Hybrid Toyota SUV a solid choice
Adding a hybrid powertrain to Toyota’s baby SUV does more than just save fuel, writes Richard Bosselman.
Full-electric vehicles are the products which today’s trendsetters – and car makers – throw their money at with abandon. Yet now is not the time to dismiss the hybrids that started our electric interest back in the late 1990s. With EVs still rather limited in range and generally expensive in price, the goal for electric-assisted petrol cars surely remains an open one.
No points for guessing which brand is patently keen to make the most of this potential scoring spree – Toyota’s commitment to spreading hybrid powertrains across its global lineup is unmatched by any other maker.
The C-HR has become the eighth Toyota model here with this kind of powertrain and could be more important for this courageously styled crossover than the other adjustments – more variants, better pricing – arriving with its mid-life facelift.
Of the now five models, just two have the same Atkinson cycle 1.8-litre petrol, plus hybrid powertrain, as the Toyota Prius and Corolla. Yet with hybrids still figuring strongly in the national psyche, who’s to say they won’t become the strongest sellers?
The new powertrain certainly makes an impact on the C-HR’s driving character. Performance delivery is quite different to that out of the 1.2-litre turbo petrol; while hardly a slug, it’s definitely less about fast frenzy.
Still, while this test began with reservations, it certainly didn’t end that way. I quite took to this new vibe. In many ways, it actually makes the C-HR a better car and, since the premium over the 1.2 is quite modest, it’s easy to see it winning more fans than the prefacelift editions managed.
Accepting a larger capacity engine creating just 5kW more power and 43Nm less torque than its baby bro seems a big ask, yet it’s less of an issue than it might seem on paper. Yes, the hybrid is less (ahem) electric in its immediate responses, yet in midrange oomph the gap closes and it feels quite strong enough for open road driving.
What also appeals, too, is that it is a lot less busy in operation. Don’t get me wrong, I love the 1.2’s effervescence, but for distance driving that high rev buzz becomes wearingly busy. The hybrid is more polished. Indeed, it seems far more rounded, amiable and likeable than in its alternate applications.
A fair swag of my driving was done in a manner that hybrids once hated – at pace, on the open road. Where such driving would have badly tripped up an older hybrid, the C-HR handled it beautifully. Not just the powerplant. CVTs are so soulsapping and it’s always seemed a shame this transmission type has always been the only choice for the C-HR.
However, in this setting, I’d have to concede it could be worse. At least it has defined stepped change points, is amenable to hand-shifting and so long as you stay calm, it will too. Also, you cannot dispute the benefits for fuel consumption, in this instance an average of
4.9 litres per 100km.
You’ll never see anything so frugal from a 1.2. And that’s when using the air conditioning, having a passenger for almost half the trip and favouring Sport mode. All this was with the allwheel-drive Limited edition rather than the $3000 cheaper entry front-drive version driven subsequently.
C-HR’s driver rapport sets it up as a great ambassador for the merits of the Toyota New Generation Architecture.
Placing a battery under the back seat and a more substantial drive setup front and underneath adds more weight, but the car still handles sweetly, with little body roll and almost neutral handling in all-wheeldrive format. If anything, the additional low-slung kilos help settle the ride.
The steering is intriguing; there’s initially not much feedback, yet push on and it delivers an impressive accuracy and responsiveness.
A tinker with the head and tail-lamps and a change of alloy wheel styling is about the sum total of the 2020 styling revision, but that’s OK. The car’s design has settled in nicely; it’s still a hugely abstract approach and still not for everyone – least of all those who are flummoxed by the rear door handles being hidden in the C-pillar – but onlooker outrage seems to have settled.
A great driving position and a deceptively expansive (for the type) interior are C-HR strengths. Admittedly, entering and exiting the rear without hitting the door frame requires dexterity and the view out isn’t brilliant for tall types, but it is an actual four-seater. Likewise, even with clear compromise for styling, the boot is pretty practical, too.
No argument, it’d be great to one day experience a Gazoofettled C-HR with a properly sizzling engine and suitable transmission. As things stand, though, the hybrid does a sterling job of lifting this car’s status among small urban SUVs.