My life with a Toyota Aygo X-Play Touch MMT

[Pytheas]

(Note: This thread is going to be updated every now and then, referring to both the initial post and the responses to it.)

I recently purchased a Toyota Aygo X-Play Touch MMT and I would like to share my experiences with it, driving it at least 5 days a week. I live in Athens, Greece, so I apologize in advance for the use of specific terms and units. I plan to update this thread with new feedback as my experience with the Aygo grows day by day.

My driving habits:

• I commute daily to work, driving about 80 km in total
• My route consists of highways with open road (no traffic) and parts with heavy traffic.
• I am far from an aggressive driver, not really keen on pushing the engine to its limits; instead, I usually opt for "hypermiling"  (driving with low revs, avoiding sudden stops etc.)
• I tried to break-in my Aygo in the best possible way, avoiding high revs (max 3,500 RPM), high speeds (no more than 110 km/h) and sudden breaking (I tried to keep my eyes on the road and respond quickly) for the first 1,500 km. I may have overdone it with low revs when driving but I am working on it and I am still trying to treat my Aygo engine nicely, as I plan to keep it for quite a long time.

Selection criteria:
I selected Aygo over the competition (a hard choice I have to admit, including Hyundai i10, Kia Picanto (LPG), Suzuki Celerio and Renault Twingo, among others), based more or less on the following criteria:

1. Fuel consumption: Hard to beat the 4.2 L/100km of the Aygo
2. Size: As the car is mostly intended for personal use (commuting to work), I needed a compact and light car. I also have a wife and two kids (6 and 4 years old, respectively), so I needed a 5-door model to accommodate everyone at short routes.
3. Reliability: Toyota has established a great reputation for its reliability in Greece and since I estimate about 16.000-18.000 km/year, I needed a reliable car.
4. Safety: I think that Aygo had the most safety features included by default (e.g. number of airbags and other systems).
5. Automatic gearbox: Since a part of my route is in traffic, I considered this option important. Having a great experience from my father's automatic Honda Jazz I went for the MMT model (which has almost nothing to do with automatic, but I was not aware of that at that time),
6. Optional LPG kit: Toyota was the only car maker in Greece that offered the option for in-house installation of the LPG kit, therefore not affecting the car warranty. I plan to have it installed after the engine starts to show increased fuel consumption.

My impressions will follow as replies to this thread.

[Pytheas]

My first impressions - UPDATE: 29/8/2016:

A. The good:

• Really easy to drive: Great steering wheel, light, sturdy and nice behavior on the road
• Fuel consumption is great: If the indicators are reliable, I can easily drive with an average of 4,5L/100 km even in partial but heavy traffic. When driving on open roads (e.g. highways), I can easily see a consumption of less than 4L/100 km.
• Compact size so it's very easy to park almost everywhere. The parking camera (included in the specific version) makes parking even better.
• The semi-automatic MMT gearbox is really convenient for city driving, where frequent change of gears takes place. It is surely not as smooth as a full auto gearbox but it surely does the work.
• Various storage options for small items; most of them easily accessible to the driver.
• Minimum maintenance required: Servicing every 15,000 km (even for oil change) is a great plus for someone who needs his car on a daily basis.
• In highways/motorways it feels like a higher class/size car and I have already driven long trips without issues - in fact it was mostly a pleasure (see below).
• The leather driving wheel is great to feel.

B. The bad:

• Ergonomics could have been better: The switches for the power windows seem a bit too far from my hand, visibility seems limited through front windshield (e.g. it is hard for me to see the traffic light when being the first one on the lane).
• MMT is different than a fully automatic gearbox: No matter how I treat it, I can still feel every single change in grades.
• There are no handles for the passengers (referring to those handles on top of each door/window which passengers usually use in routes with frequent turns). Since I also used these for hanging my suits during trips, I found this lack pretty inconvenient.
• Trip computer could have been better: e.g. there is no option for keeping track of a trip's duration (despite the fact that it is displayed during each trip) and the Update button is not explained anywhere in the manual. Ideally, it could be programmed to include information on a trip such as duration (time), length (km) and fuel consumption and keep an exportable archive (am I asking too much??)
• Handbrake looks really cheap as it is as plastic as it gets. It reminds me of a toy's part to be honest.
• The position of the engine's coolant tank does not allow easy inspection of the coolant's level.
• The electric windows are not automatic (e.g. you have to keep pushing the switch as long as you want the window to open).
• The lack of a boot light is unacceptable to me; the cost would be really low and the benefit for the owner big...

