Toyota Yaris (2014-present)
The Toyota Yaris is a spacious supermini with a choice of three or five doors, and powered by a range of economical engines
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths
Weaknesses
Toyota Yaris Hatchback 1.5 vvt-i excel 5dr [nav/pan roof]
Total RRP £18,940
Your quote £15,800
You Save £3,140
The Toyota Yaris is a practical, economical and reliable car which, with its X-shaped grille borrowed from its baby brother the Aygo, looks quite stylish. It’s easy to drive and safe, too, but the steering and handling are a little dull.
Most versions are offered in a choice of three or five-door forms, although the five-door models are the most practical. The interior is spacious with plenty of room for two tall adults in the front. Rear space is comparable to larger cars, including the Ford Focus, from the class above.
The Yaris has a flat floor too, so a centre-seat passenger can get quite comfortable. Fortunately, all this space doesn’t come at the expense of boot capacity, which rivals leading models in the class, including the Ford Fiesta. All versions have split-fold rear seats that increase load space substantially.
There’s a range of economical engines, although you need to do your sums to be sure the more-efficient diesel and the hybrid versions justify their added expense over the petrol units. The manual gearbox is efficient but the automatic is of the constantly variable type that can allow the engine to become revvy and noisy.
The Yaris feels safe but its steering and handling are a little dull, and might leave you yearning for greater thrills. All versions suffer from quite high levels of road and wind noise but the suspension, at least in the non-hybrid versions, is quiet, soft and comfortable. The cabin is stylish and well screwed together but spoiled by areas of hard, scratchy plastics. Equipment levels are reasonably impressive with the Touch 2 multimedia system standard from the second trim level (Icon) upwards.
The Yaris is a safe car with five stars from Euro NCAP to prove it. It’s reliable, too, as its 26th place finish in the 2015 Driver Power survey testifies, although a spate of recalls has blighted the model’s reputation.
Last Updated
Key facts
Warranty: 5 years | Boot size: 286 litres |
Width: 1,695mm | Length: 3,950mm |
Height: 1,510mm | Tax (min to max): £0 to £30 |
Best Toyota Yaris Deals
Best Toyota Yaris for...
Toyota Yaris History
2014: Yaris launched in July with distinctive X-shaped grille.
2014: Yaris Hybrids built April 2014 recalled for brake fluid check;
2015: Models built September 2014-January 2015 recalled for wheel hub check; Toyota Safety Sense suite of safety features available as an option on all versions bar Active from August.
2016: Yaris range refreshed with equipment enhancements at all levels including a temporary spare wheel on all versions, while top-spec Design replaces Sport trim. Excel becomes a Hybrid-only grade.
Understanding Toyota Yaris car names
- Yaris
- Engine
- 1.5 VVT-i Hybrid
- Gearbox
- CVT
- Trim
- Active
- Engine
- There are four engines in the Yaris line-up. Like our example here, typically the name of each begins with the engine capacity (in this case, 1.5 litres), followed by VVT-i, which stands for variable valve timing and injection (simply, it aids efficiency and economy).
- Gearbox
- CVT stands for constantly variable transmission; in other words, it’s an automatic. There’s also a choice of five and six-speed manual gearboxes, but hybrid versions are available only with CVT.
- Trim
- There are four trim levels ranging from basic Active to range-topping Excel, available only on the hybrid version. Meanwhile, there are still some unsold 2015 models which, instead of being badged Design (one down from Excel), are called Sport.
Toyota Yaris Engines
Engines: 1.0 VVT-i, 1.33 VVT-i, 1.4 D-4D. 1.5 VVT-i
If you’re on a tight budget, the 1.0 VVT-i is the one to choose. It returns 67.3mpg and costs nothing to tax but you need to plan overtakes well in advance, and it struggles to power a fully loaded Yaris comfortably.
On price, performance and running costs the next engine in the range, the 1.33 VVT-i, is the best. It’s lively around town and a relaxed cruiser on the motorway, all while returning good, real-world economy. The CVT automatic version is no slower or thirstier, but it’s also not as refined or pleasant. Both cost £30 to tax.
The only diesel, the 1.4 D-4D, is about as economical on paper as the 1.5 VVT-i hybrid but on the road, it is probably more so. It costs nothing to tax, either. It is the quickest engine and pulls strongly from low revs. However, with the cheapest version, the Toyota Yaris 1.4 D-4D Icon 5dr, costing £15,895, it is expensive.
