THE AYS HAVE IT(some text hidden)

By Jonathan Crouch

Ten Second Review word count: 79

Toyota thumbs its nose at volume brands who've abandoned the citycar segment and brings us one here, the Aygo X. But it's a city car with a bit more pavement presence than those you might be used to; in terms of the statement it'll make at the gym, it's a world away from the old Aygo. Plus it's economical, promises to be fun to drive and can even be had in semi-convertible form. Trendsetters should form an orderly queue.

Background word count: 179

In the motor industry, everyone's got their own perspective. Take city cars. Two of the industry's biggest players, the Volkswagen Group and Stellantis, say that segment is effectively dead. But Toyota, the world's biggest car maker disagrees, which is what's brought us this car, the Aygo X. It's pronounced 'Aygo Cross' by the way, like the Yaris Cross, Toyota's smallest SUV, the 'X' designating the fact that the Aygo has gone all 'crossover' on us. This, it seems, is the Japanese maker's strategy for justifying this model's continued existence. In its previous two incarnations, it was produced as part of a joint venture with Stellantis brands Peugeot and Citroen, whose 108 and C1 models were built alongside the Aygo at a jointly owned Czech factory. Following the dis-continuation of 108 and C1 production, Toyota decided to take full control of the plant, then redesigned the Aygo to take a shrunken version of the Yaris supermini's TNGA platform before starting production of the resulting Aygo X model at the Czech plant alongside the Yaris Cross. Now you're up to date.

Driving Experience word count: 248

You might have expected the switch of platform here to deliver a hybrid powertrain option - which apparently will fit but hasn't been included in the initial range because it would make the car too expensive. So Aygo X buyers are limited to a conventional familiar Toyota 1.0-litre three cylinder petrol unit producing 71bhp and 93Nm of torque. You do get a choice of transmission though, either a five-speed manual gearbox - or a CVT automatic for city dwellers. As you'd expect from those stats, performance is rather leisurely, 0-62mph in the manual model occupying 15.6 seconds; the CVT version will do it a tenth of a second faster, but it's less efficient. The manual model tops out at 98mph - for the auto version, its 94mph. Unlike the Yaris Cross, there's no all-wheel drive option - and you'd be very unwise to let the crossover styling tempt you into taking this car onto a rough road, despite the 11mm higher ride height. It does handle tarmac better than its predecessor though, thanks to its stiffer platform with its proven suspension set-up. Toyota says that this model's 72mm shorter front overhang in comparison to the Yaris will make for easy parking and reckons that this car is 'designed for the narrowest streets', suggesting that its 9.4m turning circle is one of the tightest on the market. The brand points out that visibility has been much improved by raising the seating by 55mm and making the A-pillars 10% steeper.