Advantages: Looks good. Lots of gadgets. Responsive, quiet engine.
Disadvantages: Not very economical. Stiff ride.

...of which is too wide for the hole and has been partially forced in at an angle before giving up; the automatic choke takes ages to kick off and, finally, the front armrests squeak like hell all the time when you rest your arm on them. Typical British build quality (the car is made in Derby). One thing I have noticed that I never noticed before is that a lot of Avensis are used as taxis, which doesn't do my 'street cred' any good in the eyes of my children! NB: Someone who read this said I should have mentioned what I paid for it. Well, the model I actually bought is the T180 (which isn't featured on Ciao) and the dealer was asking £21,800 with the metallic paint option and we settled at £19,200, with 12 months road tax and £10 worth of diesel. The dealer also insisted on having cleared funds in his account before I picked the car up... Read review

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Advantages: Economy, features, performance, comfort
Disadvantages: Cabin Road noise, eats tires

...After being an owner of Japanese cars for the last few years, I figured i would stick with them when choosing my new company car. However, I have left the Nissan stable and jumped ship to the Diesel powered wonders of Toyota. What a great move this was! When debating with my wife over what we needed from a car, I initially turned my nose up at a Toyota. A completely illfounded judgement now that i look back on it. It ticks all of our boxes as well as the company boxes. Let me tell you all about my Toyota Avensis T3-X D4D 2.2 5 door wonder car! Reasons for buying - Personal. We needed a large family car that was reliable,economical preferably diesel, spacious and comfortable to ride long distance in. It also needed a hatchback to throw all of the kids belongings in. Speed isnt everything but I wanted a car that responded when i put... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful

Advantages: Good safety
Disadvantages: front door design fault

...We brought a brand new Toyota Corolla T3 hatchback from a local dealer last September when there was a special offer i.e. slight reduction in price. When we were test-driving the car (slightly older model), it was good with power-steering, sensitive brakes and air-conditioning respond very fast. It was a hot and sunny day and within a minute of pressing the button, cold air was already filling the car. Excellent. The trim looks good and the price was reasonably good 12k sterling before the haggle begins. The dealer was quite helpful as well for obvious reasons. Once we have got the slightly newer version of it. It look slightly different. The main change is curtain air-bag at the side. These curtain air-bag will protect you from side-impact - good safety feature to have with the car is already renowned for its safety... Read review

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Advantages: Well built, smooth gear changes, very safe car
Disadvantages: Handling not so good

...this is an issue for me. Having spent many hours searching for a vehicle, and after altering my budget many times, I filtered out all options until I was left with the Toyota Avensis VVT-i 1.8 T3-S. Performance wise on paper, this was as similar to my Honda that I would be able to get to. It was supposedly more fuel efficient, and due to the low cost of Toyota part, this model was cheaper to insure than my Honda. I have only managed to get between 120-130 Mph in this car, which I was quite disappointed. Being the same engine size as the Honda and also possessing variable valve timing technology, this car just doesn't feel like it has the same 'ooopmh', maybe im just nit picking or bitter that I lost my old car. With features such as front and side airbags, which is becoming a standard feature in all cars, this car has basic protection... Read review

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Advantages: Reliability, consumption, price, ride confort
Disadvantages: VIsibility

.... The boot space is huge (520 litres). Was originally going to get an estate, but having seen the saloon boot, you really thing how many wide screen colour tvs you are going to be carting around in the car over the duration of its life. The only thing vaguely approaching a problem is a squeek in the clutch when lifting the pedal (sounds like a bed spring). Have had it checked (5 year warranty) by Toyota who claim to have fixed it but in any case say it has no effect on the car. It's just a badly oiled part and if I knew more about cars the I could probably fix it myself. Another strange thing is that sometimes braking at slow speed you can (just) hear the hydraulics in the brake. Again it doesn't interfere with the functioning of the car but you'd have thought the designer would have got rid of that noise which is a bit disconcerting when you... Read review

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Advantages: Good on petrol,nippy.
Disadvantages: back seat space restricted,boot space restricted,feeling of being quite low down.