The 1.5 VVT-i hybrid (it can run on electric power alone or a combination of electric and petrol) is the most economical engine, at least on paper, but it’s also expensive and offered only with the noisy CVT automatic transmission. However, it is reasonably powerful and, because it emits just 75g/km CO2, is exempt from the London congestion charge.
Type | Mpg | Bhp | 0 - 60 | top speed | |
1.0 VVT-i | Petrol | 67.3mpg | 67bhp | 15.3s | 96mph |
1.33 VVT-i | Petrol | 57.6mpg | 97bhp | 11.7s | 109mph |
1.4 D-4D | Diesel | 80.7mpg | 88bhp | 10.8s | 109mph |
1.5 VVT-i | Petrol-hybrid | 78.5-85.6mpg | 71bhp | 11.8s | 103mph |
Toyota Yaris Trims
Trims: Active, Icon, Design, Excel
Basic Toyota Yaris Active models feature powered and heated door mirrors, front electric windows and alloys. There are seven airbags, and tyre-pressure monitoring and stability control, too. They cost £1500 less than Icon, the next trim level, so you can forgive its plain black wing mirrors.
Icon brings front foglights, smarter alloys, chrome detailing and body-coloured wing mirrors. There’s a rear-view camera, air-conditioning and Toyota’s Touch 2 multimedia system with digital radio. Yaris 1.5 VVT-I Hybrid versions get a push-button start. Icon is our choice for value.
Design brings a honeycomb lower front grille, cruise control and smarter upholstery but it’s £1300 more than Icon and is not available with the 1.0 VVT-i engine. Yaris 1.5 VVT-i Hybrid versions get dual-zone automatic air-conditioning.
Excel trim is offered only on the 1.5 VVT-i hybrid (this engine is also available in Active, Icon and Design trims). Features include a height-adjustable front passenger seat and styling tweaks. Toyota’s package of safety features, called Safety Sense, is a £400 option on all engines and trims, bar Active. It includes an automatic braking system, which can prevent low-speed collisions, an alert if the car strays out of its lane, and sensors that automatically switch your headlights to main beam if there are no cars nearby.
Toyota Yaris Reliability and warranty
The Toyota Yaris charted in 26th place for reliability out of 200 models in the 2015 Driver Power survey but in terms of overall owner satisfaction, it finished in 76th place in the same chart – a 29-place fall from its position in 2014. It could have been worse but for owners’ apparent satisfaction with their cars’ low running costs and in-car technology. Reassuringly, the Yaris is one of the few cars to have a five-year warranty.
Used Toyota Yaris
Thanks to its long warranty (2014-registered Yaris models will have around three years of their warranty remaining, assuming all services have been carried out to the letter), impressive economy, good build quality and respectable equipment levels, the Toyota Yaris is a safe used car buy.
Toyota doesn’t have the brand clout of Audi or BMW so values take a bit of a tumble in the early years, meaning used prices are attractive. The versions that were more expensive when new, such as Sport and Design trims, are the best value used models, as they come with more equipment without much of an increased cost.
Whichever engine you choose, look out for cars with the optional satellite navigation, called Toyota Touch 2 Go, and Toyota Safety Sense which includes pre-collision assist (an emergency braking system useful in city traffic), and active cruise control which maintains a safe distance from the car in front.
Prices below show typical BuyaCar discounts for our pick of new and used models. Scroll down further for the very latest new Toyota Yaris deals or search for all new and used Toyota Yaris offers.