This list is going to be updated, so keep an eye for updates :-)

Edited August 29, 2016 by Pytheas

[fordulike]

Excellent write-up Pytheas. Could you comment on the interior build quality please. In particular, whether it creaks and rattles like the previous version.

If Toyota have nipped these creaks and rattles in the bud, then my next car will definitely be the new version Aygo.

[Pytheas]

On ‎24‎/‎07‎/‎2016 at 4:24 PM, fordulike said:

Excellent write-up Pytheas. Could you comment on the interior build quality please. In particular, whether it creaks and rattles like the previous version.

If Toyota have nipped these creaks and rattles in the bud, then my next car will definitely be the new version Aygo.

Ahoy,

Thank you for your kind words. To me it seems that interior quality (referring mostly to the plastics) is great - and I drove a Honda Jazz CVT (a really high-quality car) for 3 weeks before getting into my Aygo.

I can hear no creaking sounds from any plastic of the car. Even the glove box makes no sound, despite the fact that it is already stacked with stuff (car documents, phone windshield stand, cables etc.). Plastic parts of the doors seem to be well-stuck to the metal parts of the doors and the different plastic parts of the front panel.

I have never been in a previous Aygo version so I cannot compare, but I have no complaints at all regarding the build quality of the interior. The only thing I could notice is the handbrake, which is as plastic as it gets, reminding toy parts!

[Pytheas]

First month with my Aygo

The first month with my Aygo ended with 2,000 km on board, including a short trip of 420 km to a city (so referring mostly to highway and an average speed of 90-100 km/h). An initial check of engine oil and coolant confirmed that everything is fine; however, I found it hard to check the level of the coolant due to the position of the container.

Average consumption was 4,6L/100 km (according to the car's trip computer), which made me happy; however, taking into consideration that this included a low-consumption trip as well as "lighter" traffic that usually (due to the Greek summer and family vacations, which significantly reduces traffic), I expect this to increase by September, when traffic will be back to normal. I really enjoyed the low fuel consumption in any case.

Plastics are still not creaking and the car still smells like new (this initial smell of the plastics). I enjoy the use of the multimedia system, especially radio and car/trip information on the large touch screen. I realized that this was one of the reasons I selected Aygo over the competition (both Suzuki Celerio and Kia Picanto had stereo's that reminded me of cars two decades old). 

So far I am really pleased with my selection and I have a great driving experience with my car. Let's see how it will go in the next months ;-)

[fordulike]

Thanks for the heads up on interior quality.

Definitely going to trade in for a new style. Toyota seem to have listened to their customers and added/improved some things that are lacking on the previous version.

I'm gonna go fun myself 

[Pytheas]

So far (in less than two months and with almost 4.000 km on the odometer) have made two relatively short trips with my Aygo:

1. One of about 440 km during the engine break-in period. It was an open highway with a lot of works in progress, so average speed was about 90-120 km/h (pretty convenient for the period). I was alone with only a small suitcase and some other stuff, so I was travelling light. I only used A/C for a short time and the fuel consumption was about 4,4 L/100 km.
2. One of about 700 km for a three-day family vacation (wife and two kids of 6 and 4,5 years respectively). I managed to fit a large suitcase (packing clothes and stuff for all four of us) in the boot, along with our beach bag (with towels and other things for the beach). A smaller suitcase (for our son's 9-days camp) was put between the two back seats (both kids are using booster seats) and my backpack was placed under the driver's seat. Various water bottles and smaller bags were scattered all over the car. The road was a mixed bag; motorway/highway with some flat parts, but also consisting of parts with slopes (uphills and downhills). The flat parts were a joy to ride - I drove up to 130 km/h as the car felt steady on the road (increased weight) and safe to drive even boyond that (but wife would start whining). During the uphill parts, which were also curved parts, the car was struggling to keep up with a speed (again due to the increased weight) and we had to turn off the A/C (not used too much anyway). The fuel consumption was about 4,8 L/100 km, which was lower than I would expect based on the instant fuel consumption I kept checking during the trip.