...Without a doubt, this car has all the quality that you would expect from a Toyota. Looks wise,the car has alloy wheels,body coloured bumpers as standard-looks very smart & is well built.. Inside, looks are classy,not too fussy.Cd player,air con as standard,along with your very useful drinks holder.Seats are very comfortable and fully adjustable.Not too many special features as standard,but you have your basics,which are acceptable for the price paid. The corolla is very well made,no rattles,squeaks or manufacturing faults within my first 2 years of ownership. To drive, around town ,it is very nippy.Easy to park in tight spots-good visibility,and handles very well.Gear change is very smooth. Motorway driving is good-though at high speeds their is slight wind & road noise.Though the smoothness & steadiness of the motorway drive... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Amazing.. in all categories
Disadvantages: door pockets too narrow

...Back in 2006 I had left a Review on the old toyota yaris T-spirit 1.0. What can I say??? I have now upgraded to the new model and it's even better than the old one. At first I wasn't too conviced by the different shape but soon grew to love it. I call it my bubble now. I find this car excellent in all ways. I'm a driving instructor so the selling feature at the time was knowing that I would be protected by 9 airbags! And trust me ...in my job that is very reassuring. I find that the clutch control is excellent. Its very hard to stall in it. Hill starts are a breeze and being a 1.3 its very nippy and won't let you down. Vey easy to manoevre both forwards and backwards. Holds corners very well indeed! Doesn't consume a considerable amount of petrol. As my learners have said "it looks cool"! Again the driver's seat can... Read review

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Advantages: Fuel consumption, space, price
Disadvantages: design, bumpers are completely varnished, no parking-assistance system

..., if I won't had bought the Avensis. - Okay, that's not quite true, but reading some articles and test of these class I found for myself, the Avensis is best value for money. Audi is unreasonable expensive, and Mazda - I don't trust in the quality of Mazda yet, and the Avensis is a real European car (designed in France, manufactured in England), so it gives work to Europeans, not to some guys somewhere. And a short funny thing by the way: Toyota?s getting to import the Avensis and the Yaris from England to Japan! :-) So I got the Model T3-x in Germany called 'Sol', but in Germany you won't get the alloy wheels in that package, but Vehicle Stability Control and Break Assist System and Traction Control, that's part of the UK 'Spirit' Edition. As technical functions are more important to me than good looking (that's why I could buy... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: Safety, economy, build quality, performance.
Disadvantages: Turning circle, slight visibility issues, no cruise control.

...The Avensis is a frugal, easy to drive car that excels in many areas such as ride, build quality, safety and practicality. My experience with the T3x D4D is a very good one. The car really does justify the reasonable 16K (approx) price tag, as I fail to see any competitor in this price bracket that can offer the superior build quality, unrivalled safety and sheer quality of drive. You can return around 45mpg for daily use with ease, and the tank (according to the onboard range counter) will last you around 430 miles. In terms of performance, there can be a minor lag as with most diesels, but will swiftly deliver you to 60mph in about 11 seconds. The mid range turn of speed between 50-80 is very good which allows it to cruise the motorway very effectively. Around town the car is easy to drive (for what is quite a long car... Read review

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Advantages: Well equipped; Fairly Quick – and silver.
Disadvantages: Acceleration only “good”; a few rattles.

....” The Avensis is an extremely capable motorway cruiser – I think it is hard to beat. The Avensis isn’t strong on straight line acceleration – it doesn’t feel as fast as the Carina it replaces - but it makes up for this with great suspension and brakes which means the Avensis can comfortably corner much faster than the Carina ever did. The stereo is fantastic (though others might find the standard in-boot 6 CD changer limiting.) Security is good too (much better than that on the other cars I considered) with a full alarm activated from the key. This is a car you grow to like – for the little things too – like its enormous capacity washer bottle! The unexpected bonus with this 150Bhp car was group 10 insurance – 3 groups lower than the 130bhp Carina it replaces. Maybe this is because boy racers aren’t impressed by the lack of spoilers... Read review

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