Toyota Aygo X – Review

By Liam Bird

You may not have noticed, but city cars, those cheap, little, loveable, runabouts, that on-paper at least provide the perfect urban and suburban transport (especially where the buses, the trams, and the tube don’t run) are in decline. Small cars take big bucks to develop and tool-up for, and often the resulting profits are low; the original Mini for instance, took years to break even.

The Citroen C1 is no more, so too its Peugeot 108 sibling. SEAT no longer make a Mii, and Skoda can’t sell you a Citigo. If you want a Volkswagen Up your choices are fully-electric E-Up! or GTi – if that is, you can find the latter. Kia do still list the Picanto on their website, however. I’ve always quite liked the Picanto…

And then there’s this: The Toyota Aygo X.

“Funky graphics”

The X is actually pronounced Cross, presumably as in cross-over, but chunky plastic wheel arch cladding and a slight (read 11mm) suspension lift aside, one look at the Aygo X is enough to tell you that it is in no way an off-roader. Tackling anything bigger than a speed bump is not in this car’s remit. Think urban – as in funky graphics, two-tone paint and bigger wheels – rather than anything to do with diff-locks or four-wheel drive. A nice little run out in the countryside is altogether more the Aygo X’s thing than a weekend’s green-laning. Besides, the Aygo X sits on 185/60 R18 (very much so) road-tyres.

The Aygo X also sits on a shortened version of the current Toyota Yaris platform which makes it a lot bigger than the Aygo we’ve grown accustomed to. Although, at just over 3.7m long it’s hardly what you’d call large. Rear seat space is strictly for two – short people preferably, plus the back doors with their pop-out (rather than wind-down) windows are quite small. Boot space is limited to 231 litres – about enough for the weekly-shop or a couple of small suitcases. Fortunately, up front there’s enough space for driver and passenger to get comfy.

“Reputation for reliability”

The equipment list, thankfully, is generous. The Aygo X Limited Edition Toyota were kind enough to lend me came with keyless entry and start, wireless smartphone charging, heated part leather seats, automatic air-con, automatic wipers, automatic headlamps with automatic dip function, lane assist, cruise control, reversing camera (I know, in something this small!), Emergency Brake assist, and a very clear 9 inch Toyota Smart Connect touchscreen with both Apple Carplay and Android Auto. Other goodies included, 18inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, heated mirrors, and a full length retractable canvas roof that felt as tight as a drum – so much so in fact I almost forgot it was there.

And the price for all this kit? £20,025. In fact, an entry level Aygo X can be yours for £15,405. That’s 3-Grand less that the cheapest Ford Fiesta, and Toyota’s reputation for reliability is simply in a different league to anything old-Henry every built.

So where’s the catch?

Well, as long as you’re content tootling around town, there isn’t one.

“Slow”

The Aygo X rides nicely, the driving position is nicely judged, and it steers obediently; it’s actually quite a lot of fun to throw it into a mini-roundabout. The five-speed gearbox swaps its cogs sweetly too. But, it’s woefully slow. Toyota may have made a new car but, alas, they’ve fitted it with the same old 3-pot motor that they’ve always used to power the Aygo. Just 71bhp and 69lbft of torque. 0-62mph takes a near calendar-worthy 15.6 seconds. If you’re in too high a gear and you plant your right foot hard down in the footwell, you’ll wonder if anything has actually been connected; progress outside of the city can feel glacial. I’ve read the CVT automatic version feels even slower – it’s louder too, I’ve heard.

If only, Toyota had given the Aygo X a bit more oomph. It’s genuinely a lovely little thing to live with, it easily does in excess of 50 mpg, and you just know its chassis could’ve happily dealt with more power. Not all city cars live in the city y’know.

All things considered and lethargy aside, the Aygo X is still a very good little car. If Toyota had have given if it more go, I’d now be in the process of telling you it was an excellent one.

Toyota Aygo X Limited Editon Manual
Engine: 998 cc 3-Cyl 12 valve, petrol
Transmission: 5-speed manual. Front wheel drive
Power: 71 bhp @ 6,000 rpm
Torque: 69 lbft
0-62 Mph: 15.6 seconds
Max Speed: 98 mph
CO2: 110g/km – 117 g/km (WLTP combined)
MPG: 55.97 – 57.65 (WLTP combined)
Kerb Weight: 945- 995 kg
Price: from £20,025 OTR (Limited Edition)