Verso-tile runner
WHEN a car company k nows its ca rs a re good enoug h to g ive a five-yea r wa r ra nt y f rom new, you k now t hey a re a lmost cer ta i n ly goi ng to be rel iable a nd long last i ng. That’s one of t he at t r ibutes most people a lready k now is t r ue of Toyota’s ra nge a nd t he seven seat Verso people ca r r ier is no except ion.
Th is is a fa m i ly ca r t hat’s not just reliable but pract ica l. The rea r five seats fold ind iv idua l ly to ma ke a my r iad of people a nd luggage combinat ions.
A nd t he qua lit y a nd fi n ish, bot h inside a nd out, a re exempla r y, i f a l it t le on t he du l l side.
That qua lit y reaches a l l t he way to t he ca r’s h ig h level of sa fet y a nd i n t he Eu ro NC A P crash test it reached t he top of t he l ist
at a nd its excel lent pract ica l it y ma ke it appea l to a w ide ra nge of fa m i l ies.
The latest updates in 2013 a nd 2014 broug ht a rev ised nose w it h a n improved f ront end look a nd sha r per head l ig hts, plus nu merous ot her cha nges bot h outside a nd i n.
There a re t h ree eng ines ava i lable a f ter 2014, a nd t he big gest sel ler – of which ma ny more w i l l be ava i lable second ha nd – is a 1.6 d iesel suppl ied by BM W.
This replaced Toyota’s ow n 2.0-l it re u n it a nd has hig her economy – 62mpg gover nment average – a nd low em issions of just 119 g ra m mes per k i lomet. re. Per for ma nce is fa i r, w it h 0 to 62 m i les a n hou r in 12.6 seconds.
The t wo pet rol eng ines a re a 1.6 w it h 130bhp and a 1.8 w it h 145bhp. The 1.6, w it h a ma nua l si x-speed gea rbox, is capable of 41mpg a nd covers t he bench ma rk spr int in 11.6 seconds, wh i le t he 1.8, d r iv i ng t h roug h a cont i nuously va r iable automat ic gea rbox, ta kes 11 seconds for t he spr i nt a nd is capable of 43mpg.
So per for ma nce is not h ing to w r ite home about, but for ma ny ow ners t hat wou ld be but a m inor ir r itat ion because t hey wa nt a ca r t hat’s rel iable a nd as sa fe as a n MPV gets.
The suspension majors on com for t
– wh ich is just as it shou ld be in such a vehicle. The r ide is excel lent over a l l su r faces, helpi ng to ma ke it a ver y good long d ista nce cr u iser. Wind noise is kept to a minimum and t he cabin is a refi ned a nd qu iet place to t ravel.
There are some ver y good people ca r r iers out t here now, wh ich r ide wel l a nd a lso ta ke t he cor ners w it h aplomb.
Sad ly t his is not one of t hem. The ha nd l i ng doesn’t i nst i l con fidence in t he d r iver because t he steer i ng has ver y l it t le feel. It was i mproved a f ter 2013, as were t he suspension set t i ngs to g ive bet ter road-hold i ng, but it’s st i l l not up to t he best.
The f ront a nd m idd le rows of seats a re wel l-shaped a nd suppor t ive a nd t here is good space for passengers using t hem.
But t he t h ird row is on ly la rge enoug h for ch i ld ren a nd access is d i fficu lt.
Equ ipment in ent r y Act ive models includes remote lock ing, a ir cond it ion i ng, elect r ic f ront w i ndows, USB a nd h i l l sta r t assist.
Mid-ra nge Icon adds a l loy wheels, elect r ic rea r w i ndows, touchscreen in fota in ment w it h DA B rad io, Bluetoot h a nd a rea r v iew ca mera, wh i le top E xcel models have bigger a l loys, pa r t leat her t r i m, f ront pa rk i ng sensors a nd sat nav.
Pay about £9,300 for a ’14 14-reg 1.6 D-4D Icon, or £14,000 for a ’16 16-reg 1.8 auto Trend.