Toyota Aygo city car

Drive

As with the Citroen C1 and Peugeot 107, the Toyota Aygo comes with only one engine choice and does without a diesel option. The 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol has only 67bhp – making it fine around town, but a bit breathless on the motorway. The lightweight body means the Aygo feels responsive in first gear, allowing you to nip in and out of traffic easily and safely, and thanks to light steering, parking is a piece of cake. The suspension is well suited to the car and soaks up bumps and potholes without feeling too soft – inspiring confidence from behind the wheel. At higher speeds you’ll notice the intrusive wind and road noise makes long distance trips a bit of a chore, and while the good visibility is useful, it can make you feel quite vulnerable when surrounded by big vans and large lorries.

Comfort

One of the Toyota Aygo's plus points is its supple and cushioned suspension. It manages to iron out bumps in the road without feeling too soft – meaning the tiny Toyota is actually quite fun to drive. The three-cylinder engine has plenty of character and feels quite lively under acceleration. However, as the car's revs and speed build, it can get quite noisy, with a loud thrum from the engine and particularly intrusive wind and road noise. When it comes to driver and passenger comfort, the little Aygo is some way behind more recent competition like the VW up! and Skoda Citigo. There's not a lot of adjustment in the driving position, and the seat bases are quite flat. Take a place in the back of an Aygo and you won’t want to stay there for long – head and legroom isn’t unacceptable, but adults will struggle for comfort over longer journeys.

Reliability

Given that this is a Toyota, you’d expect the Aygo to offer bulletproof reliability, and you wouldn’t be far wrong. The 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine is dependable – if a little slow – and build quality is impressive. It finished a disappointing 73rd in the 2012 Auto Express Driver Power Survey, but was only marked down for the obvious shortcomings in practicality and comfort, and given the useful five-year/100,000-mile warranty, the baby Toyota should still be a reliable city car. In terms of safety, the Toyota Aygo, Citroen C1 and Peugeot 107 all fall short of up-to-date competition – confirmed in 2012 when Euro NCAP downgraded the trio from four to three stars in its stringent crash tests. Side airbags are an option on entry-level cars, as are rear headrests – equipment that really should be standard on all cars nowadays.

Practicality

As you’d expect, the Aygo's tiny exterior dimensions translate to a fairly small interior. There's plenty of space up front, with lots of useful cubbys and storage areas, though adjustment in the driving position is poor. In the rear, there's just about enough room for a pair of adults but access on the three-door model is severely compromised due to the low roofline and awkward entrance. The boot is among the smallest in class, at 139 litres, though unlike the Peugeot 107 and Citroen C1, the Aygo does come with split-folding rear seats as standard. If you need to carry lots of shopping on a regular basis, though, you’ll be better off with the more practical VW up!. That said, as an easy to drive, quality city car, the Aygo ticks a lot of boxes thanks to light steering and good visibility.

Value for money

Alongside the cheaper Peugeot 107 and Citroen C1, the Toyota Aygo may appear expensive at first glance – after all, they’re essentially the same car but with reworked panels and different badges. However, the slight price premium can be easily justified when you consider the superior interior build quality and generous five year/100,000-mile warranty. Inside, the Aygo feels well built and easy to drive, and while standard equipment isn’t all that impressive on base-spec cars, top-spec Fire or Ice models do come with air-con and Bluetooth. Given the car's age, there are plenty for sale on the used market, yet prices are strong, meaning you’ll get a fair amount of cash back when the time comes to trade in. However, beware of cars like the Hyundai i10 and Kia Picanto, which are even better value and offer increased practicality.

Running costs

Thanks to the Aygo's lightweight body and tiny dimensions, it is impressively cheap to run. There's no diesel option, but the tiny 1.0-litre engine will return 65.7mpg and emit just 99g/km of CO2 – making it free from road tax and London Congestion Charge exempt. There's an automatic version available but it's not as nice to use and does have slightly higher fuel consumption. Low insurance costs mean it's popular with young drivers, while the five-year/100,000-mile warranty should help keep a lid on unexpected bills. Toyota also offers competitive fixed-price servicing and fixed-price repairs with no hidden charges. Add in a fifth place finish for Toyota in the 2012 Driver Power survey and you should have a dependable city car with rock-bottom running costs.