In both cases, fuel consumption was not based on the trip computer but rather on topping up with fuel before and right after the trip; in any case, the trip computer seemed to be pretty accurate. Both trips were comfortable and the Aygo was a pleasure to drive - even the second trip, which showed the weaknesses of the small city car. I was also pleasantly surprised by the boot space as it proved sufficient for a short family trip. :-)

[FROSTYBALLS]

We had a run out in our Aygo this week, with my one sister and brother-in-law - approx 75 miles return. Brother-in-law is six feet 4 inches, and, although I have my seat in a forward position, he was perfectly comfortable behind. 

[yammie]

Great read up on your Aygo  Pytheas . I Only got my Aygo automatic this week, two years old and very happy with the car so far. Yes it has its faults like lack of stowage places, window switches to far away, headlight adj to far away to use on the move compared to my previous Yaris. This is my fourth Toyota and touch wood never been let down (fingers crossed)

 What annoys me is how every thing in the engine bay is squeezed into a small area I want to fit some twin horns but its impossible to get to the wiring for the horn so I can fit the Fiam horns ive bought.

[Pytheas]

My Aygo has reached the 8,000 km milestone within less than 5 months and everything seems to go pretty well so far. I drive about 400-450 km/week in a mixed cycle (both open highways and heavy traffic, both uphill/downhill and flat routes) as well as short distances within the city. Despite the traffic, fuel consumption is about 5,2 L/km (I drive rather conservatively, low revs and try to hypermile).

 

I still enjoy my 1-hour drive to work, despite the heavy traffic, and the automatic gearbox (MMT) contributes to that. Interior looks really modern and the touch-screen is something that even higher class cars miss - I have seen many fellow drivers checking out the screen while I am messing up with it in traffic.  

 

In the meantime, I noticed two minor things that annoy me:

1. I cannot check the level of the coolant - the container is almost stuck to the front side of the car and checking the level from the left side is not possible. I wonder how other owners of the same model manage to check the coolant level.
2. The low-beam lights are less bright/powerful than the LED daytime lights, so I find them pretty useless. On top of that, their thin eyebrow shape makes things even worse.

Apart from these minor glitches, so far, so good. :-)

[yammie]

On ‎16‎/‎11‎/‎2016 at 8:28 PM, Pytheas said:

My Aygo has reached the 8,000 km milestone within less than 5 months and everything seems to go pretty well so far. I drive about 400-450 km/week in a mixed cycle (both open highways and heavy traffic, both uphill/downhill and flat routes) as well as short distances within the city. Despite the traffic, fuel consumption is about 5,2 L/km (I drive rather conservatively, low revs and try to hypermile).

 

I still enjoy my 1-hour drive to work, despite the heavy traffic, and the automatic gearbox (MMT) contributes to that. Interior looks really modern and the touch-screen is something that even higher class cars miss - I have seen many fellow drivers checking out the screen while I am messing up with it in traffic.  

 

In the meantime, I noticed two minor things that annoy me:

1. I cannot check the level of the coolant - the container is almost stuck to the front side of the car and checking the level from the left side is not possible. I wonder how other owners of the same model manage to check the coolant level.
2. The low-beam lights are less bright/powerful than the LED daytime lights, so I find them pretty useless. On top of that, their thin eyebrow shape makes things even worse.

Apart from these minor glitches, so far, so good. :-)

I tend to drive local, but occasionally do a drive of about 100 mls each way, at the weekend it averaged 56mpg with mixed roads and motorway.

[Pytheas]

It's been quite a while since I last posted my updates so I'll try to make up for it right now:

• A week after its first b-day (one year), it reached 20.000 km (12.500 miles)
• The only indicator light I've seen in more than one year is the one for the deflated tyre (not a flat tyre, so I appreciated the warning, and I had the tyre fixed)
• Average consumption in moderate traffic is about 5,5 L/100 Km

I recently made a 400 km (250 miles) two-way, 5-day trip for family summer vacations. It included me & my wife, as well as my two kids (7 and 5,5 years old respectively). I managed to pack the following in my Aygo:

