Toyota urban cruiser (second car)

[zildjian]

Sue may need to replace the trusty Daihatsu in the near future and one of these is on sale locally a 1.4 diesel



Never heard of them myself, this one's been reduced significantly and reviews aren't especially inspiring in terms of design or use but seems to have Toyota reliability,

anyone know anything about them at all ?

[derestrictor]

Is that permanant 4wd we looked at a daihasu when local dealer sold them and one about that shape and size was which seemed a bit pointless in our uk climate

[Madmountainman]

The 1.4 D4D's the same as in my Corolla, not blisteringly quick, but quite torquey and relaxing to drive and does 62mpg. It's a Yaris with chunky styling and underrated because of it. Pound/Yen exchange rates put paid to it as a seller in this country so, if it's at a bargain price and you're looking to keep it, with little concern over resale value and saleability, go for it. Just take it for a good test drive first to see if you like the way it drives. If you're only planning lots of short journey's, then the diesel's not a good choice, in which case get a Yaris or Aygo.

[zildjian]

Well if it can cope on muddy tracked grass wet track that would be encouraging


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or this one with a shaky opening but then does well on a quarry course


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[Madmountainman]

It's got bugger all ground clearance and any 4WD with summer road tyres on will spin up in sloppy conditions, especially when driven like a knob, as in video No1.
That said, I spotted one a few years back and liked the look of it, looked up the price, was slightly horrified and didn't look again. If they're now relatively cheap, i'd have one in a shot as the 4WD on my regular winter commute adds an extra level of safety and drivability. I'd have to sit in one first of course, to see if I fit.
Mentioning fit, how is it I have more room and can drive the new rinky dink Toyota Aygo, which has oodles more space for the driver than in the current Hi-Lux, which is massive by comparison?

[zildjian]

We (Sue) needs only to cope with slippery grass, and un-gritted roads, obviously the video's featured only tame road tyres and there isn't much point in adding anything more serious for what this car is intended.

Our Fourtrack while still in piece and cosmetically pretty good, is still a 20yr old Daihatsu and we've had a handful of these and know the inevitable outcome

[derestrictor]

Well it didnt get stuck in the first video,
in the second there was it seemed a traction issue at the start (in the shallow pond) that was a mixture of road tyres and i think the car getting a bit confused in water,

it went better on a muddy climb

[zildjian]

anyway;

Car had all the toys inside, stop/start,keyless,Sat nav,reversing sensors,
but quite banal to use, much lower to the ground that it looks from outside and utterly gutless more to the point

was unclear at what point its 4WD comes in but it didn't happen under spirited cornering so this ones a no-no
search continues

[Madmountainman]

If you need a basic car with a really great reputation for reliability, good 4WD and a modicum of bells and whistles, keep an eye open for a mint 2nd hand Suzuki Ignis 4Grip. They may not be flash, but they do what it says on the tin and don't have lots of modern electronic gizmos and computers to go wrong. I looked at them before buying my Corolla, but I didn't fit comfortably with my long legs. Going newer and ditching the 4X4, their Swift is a great little car. I had their Splash with the 1.3 diesel as there was more room, but the drive from both cars is great, but you'll need the bigger engine of the sport or diesel, as the extra front end weight improves the grip, handling and feedback quite considerably. Unfortunately, you can't get the Splash, new, with the diesel in any more.