both inside and outside (apart from the ugly rear), not that that was difficult.

Pity they're still not using independent rear suspension though, so much for Toyota's promise to make their new more inspiring to drive than the current models, which seem to be designed to go out of their way to remove every sensation of driving pleasure.

OH god what were they thinking when they designed the back of it. That opening for the boot handle is ridiculously big and makes the whole thing look stupid
Definitely a big improvement on the current model though

Zubeneschamali

"A more premium cabin features a new centre console and increased use of soft-touch materials"

Wouldn't be hard, we hired a 1.6 auto Auris on holidays, and the interior was unbelievable.

How can a glovebox be made entirely of plastic, and still be as tinny as a tin? How can you make the interior door/grab handles out of black plastic painted silver, so that the silver paint wears off within a year?

166man

It amazes me that you continue to keep hatin' on Toyotas. There are many many people out there who just want a car for A-B and that's it. The power of the engine, driving dynamics and quality of the interior aren't a priority for them. Reliability and reasonable economy work for them. I agree there are other cars that do this too but many will have had Toyotas for years and experienced their legendary reliability hence buying the new model.

I think because driving dynamics and bhp are important to you then you think that Toyotas are crap. They aim for a different market.

166man

OSI wrote: »

Some guys are happy with a mediocre woman as long as she cooks, some are happy with TV's the size of box of frosties with mono sound, and some guys like Toyotas, doesn't mean I have to too.

I never said that. But we as in motor enthusiasts should respect their target market. I don't like Toyotas either but that doesn't make them bad cars, and I do respect them as a brand.

Leonard Hofstadter

166man wrote: »

I never said that. But we as in motor enthusiasts should respect their target market. I don't like Toyotas either but that doesn't make them bad cars, and I do respect them as a brand.

But if they're behind their competitors on certain areas, how can you possibly say that they are not bad?

I don't believe that your average Auris buyer is really any different to your average Focus or i30 buyer.

Given that they're all after the same demographic, what is wrong with telling someone from the target market who comes on the forum looking for our advice that the Auris is not as good as the Focus, Golf, i30 etc?

As I said in my OP, the new model Auris is a BIG improvement on the current car in both the looks department and the cabin is a massive step forward too, well at least on the high spec models anyway.

The poverty spec rubbish that Toyota Ireland will undoubtedly bring in though will probably be a different story as far as the interior is concerned - I wonder will Toyota Ireland still be in the dark ages and still refuse to fit a/c as standard not to mention keep fit windows in the back?

And on the reliability front, the last Toyotas that really did live up to the 'Best Built Cars in the World' claim are gone about 12 years now, the VVTi engine is nowhere near as good as the old 'lean burn' and 4E-FE engines were, which really were phenomenal for reliability, a properly maintained one would do 300,000 miles in its sleep and the old diesels before they went to common rail would do even more than that!

positron

Looks nice-ish, especially the front-end. I wonder if this would mean rest of the Toyota range would also be moving to this type design sooner or later.

166man

captainspeed wrote: »

But if they're behind their competitors on certain areas, how can you possibly say that they are not bad?

I don't believe that your average Auris buyer is really any different to your average Focus or i30 buyer.

Given that they're all after the same demographic, what is wrong with telling someone from the target market who comes on the forum looking for our advice that the Auris is not as good as the Focus, Golf, i30 etc?

As I said in my OP, the new model Auris is a BIG improvement on the current car in both the looks department and the cabin is a massive step forward too, well at least on the high spec models anyway.

The poverty spec rubbish that Toyota Ireland will undoubtedly bring in though will probably be a different story as far as the interior is concerned - I wonder will Toyota Ireland still be in the dark ages and still refuse to fit a/c as standard not to mention keep fit windows in the back?

And on the reliability front, the last Toyotas that really did live up to the 'Best Built Cars in the World' claim are gone about 12 years now, the VVTi engine is nowhere near as good as the old 'lean burn' and 4E-FE engines were, which really were phenomenal for reliability, a properly maintained one would do 300,000 miles in its sleep and the old diesels before they went to common rail would do even more than that!