List price | BuyaCar new | 1 year old | 2 years old | 3 years old | ||
Best for performance | Price | £15,895 | £14,431 | £10,995 | £8998 | - |
Save | 9.2% | 30.8% | 43.4% | - | ||
Best for families | Price | £14,265 | £12,897 | £10,995 | £9998 | - |
Save | 9.6% | 22.9% | 29.9% | - | ||
Best for economy | Price | £16,495 | £14,959 | £13,990 | £9999 | - |
Save | 9.3% | 15.2% | 39.4% | - |
Toyota Yaris Prices
Toyota Yaris Active
1.0 vvt-i active 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 65.7mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £12,106
You could save up to: £1209
1.5 hybrid active 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 85.6mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £14,893
You could save up to: £1677
Toyota Yaris Bi-tone
1.5 hybrid blue bi-tone 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,598
You could save up to: £2547
1.5 hybrid blue bi-tone 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £18,167
You could save up to: £2628
1.5 hybrid bronze bi-tone 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,596
You could save up to: £2549
1.5 hybrid bronze bi-tone 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £18,164
You could save up to: £2631
1.5 hybrid grey bi-tone 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,596
You could save up to: £2549
1.5 hybrid grey bi-tone 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £18,164
You could save up to: £2631
1.5 hybrid red bi-tone 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,596
You could save up to: £2549
1.5 hybrid red bi-tone 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £18,164
You could save up to: £2631
1.5 hybrid white bi-tone 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,596
You could save up to: £2549
1.5 hybrid white bi-tone 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £18,164
You could save up to: £2631
1.5 vvt-i blue bi-tone 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £14,886
You could save up to: £3009
1.5 vvt-i blue bi-tone 5dr [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,455
You could save up to: £3090
1.5 vvt-i bronze bi-tone 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £14,886
You could save up to: £3009
1.5 vvt-i bronze bi-tone 5dr [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,455
You could save up to: £3090
1.5 vvt-i grey bi-tone 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £14,886
You could save up to: £3009
1.5 vvt-i grey bi-tone 5dr [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,455
You could save up to: £3090
1.5 vvt-i red bi-tone 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £14,886
You could save up to: £3009
1.5 vvt-i red bi-tone 5dr [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,455
You could save up to: £3090
1.5 vvt-i white bi-tone 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £14,886
You could save up to: £3009
1.5 vvt-i white bi-tone 5dr [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,455
You could save up to: £3090
Toyota Yaris Design
1.5 hybrid design 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £16,108
You could save up to: £2337
1.5 hybrid design 5dr cvt [nav/pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,110
You could save up to: £2480
1.5 hybrid design 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £16,677
You could save up to: £2418
1.5 hybrid design 5dr cvt [pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £16,541
You could save up to: £2399
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £13,355
You could save up to: £2790
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr [nav/pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £14,356
You could save up to: £2934
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £13,923
You could save up to: £2872
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr [pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £13,788
You could save up to: £2852
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 58.9mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £14,227
You could save up to: £2938
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr cvt [nav/pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 58.9mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £15,229
You could save up to: £3081
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 58.9mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £14,796
You could save up to: £3019
1.5 vvt-i design 5dr cvt [pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 58.9mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £14,660
You could save up to: £3000
Toyota Yaris Excel
1.5 hybrid excel 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,114
You could save up to: £2501
1.5 hybrid excel 5dr cvt [15 inch]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 85.6mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £16,755
You could save up to: £2535
1.5 hybrid excel 5dr cvt [nav/15 inch]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 85.6mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,324
You could save up to: £2616
1.5 hybrid excel 5dr cvt [nav/pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £18,116
You could save up to: £2644
1.5 hybrid excel 5dr cvt [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,683
You could save up to: £2582
1.5 hybrid excel 5dr cvt [pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 78.5mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £17,548
You could save up to: £2562
1.5 vvt-i excel 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £14,798
You could save up to: £2997
1.5 vvt-i excel 5dr [nav/pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,800
You could save up to: £3140
1.5 vvt-i excel 5dr [nav]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,367
You could save up to: £3078
1.5 vvt-i excel 5dr [pan roof]
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 56.5mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £15,231
You could save up to: £3059
Toyota Yaris Icon
1.0 vvt-i icon 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 65.7mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £12,168
You could save up to: £2647
1.5 hybrid icon 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 85.6mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £15,618
You could save up to: £2352
1.5 vvt-i icon 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 58.9mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £12,871
You could save up to: £2744
1.5 vvt-i icon 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 60.1mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £13,746
You could save up to: £2869
Toyota Yaris Icon Tech
1.0 vvt-i icon tech 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 65.7mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £12,650
You could save up to: £2715
1.5 hybrid icon tech 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol/electric hybrid
- Economy 85.6mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £16,099
You could save up to: £2421
1.5 vvt-i icon tech 5dr
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 58.9mpg
- Gears manual
Starting at: £13,352
You could save up to: £2813
1.5 vvt-i icon tech 5dr cvt
- Doors 5
- Fuel petrol
- Economy 60.1mpg
- Gears automatic
Starting at: £14,227
You could save up to: £2938