Toyota Yaris Cross 2021 review: GX 2WD petrol

I think it looks pretty good. It has a certain presence about it, with the grille and front bumper seemingly nodding towards an electric-only future, as there’s not a mess of mesh grille plastics for air intakes. To me it looks like an angry little ant, with its blacked-out look beady little headlights giving it some masculine appeal.

The side profile is a little odd. I don’t love that you can see the silver paintwork in the wheel houses and under the body cladding - it gives it that “budget” look.

But I do love the squared off over-fender looking guard extensions and that lower black plastic panel which just has an interesting angle to it.

The side profile is a little odd.

What doesn’t have quite as appealing an angle to it is the bulbous rear wheel arch - it looks kinda like the Suzuki Ignis in that regard. And the wheelbase looks long to me, too: and it is for the size of the car, because the Yaris Cross measures a tiny 4180mm long and has a 2560mmw wheelbase. It’s also city friendly 1765mm wide and 1590mm tall, meaning it meets the “high riding” stance that many urban-dwellers want, and has “running ground clearance” of 170mm. 

The Yaris Cross stands out from its rivals.

The back end design is a bit oddball, too - while Toyota is usually clever at managing the packaging and space in its SUV models (the C-HR is the notable exception), the Yaris Cross could well have been a bit more ‘wagon-like’, I think. Instead it has the tapered bootlid and sharp, sticky-outy tail-lights, though the rear end is quite bluff from the badge down to the ground. 

Overall I like the look, and think it stands out enough from its rivals. Most of all I love that Toyota has gone for a dark-tint look front and rear, which just makes it look a little more sinister.

I wasn’t necessarily left wanting more - it was actually a case of wanting less. Less engine noise, specifically.

The engine in the Yaris Cross is a 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol unit, and it doesn’t have a turbocharger like most other small-engine rivals. Instead, this raspy little thing has to work hard to get its power out, and because it is paired to a continuously variable transmission (CVT) auto, it means you really hear it in the cabin.

The 1.5-litre three cylinder produces 88kW/145Nm.

So much so, in fact, that my partner Gemma described it as being “like a lawnmower” from the passenger seat. She also equated it, rather unfairly, to her first car - a 1986 Ford Laser - in how loud it was, when we were set on cruise control and encountered a long hill on our way down to my parents’ house. The wind noise around the mirrors and B-pillars also caught my attention.

It was, indeed, very loud. Annoyingly loud, in fact, and it’s always going to be loud because you’re always going to be pushing it hard to get the most out of it. This engine isn’t Toyota’s best effort. It lacks low-rev urgency and pulling power, and though the CVT - with its clever launch gear (which is essentially a traditional first gear before it switches to the elasticity of CVT behaviour) - is actually okay in level-terrain, slow moving traffic, when you encounter a hill or ask any more than about 60 per cent of it, the noise is frustrating. And even switching the Drive Mode to PWR (power) didn’t alleviate the strain all that much.

The Yaris Cross features eco and power driving modes.

Mum and dad were both amazed that a car that has just launched could be so gruff. And they’ve been in the T-Cross and other small SUVs I’ve had, which really brought the lack of engine refinement to the fore for them.

Otherwise, the Yaris Cross was pretty good. The steering is light and predictable, enjoyable in corners and quick to react when you turn the wheel. 

And the suspension - while a little firm-edged at times on the open road - was great around town and in urban driving situations. The little 16-inch wheels and reasonable Bridgestone Turanza (205/65/16) tyres proved grippy enough - and grippier indeed than the cruddy Bridgestone Ecopia 15s on the Yaris SX I drove recently.

Oh, and the ride was also mostly good on a dirt country road we went for a drive on, too. It didn’t wobble or crunch too much.

The Yaris Cross GX wears 16-inch alloy wheels.

The Yaris Cross would be a great choice for those people who want a very compact crossover model - be they living in a small country town like my folks, or in a city environment. And you'll absolutely love the fact it has proximity unlocking for the front doors and boot, and also has push-button start - so you just don't need to worry about digging through your pockets or bag for your keys.

It’s a really easy car to just get in and go, even though I did find myself wishing for a little more urge from the engine. 

But it’s a really simple car to drive and park, and I love the way the electronic park brake applies and disengages without you needing to remember to hit a trigger or press a button.

That said, the GXL adds better stuff like LED headlights instead of the dull, yellowy halogens, not to mention blind spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert, and front parking sensors and surround view camera, which would be high on my “should I spend more” checklist. 

The GX variant misses out on LED headlights.

I did truly appreciate the boot size for the Yaris Cross. We put in our dog beds, a suitcase, and a couple of bags of odds and ends and there was still room to spare in this 2WD model (the AWD’s smaller boot would rule it out for me). I don’t have kids and can’t vouch for the pram-friendliness of the boot, but I know it’s better than a C-HR for cargo space, and would advise anyone cross-shopping the two to do a test-fit. 

In theory, the Yaris Cross is about as safe a car as you can get, because it’s based on the Yaris, which was labelled the “benchmark for small car safety”. And so, it carries over all the good stuff the Yaris gets. But at the time of writing there is no ANCAP crash test safety score, nor a Euro NCAP score.

That includes an auto emergency braking (AEB) system that includes pedestrian and cyclist detection, which works from 10km/h to 180km/h. 

There is lane departure warning with lane keeping assistance, which works from 50km/h to 180km/h. When the standard-fit adaptive cruise control is active, there’s also lane trace assist, which will keep you in the middle of your lane. 

There is also road sign recognition - it shows up on the dash, and if you’re using cruise control you can adjust your speed to match by simply hitting ‘set’. There is also “Intersection Turn Assist” that will stop you diving through gaps in traffic that are deemed unsafe, and also auto high beam lights.

The airbag coverage is excellent - there are eight airbags comprising dual front, dual front centre, front side, and full-length curtain coverage. 

There are three top-tether child seat anchor points and two ISOFIX points for baby seats.

This is the kicker. The base model GX Yaris Cross lists at $26,990 for the petrol 2WD version. Add hybrid for $2000 more in FWD, and add another two grand for AWD.

There’s honestly little reason to get the AWD system, in my opinion, but I don’t think my first choice in the Yaris Cross range would be the petrol-only version. It’d be the hybrid 2WD, and I’d want the GXL trim… which would push the price up considerably, to $31,990. But at that price, it’s the sweet spot in the range.

Even if you don't get the hybrid model, however, you'll be treated to impressive real-world fuel economy. On test, the dashboard was reading 5.7 litres per 100 kilometres, while the claimed combined cycle fuel use is 5.4L/100km. I did the "at the pump" figures, where I calculated the real fuel use over a full tank of fuel (the fuel tank capacity is 42L for petrols, but despite being on fumes according to the gauge, I only managed to put in 34L) - and the figure was actually 5.9L/100km.

When it comes to ownership, Toyota is known for reliability and promising ownership, and the Yaris Cross should, in theory, live up to expectations.

There’s a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty plan, which extends out to seven years/unlimited km if you make sure the car has its logbook servicing up to date - it doesn’t even have to be through a Toyota dealership, either.

There is also a capped price servicing plan with prices pegged at $205 per visit, due every 12 months/15,000km. So why wouldn’t you maintain it through your dealer!

No roadside assist included for free, though. Some other brands throw that in, and offer longer standard warranty periods, too (Kia, MG, Mitsubishi - to name a few).