Citroen C1 vs Toyota Yaris

ironlady2022

I'm looking for my first car and have been looking at the above two models. I like the look of the Citroen C1 and insurance is around £1200 mark. I know it has a Toyota engine but the inside is a bit basic.

My Brother and some friends have recommended me the Yaris as it is a Japanese car and my Family have only ever owned Toyota cars and they have been so reliable with no breakdowns. I like the look of it and the inside looks much less 'plastic'. Insurance on average is coming out to be £1300-£1500.

What are peolpe's opinions on these cars? As a first driver, should the interior even be of concern?

My requirements are: small, fuel efficient, low clutch control, less than 1.3cc, low insurance group.

My budget is 6-7k including insurance, the less I spend the better.

adamc260

Both are fairly bullet proof tbh...

The yaris as you said is less... 'basic' inside, you'll probably get an older yaris compared to a C1/107/Aygo because the latter has a lower start price to begin with.

Ich_2

Have a look at the Suzuki Alto my son has one and it fits the bill. Rather better interior than the C1 types (he did look at an Alto and didn't like it)

gilbert_and_sullivan

Yaris hold good used prices, maybe a bit too good IMO, you will get a much newer and lower mileage C1/107/Aygo.

The 3 cylinder petrol engine is quite perky in the small car, i found Yaris to be a bit sluggish with it.

I assume you mean a nice easy light clutch control, well luckily the 3 cyl engine is tractable and difficult to stall in normal use, very different to much of the competition which stalls at the drop of a hat.

Yaris is a more substantial car though if you prefer that.

Do not be put off by basic looking interiors with minimal goodies....if it aint fitted it can't break and they can't sting you an extortionate amount to fix it.

Plenty of time to learn all about that should you progress onto other marques who know how to fleece their customers...who must love it cos they keep going back for more.

Lithian

mayling03 wrote: »

My requirements are: small, fuel efficient, low clutch control, less than 1.3cc, low insurance group.

My budget is 6-7k including insurance, the less I spend the better.

4 out of your 5 requirements will only particularly apply to a new driver and once you start driving you won't be a new driver for long.

I think what most people do is get a car which is as cheap to insure as possible for the first year and then get a car they will actually like. (that said the quotes so far seem pretty low anyway) So I'd probably spend upto £2k on a basic car and as close to £1k on insurance as possible and then next year you have £4k + whatever you sell the first car for (£1.5-2k) to buy something that has a nice interior and some gadgets while not having (quite as) crazy insurance costs.

and finally a top tip
Size of car, size of engine and insurance group aren't necessarily linked to insurance cost

nomoneytoday

The Yaris is a good choice, but you may find the factory isn't Japanese

Strider590

The only thing I don't like with the Yaris (and the C1 might be the same), is the way the car corners like a waterbed and has things like convex mirrors that make parking a real pain and make it look like every driver on the road is trying to kill you.
Oh and the brakes are "snatchy", there's no feel, they're either on or off.
Any car that actively reduces a drivers confidence, is onto a loser in my book. It's no wonder I always see them being driven at 15mph or parked across 3 spaces at the local supermarket.

jase1

Several other cars with variants of the engine in the Aygo/Yaris.....

Suzuki Swift is probably the front-runner, and a nicer looking car than the Yaris as well IMO. The Daihatsu Sirion is a very underrated car, also with Toyota underpinnings, and an often-overlooked variant of the Daihatsu is the Perodua Myvi.

The latter would be my choice if I could find one -- because no-one has ever heard of the things, but they're nothing but a Malaysian-built Daihatsu, itself an unknown variant of a Toyota, the oily bits are bulletproof but the values are extremely volatile and it's occasionally possible to pick up a nearly new one for peanuts.

Another good alternative to the Yaris, if you're after Japanese engineering, is the Mitsubishi Colt. The 3-door is a decent-looking little car and the 1.1 in particular is cheap second-hand (even brand-new they sometimes sell for £7000).

Biglad_3

Hyundai i10

Best balance of space/equipment/warranty/cost

Consistently voted best small city car.

oldagetraveller

"recommended me the Yaris as it is a Japanese car"
As hinted in an earlier post. No it isn't - it's French! However, I suspect Toyota dealers, if needed, are possibly better with after sales service than PSA if the car is bought from them. It might also be thrown together a bit better than a Citroen
The Mk2 Yaris interior might be less "basic" but it sure as hell is made from cheap and nasty hard plastics which rattle and creak alarmingly! So don't be deceived by it's interior looks.
I own one too. Except for the cacophony of interior noise it does feel to be of good solid build and should be ultra reliable if looked after.

wantonnoodle

I would be careful if I were you. Not to put too much of a dampener on things, but the gearbox in the Aygo (also used in the C1) is not the best.

My partner's sister has an 07 plate Aygo, and the past year has seen her replace the gearbox when it failed completely, a couple of months back the bolts holding the clutch plate sheared through, needing a new clutch and cable, and about 10 days ago she had to have the 2 parts of the gear linkage replaced as they had snapped. From what she has been told by Toyota, they know they are common problems and acknowledge a design flaw in the gearbox and transmission, but won't take any action to correct it.

The replacement gearbox cost over £1000 to supply and fit, as it requires the entire front of the car (and engine) removing to get to it.

Just a word of warning....