I just don't think that Toyotas are bad cars. They do the job that people in Ireland want, they are reliable economical practical and hold their value well. They mightn't be the best to drive but that doesn't matter, they aren't designed for that. The interiors are a bit plastic country in there but they don't break.


Just because you don't like certain cars doesn't make them bad. There's a reason there's so many of them on the road. It's too early to tell what the reliability of the newer models is like but there's also a reason that there's so many Avensis petrol and diesel taxis in Ireland. They wouldn't be bought if they were crap. They do exactly what most Irish people want 90% of the time.


I still don't like their cars but that's because reliability practicality ad economy aren't all that important to me.

smooch71

captainspeed wrote: »

But if they're behind their competitors on certain areas, how can you possibly say that they are not bad?

QUOTE]

The one thing they're not behind their competitors on is market share. which is really all they care about.

Zubeneschamali

166man wrote: »

They wouldn't be bought if they were crap.

People buy crap stuff all the time!

I don't think the Auris is crap by mistake or because Toyota can't do better, Toyota deliberately make them that way for people who hate cars and driving and have a phobia about breakdowns.

It turns out that's a big market in Ireland.

Leonard Hofstadter

Zubeneschamali wrote: »

People buy crap stuff all the time!

I don't think the Auris is crap by mistake or because Toyota can't do better, Toyota deliberately make them that way for people who hate cars and driving and have a phobia about breakdowns.

It turns out that's a big market in Ireland.

I genuinely think Toyota made a mess of that car. Okay, they've never made class leading cars, but they've always been quite competitive. The Auris though was rubbish from day one and still is to this day.

The new one has potential to be much more competitive, they sorted out the looks (mostly) and the interior, at least on the high spec versions (which probably won't even be sold here knowing what Toyota Ireland are like) is an enormous step forward. If it drives well, then I would see no reason not to recommend it to anyone that is in the market for it.

boardzz

The back of it looks like the Toyota Urban Cruiser.




Toyota what now....? Remember it, no?

lomb

I like it actually, compared to the last one its a big step up. Toyota have slipped for quite a few years but if you have a look at the latest GS300 which I believe the MD spent quite a bit of time on you can see what they can do.

Saying that the Auris will be competing against the focus which is truely horrible looking these days(what happened to the classy 2000 model??) or the MK7 golf when its out shortly which has its work cut out for it.

colm_mcm

I like that it's lower and lighter than the old model. Is it possible that it has an opening glass hatch?

paddy147

Looks a bit too much like a Honda to me.

L1011

I wonder is it large enough for me to actually drive it?

I have no idea how Toyota managed this but driving an Auris for me is a painful lesson in contortionism. And I drive a Panda ffs!

The iQ was larger and more comfortable to drive (larger for the driver at least - my seat was touching the rear seat...) when I had one as a loaner.

pburns

The exterior is an improvement but not hugely radical. Like a slightly more modern Mazda 3 from some angles.

That interior though is a surprise. I know the Paddy-spec one will be plainer but still...that vertical slab is a bit retro,a bit GT86.

Snakes alive it even reminds me of an '80s Saab 900. Is it just me?

Mully_2011

Being Driving an Auris the last few years 1.4 d4d (not by choice but Recession+Student)

Bad Points

Bought it new in 2008 so far it has had

A new Turbo
A new gearbox
a new clutch
and a few other things

all replaced under warranty now this a car that has around 220km on the clock so its not the usual case of a diesel not being driven. As for the driving its actually quite a nice car to drive on back roads Its not a sports car by any means but it is quite neutral going into bends there is a bit of feedback from the steering. It never got stuck in the snow and ice and when the back did go it was in a real controllable way.For what they are there very wide and the back pillars are too big around town car be a nightmare.The 1.4 d4d doesn't have the grunt to pull the car along and it revs out quite high on Motorways (later models had a 6 speed)