1. Trunk: a huge suitcase (the largest of my collection, with all our stuff), a full beach handbag and a packed beach tent, along with a bottle of water, fire extinguisher and all the necessary car stuff (triangle, pharmacy kit etc.)!!
2. Back side: Another beach handbag and two kids' bags were placed between and in front of the passenger seats, my thin laptop bag and a couple of pairs of shoes under the driver's seat and two grocery bags under the co-driver's seat. Two 500 mL bottles of water in the back door slots.
3. Front side: My wife had her handbag (pretty large one, I have to admit), a bag with snacks and a 2L insulated water bottle in front of her seat and still she was sitting comfortably. I squeezed one 600mL insulated water bottle in one of the front slots and three smartphones in the other, sun shaders for the kids and a wall charger in the door-side of my seat and a paper notebook on the other side. Cables, chargers and other small stuff were secured in the glovebox.

The trip was mostly on a highway, which allowed my drive at about 120-140 km/h (apart from the uphill parts, obviously) and it was a fun ride, as the car was loaded and therefore less prone to the strong winds blowing. Fuel consumption was a bit more than 5,5L/100 km (due to the high speeds and load). It took us about 3,5h to reach our destination (for each part of the trip). In addition, we went on some rough rides (even unpaved roads) in order to reach some beautiful beaches. In all cases, the Aygo was fun to drive and did pretty well even in hard conditions. I am still amazed by its capabilities and behavior even outside its natural environment (city).

The truth is that after 300 km of non-stop driving, my right leg (around the knee) started giving me a hard time (I am driving the EU X-Shift version, so my left leg sits comfortably) . The seat was not in the most front setting but still I started feeling uncomfortable and moved my whole body in order to find a more relaxed position. I would have made a short break if I weren't in a hurry to save some precious holiday time!

[Wiz201]

I got the new model Aygo this year in April ordered just before the car tax change so she's still free to tax. Personally I don't check anything like the coolant level as it shouldn't really drop anyway between one service to another. I do a six monthly or thereabouts check of the oil and that's it apart from screen wash obviously. For a 1 litre with 68bhp its surprisingly nippy and she pulls away faster than some of the other traffic. I also have the X shift auto version.

[Pytheas]

18 hours ago, Wiz201 said:

I got the new model Aygo this year in April ordered just before the car tax change so she's still free to tax. Personally I don't check anything like the coolant level as it shouldn't really drop anyway between one service to another. I do a six monthly or thereabouts check of the oil and that's it apart from screen wash obviously. For a 1 litre with 68bhp its surprisingly nippy and she pulls away faster than some of the other traffic. I also have the X shift auto version.

I guess your response goes to my other topic, with the question about the coolant level and thanks for taking the time to respond. I want to keep an eye on the car's fluid levels, just to be on the safe side (you never know what might be wrong). For example, I recently took a look at my wife's Corsa only to realize that her coolant reservoir was drained and I would like to avoid issues like that with my brand-new Aygo... 

[Wiz201]

7 hours ago, Pytheas said:

I guess your response goes to my other topic, with the question about the coolant level and thanks for taking the time to respond. I want to keep an eye on the car's fluid levels, just to be on the safe side (you never know what might be wrong). For example, I recently took a look at my wife's Corsa only to realize that her coolant reservoir was drained and I would like to avoid issues like that with my brand-new Aygo... 

Does it say in the manual?

[Pytheas]

Yes, page 322 (1KR engine); the problem is that there is no way that one can accurately check the level of the fluid due to the reservoir's location, while things seem to be much easier for the HM01 engine (p. 323 of the manual).

[FROSTYBALLS]

The UK doesn't have the PSA engine.

[Pytheas]

36 minutes ago, FROSTYBALLS said:

The UK doesn't have the PSA engine.

AFAIK, the HM01 is the PSA engine, isn't it? My Aygo has the 1KR-FE engine (the Toyota/Daihatsu one), and this is the one giving me a headache!

[FROSTYBALLS]

There are two versions of the coolant reservoir - type A which is shallower and wider, and type B which is deeper and narrower.

My Aygo has type A - which I would imagine would be common to UK right hand drive Aygo's.

With type A, one can see the FULL marking quite easily if one leans towards the Battery whilst looking down, and presumably the same applies to type B. I would imagine the LOW level marking on the type B is difficult to see. The 'satisfactory' coolant level is between LOW and FULL, so if the level of coolant is kept near the FULL marking, that should be OK.