Toyota Auris Hybrid - opinions ?

Yolina

ERICS_MUM wrote: »

I'm still grappling with the basics of the Hybrid, could someone explain how the engine and battery set-up actually works, when does the battery kick-in and any down side to the arrangement ?

Thanks again.

EM x

Based on my 3 and a bit year old Yaris Hybrid...

The petrol engine is a modified Atkison cycle, and so by definition is tuned for efficiency. The electric engine gives you the grunt with 100% of the torque available at any rpm. Consider the car as being petrol with electric assistance (though obviously it's no sports car :rotfl: unlike the lovely hybrid toys Audi, Porsche & Toyota run in WEC and Le Mans... about 1000bhp in these little things).

You have the 2 engines under the bonnet and the 2 batteries under the rear seats assuming the Auris is the same layout as the Yaris. The standard 12v battery does exceedingly little... it's pretty much only there to start the computer that starts the HV battery

After that, it's all really clever stuff and it knows when to use what engine (or both at the same time) I just let it deal with that and I drive it like I would any car.

The shopping trolley consistently gives me on average 62mpg in winter and 72mpg in summer (that's calculated by me, not the in-car computer) the main difference being that at colder temps, the petrol engine needs to run more often to keep everything up to temperature.
Like every car, short trips aren't going to be good for the mpg The ickle Yaris isn't the best motorway car by a long shot but it's ok, I'm sure the Auris would be nicer on the motorway)

rhino_horn

I run a fleet of Auris's.

Our drivers love them because they are so economical. The business edition is great because it has the sat nav.

They have to be serviced every 10000 miles so as to not invalidate the warranty.

One of the cars has just come off the fleet, it's on 90000 miles and I've been driving it for the last couple of weeks - it drives absolutely fine.

In the 3 years since we've been running them, none has broken down. Annoyingly I can't get into our service management website otherwise I could give you a list of work that has had to be done on them.

snowscreamer

My OH recently bought a 2013 Toyota Auris Hybrid Excel after having lots of trouble with his two previous diesel cars.

Fuel consumption doesn't quite live up to the claims but we still have had an average of 63.5mpg on the 3000 miles we have driven so far which isn't bad at all. At that to no road tax, and its top 5 rating in Which? both overall in the medium car market and for reliability - it's a winner.

We couldn't be happier with our choice. Although we did splash out to buy it (£12000 for 3 years old, 15k miles), our monthly cost saving on repairs, fuel and road tax is dramatic (especially repairs!)

ERICS_MUM

Thanks again, I'm planning to test drive one at the weekend. I'm hoping for a 2014/2015 with a max of 10,000 miles on the clock for about £14,000, do you think that's realistic ?

EM x

AdrianC

We rented a current-shape Auris hybrid last summer, and put about 2,000km on it, more than doubling the mileage when we collected it.

God, it was dull. It wasn't particularly economical - about 40mpg across mixed-use in Sweden, a country with fairly sedate driving and low traffic.

In the week and a half we had it, it had a dash glitch on one occasion. The boot was small - it had a very high base. It had non-keyless locking, but keyless ignition - a ridiculous combination. The reversing camera was saved from utter pointlessness by the abysmal visibility - but, unless the roads had been utterly bone dry, you needed to wipe the camera lens to see anything. The only way to be sure what the hybrid drivetrain was doing was to have the dash videogame showing you - or to press on a bit. Then you KNEW what it was doing, because it very quickly got harsh and noisy. The battery life in electric-only mode was laughable - just a low-speed trickle around a residential area, and it'd be kicking in the internal combustion within a km or two - and then it'd work that intrusive internal combustion engine harder to charge it.

It was just thoroughly underwhelming in all respects.

UncleZen

I drove one at the weekend.
It was excellent in an urban environment but quite noisy at motoryway speeds. The noise wasnt wind noise, but came from the engine and cvt box.

bigjl

ERICS_MUM wrote: »

Thanks again, I'm planning to test drive one at the weekend. I'm hoping for a 2014/2015 with a max of 10,000 miles on the clock for about £14,000, do you think that's realistic ?

EM x

I would suspect you should be fine if this above average mileage one is anything to go by.

https://www.cargiant.co.uk/car/toyota/auris/MV13ZWD

I would probably go for an above average mileage one to save some money.

Don't forget to check DrivetheDeal etc to see if a new one is available for a good discount.

A quick check on DtD gives a price of £15.8k for a brand new one.

https://www.drivethedeal.com/buy-a-new-car/TOYOTA/AURIS_HATCHBACK/1.8_Hybrid_Active_5dr_CVT_71330.html?Capid=71330&type=discounted

Over £4K discount.

I would stretch the budget to get a new one for the extra £1800.

Especially since you would have the full five years warranty.

snowscreamer

Two months ago - 2013 Toyota Auris Hybrid Excel (top of the range) 15000 miles for £12500. That was from a Toyota dealer in south west London.

So your price sounds achievable to me, possibly might have to drop the spec a little from the Excel.

ERICS_MUM

IM GETTING REALLY ANNOYED WITH MYSELF !

I'm no closer to deciding which car and in fact I've added more options !

I'm desperate to change car because mine is on its last legs and I'm getting to the stage where I don't want to go out in it. One wheel rim has corroded and is deflating the tyre to the point that Im having to pump it every couple of days and it's wearing the tread badly.

Thing is, it's the wrong time to be making such a big decision because my Mum died a few weeks ago and I'm not thinking straight at the mo.

SO the full story is:

My current car is a Toyota Avensis 5dr hatchback 2 litre petrol automatic. 1999 and I've had it from new - nearly 17 years, so that's probably why I'm so nervous about this whole car-buying malarkey !

Toyota no longer do a 5 door Avensis and I don't want a saloon or estate/tourer, I like a large hatchback boot. I like a powerful engine and I think this is my main concern with a new car - which would match my 2L Avensis ? It doesn't have to be an exact match but toward that sort of level.

From very basic research I think my choices are Ford Focus or Mondeo. Toyota Auris. VW Golf or Volvo V40. I've read loads of reviews but lots are written in what I call men's jargon and it means nothing to me, sorry.

I don't really want to add any more options to my list. I'm so sorry to be making such a drama out of a metal box on wheels !

What do you all think ?

Thank you

EM xx

AdrianC

ERICS_MUM wrote: »

I'm desperate to change car because mine is on its last legs and I'm getting to the stage where I don't want to go out in it. One wheel rim has corroded and is deflating the tyre to the point that Im having to pump it every couple of days and it's wearing the tread badly.

Or you could spend a few tens of quids and get that wheel refurbished. The tyre wear is almost certainly related to driving it with the tyre underinflated.