To Summarize

Good

- Its not bad to drive
- Nice bit of space inside and its comfortable
- Seem to holding there money
- I don't think its a bad looking car

Bad

- Quite wide and a pain to park
- I dunno If those problems are common or we just got a bad one
- 1.4 models are dead the one you want is a 2.2 D4D especially post 08
- Spec is ****e

The reason we bought the Auris was quite simply we had always had Toyotas yes they are bland and as dishwater but work and to be fair to Toyota once the problems where sorted this one has being no different and to be fair Toyota had no problem sorting any of the problems even sorted the Gearbox outside of warranty.

Would I buy one myself: No If I wanted a Toyota of this Era I'd go back and buy a 2.2 D4D T180 Saloon Avensis outta England I always liked the last gen Avensis or an IS220D which the prices seem to be falling quite rapidly

highdef

lomb wrote: »

Saying that the Auris will be competing against the focus which is truely horrible looking these days(what happened to the classy 2000 model??)

Tell me more about the 2000 model Focus. I know the Focus came out in 1998, what new stuff happened in 2000?

Tea 1000

166man wrote: »

It amazes me that you continue to keep hatin' on Toyotas. There are many many people out there who just want a car for A-B and that's it. The power of the engine, driving dynamics and quality of the interior aren't a priority for them. Reliability and reasonable economy work for them. I agree there are other cars that do this too but many will have had Toyotas for years and experienced their legendary reliability hence buying the new model.

I think because driving dynamics and bhp are important to you then you think that Toyotas are crap. They aim for a different market.

There is a Toyota hate on boards for sure. The last Auris deserved it though. Base model was about €500 more expensive than the base model Golf (when I checked around 2 years ago) and it was a terrible effort from Toyota. The 1.4 engine might have been on par with the mediocre VW plant, but the interior was shockingly poor. Poorly assembled, cheap and shoddy. The only thing positive about the whole car was that it seemed to soak up horrible roads reasonably well. Apparently the facelifted Auris improved the interior, but I was never interested enough to check.
The thing is though, that most Toyota's aren't terrible to drive. They're competent. Not exciting, but really not a lot else is. Older VW's are rather poor handling cars with no feedback, so even more boring that Toyota's.
Mazda and Ford regularly offer a dynamic ability that can be rewarding to exploit, but they're the exception rather than the rule, despite efforts from VW to close the dynamic gap, so I fail to see why Toyota get slated for being boring to drive.

MugMugs

She has a bit of a Mitsubishi look to her. I like it

Poulgorm

I like the look of this new Auris. Huge improvement on the current one, which is very ugly indeed. The front end seems to be a rip off of the old civic - but I like it. Nice clean lines.

Definitely looks better than the current Focus, Golf, i30, etc etc. I am not bothered about the absence of independent rear suspension - many cars ride quite well without it - and tend to have bigger boots, as a result.

I wonder did they stretch the wheelbase - and give extra legroom at the back. I hope they kept the flat floor at the back - very important for the 3rd child sitting in the middle, on the rear seats.

Zubeneschamali

Tea 1000 wrote: »

I fail to see why Toyota get slated for being boring to drive.

Our rental Auris wasn't so much boring as total crap. The steering wheel seemed to be attached to the front wheels by a rubber band, the thing fidgeted about at speed and needed constant small steering corrections.

RedorDead

Hate this to be honest. Front just looks like a giant chevron and the rear looks like Citroen, also looks quite high at the rear. Actually prefer the current modle to this.

Tea 1000

Zubeneschamali wrote: »

Our rental Auris wasn't so much boring as total crap. The steering wheel seemed to be attached to the front wheels by a rubber band, the thing fidgeted about at speed and needed constant small steering corrections.

I did say that the last Auris was crap...

Stallingrad

This just seems to continue the Toyota tradition of convoluted, fussy design. The lower grill, upper grill, headlights and fog lights all look they were designed in different departments that never met.