‘DIAMOND’ DOES A SPARKLING JOB
Compact crossover is a ‘finely balanced package’ and attractive, Calgarian says
Canadian singer songwriter Diamond Joe White has a tune called High Rider. The song is about Alberta ranching pioneer John Ware, and has nothing to do with Toyota’s newest vehicle, the Compact-High Rider, or the C-HR for short.
Toyota says the 2018 C-HR was designed using a ‘distinctive diamond’ theme.
Toyota claims, “The C-HR’s exterior is unique in the compact crossover market, combining a coupe-like sporty upper body with a dynamic lower body and powerful stance. The interplay between the main body and prominent wheel flares presents an iconic diamond profile.”
The C-HR was first introduced in 2015 as a concept vehicle. With an aggressive stance and bold, futuristic design cues, the 2018 production model has stayed very close to its roots. According to the automaker, the C-HR incorporates Toyota’s New Global Architecture (TNGA) approach to platform and powertrain design. The company says TNGA imbues the C-HR with a low centre of gravity, high strength and body rigidity, all in a lightweight package. Powering the C-HR is a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine that’s backed up by a continuously variable transmission (CVT) to drive the front wheels. Toyota’s Sport drive mode increases throttle response, and the CVT includes a simulated seven-speed ‘shiftmatic’ mode.
Available only in XLE trim, the $24,690 C-HR can be ordered with the $1,600 Premium Package to give larger 18-inch aluminum rims and a host of technology and safety upgrades, including blind-spot monitor and rear cross-traffic alert.
“Those 18-inch wheels and tires nicely filled the wheel wells,” says Calgary driver Bob Corrigan. “The C-HR was a finely balanced package from the outside, and it’s a very attractive car in my opinion.”
Corrigan learned to drive in Winnipeg using his dad’s 1957 Chevy and has since experienced a wide variety of vehicles, from trucks to sports cars and everything in between. On his driveway now there’s a 2011 Hyundai Sonata and a 2003 Toyota Camry, the latter with 240,000 kilometres on the odometer. With his wife, Barb, the pair put on plenty of highway miles travelling into B.C. as well as running errands in the city.
“My top three purchasing considerations when shopping for a vehicle include reliability, cabin sound proofing and fuel economy,” Corrigan says.
Corrigan is five-foot-10 and he found getting into the C-HR an easy task. It took him little time to become comfortable in the manually adjustable clothcovered driver’s seat and appreciated the power lumbar support, but says he’d like to see the passenger seat similarly equipped.
“The headliner and door panels are an interesting design (diamond-patterned texture),” he says. “I’m not a techie, but I did find it easy to pair and use my phone via Bluetooth, and all of the controls, including the climate controls, were simple to use.”
The 2.0-litre engine produces 144 horsepower and 139 poundfeet of torque, which was adequate to propel the C-HR around the city and on rural highways.
“It’s got reasonable acceleration, but it roars a bit getting up to speed,” Corrigan notes. “It felt well connected to the road, too, and I never felt like I was fighting it at any time.”
The suspension was tight and responsive and felt sporty without having a jarring ride.
While Corrigan says he doesn’t engage too much with new technology, he found he appreciated the lane-departure alert with steering assist. “I’d never experienced that before, and if you don’t use your turn signal to change a lane it lets you know you’re coming off-line. I think it’s a good feature to have,” he says.
An avid golfer, Corrigan put the C-HR to the test to see how many bags of clubs it might carry. Without the rear seat folded forward, he says it will ‘just’ hold two bags. And there’s the rub: he’d want to be able to carry four people and their golf gear. The C-HR should be capable of seating five adults, but there’d be no room for luggage or much other gear.
So, who would best suit the C-HR in his opinion?
“A single person or a couple who might occasionally take other people with them,” Corrigan says. “My son Sean, he’s six-foot-two, and he found he had enough headroom in the front and the back, but there’s just not much cargo room with that rear seat occupied.”
“My youngest son, Kieran, is working on getting his driver’s licence and he really liked the C-HR. He wanted to know if we could keep it; he’d love to have a vehicle like this.”