| Launch Report Toyota Aygo |
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The on-road Aygo experience is one of calm precision. First gear gives you a good take off sprint (it's even possible to spin wheels on dry tarmac if you're keen) but the step to second gear feels a bit long for the little engine. Pick-up is smooth and progressive, though, and if you keep the revs high performance is better. The Macpherson strut front and torsion beam rear suspension setup is tuned to keep the little car relatively level through the weaves, and if you're ever forced to do a quick evasive wiggle to avoid a hedgehog on the highway or a cat in the carriageway, you'll find there's no secondary squirm following up the manoeuvre and you're back on the straight and narrow immediately. On some surfaces it chucks up a bit of road-noise but on all roads, from weaving B-roads to open motorway, the Aygo is stable and straight, and driving it is instinctive and easy.
More accurate prices will be released nearer the sales launch but initial suggestions are that if money is important to you, this package will be difficult to beat. Toyota is planning to sell around 13,000 in the UK each full year. It sees its main buyers as being, "young, active, urban individuals who enjoy a spontaneous approach to life and leisure" - in other words, people younger than the current typical Toyota owner. I don't know how I feel about it being a first step on the ladder of Toyota brand loyalty. It's almost depressing to think that after they outgrow the Aygo, those effervescent and impulsive free spirits will be crushed into a Yaris or a Corolla. |
