SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8
This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you get at home.
Unlike most car reports, what you read in these pages will not be a faithful reproduction, albeit slightly reworded, of what appeared in the manufacturer's press release. We look for background material, user experience and whatever else we can find that's beyond the obvious. Our guiding rule is that you will be able to tell that the car was actually driven.
*To read one of our archived road tests, just select from the alphabetical menu of manufacturers' names on the left. Hover your cursor over the manufacturer's name, then choose from the drop-down menu that appears.
*Pre-owned: Our tests go back quite a few years, so if you are looking for something pre-owned, you might well find a report on it in here.
*Please remember too, that prices quoted are those ruling at the time the reports were written.
Posted: 6 November 2014
Spouse says it’s cute. Car guards said “it’s nice,” but they know about what I do so they’re polite about everything. The school kids didn’t comment because there was a competing attraction; a long, sleek and expensive Mercedes-Benz 500SL, on the front lawn at the same time. Children can be so shallow.
But it is noticeable. Hell, yes, it’s noticeable. Painted Inferno Metallic (vivid burnt orange) with embossed black plastic cladding half-way up its body, front and rear scuff plates, roof spoiler, plumper tyres on bigger alloy rims, special seats, functional (up to 50 kg) roof rails and a totally non-functional faux bull bar in silver plastic up front, it screams for attention. It’s aimed at youthful buyers going for the SUV look without necessarily intending to venture off asphalt. Toyota SA doesn’t let on, but the Cross version stands 20 mm higher off the ground - at 174 mm - than plain Etios’. We thank a website in India for that snippet.
There’s just one model of Etios Cross, in top-of-the-range Xs trim, so at least that’s easy to deal with. In addition to standard kit, this level gives you electric windows in the back, rear demister and wiper, fog lamps, indicator repeaters on wing mirrors and remote central locking. The plain key and lock-unlock fob are separate units. There is no autolock. You control that from the driver’s door button. Another thing controlled from the driver’s seat is the fully manual door mirrors. But new since the old days is height adjustment for the pilot’s chair.
Other running changes since 2012 include a new grille, colour coded door mirrors and handles, new tail lamps, new front seats with adjustable head restraints, auto-up for the window on the driver’s door, revamped instrument cluster with Ice Blue backlighting (comment reserved), a bigger LCD display, warning buzzers for undone belts and improperly closed doors (very necessary – they need closing firmly), a smart new radio and CD unit with USB and auxiliary (but only the Cross gets Bluetooth), lots of piano black trim, and what is described as an improved NVH package. This consists of hydraulic engine mounts to replace the old rubber jobs, a modified silencer and revised damper settings (more on this later).
Remaining the same are its 66 kilowatt, 1500 cc petrol engine, five speed manual gearbox, the final drive ratio, ABS brakes with EBD, two airbags, luggage capacity as per hatchback models at 251 litres, fully sized steel spare wheel stored valve-side up (thank goodness), manually unlatched (key or cable release) hatch door and a one-piece backrest for the rear seat. This locks in place with a pair of catches, so it’s either a two-person job to lay it down or one walks around to the other side to do it in instalments.
Rear seat accommodations, for tall people, are very good with plenty of head-, knee and foot room. Storage is less generous with small bottle bins in the doors and a single cup holder in the central tray, but no seatback pockets. Two head restraints are accompanied by a pair of full belts and a lap strap. Ease of entry and exit are good for a small car.
As mentioned in our review of the original sedan in 2012, the conservatively rated engine is plenty perky. It turns over at about 3200 rpm at 120 km/h in top gear, has decent roll-on acceleration at freeway speeds and holds its momentum up fair inclines without needing to change down. Gear ratios are well spaced and the box works cleanly. Pedals are nicely spaced if a little small, but big left feet can’t squeeze by to get to the floor. There isn’t a footrest. Other items we missed were satellite controls on the steering wheel and reversing beepers.
Getting back to the revamped suspension, I took the car on a Midlands Meander shortcut to see how it behaved on a rippled stretch of dirt road. It absorbed the corrugations very well and remained stable. Verdict: excellent for a small, inexpensive car or about average for an India-built vehicle. (That’s a joke, people). Their roads are as rough as ours, so absorbent suspensions are prioritised there.
Finally: Critics reckon its styling is too extreme, it was built down to its price (flimsy boot floor covering, iffy handbrake-pull action, too many colours and textures on the dash, and quality of some fittings) and that it hasn’t kept up with competitors in the bang for buck department. But fans are buying them - a Toyota SA spokesperson told us that dealers have been moving about 200 units per month since launch. That’s out of a total Etios offtake of around 1600 monthly.
Test car from Toyota SA press fleet
The numbers
Price: R159 800
Engine: 1496 cc, DOHC, 16-valve, four-cylinder
Power: 66 kW at 6600 rpm
Torque: 132 Nm at 3000 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 11.3 seconds
Maximum speed: 165 km/h
Fuel Index (no computer): 7.2 l/100 km
Tank: 45 litres
Boot: 251 litres
Warranty: 3 years/100 000 km
Service plan: 2 years/30 000 km; at 10 000 km intervals
This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.
I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material. If I ever place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with that vehicle at least once already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.
Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. As quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so they can see I do actually exist.
Comments?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you thoroughly disagree with what I say? That's your privilege, because if everybody agreed on everything, the world would be a boring place. All I ask is that you remain calm, so please blow off a little steam before venting too vigorously.
This site is operated by Scarlet Pumpkin Communications in Pietermaritzburg.
Unless otherwise stated, all photographs are courtesy of www.quickpic.co.za
Copyright this business. All rights reserved.
SA Roadtests
South Africa
ctjag8