Toyota Yaris ride & handling

The steering feeds into the sense of composure. It isn’t as rawly responsive as some in this class, but it is well matched to the Yaris’s generous roll rates. Toyota claims this supermini is almost 40% more torsionally rigid than its predecessor – chiefly because of the stiff dashboard panel and greater use of spot welding, it says – and on this evidence we’ve little reason to doubt it.

Ultimately, in its standard guise, the Yaris shows more potential as a driver’s supermini than it actually realises. There’s little flair here and the car is impressively settled over a broad range of speeds and quietly satisfying on the right road.

There is also no doubt that numerous rivals offer more in the way of entertainment – not only the Ford Fiesta but also any Peugeot 208, Seat Ibiza or Mazda 2 equipped with three pedals and a conventional engine.

The Yaris’s electronics nevertheless helped to prevent power-on understeer well enough and the inherently neutral handling balance meant decent speed could be carried throughout the lap of our handling circuit.

Heave became an issue at various points, as we would have expected, but in general the Yaris has to be pushed hard before progress becomes ragged. That the engine is such an unenthusiastic performer makes getting to that stage something of an involved endeavour in and of itself.

Things take a downward turn in the GR Sport. It lumps and bumps its way through both the city and on A-roads, and the stiffness is off-putting - not helped by the car’s comparatively large, 18in wheels.

You’d perhaps forgive the level of firmness in a hot hatch, but it's additionally disappointing when there’s little reward from the engine for your pains. It’s also really quite noisy in the cabin. It's certainly fair to say that if you want a Yaris for its comfort, you should avoid the GR Sport.

Ride quality isn't much better in the Premiere Edition. Around town, it's a little more at home, but out on more rural, unkempt roads, its stiffer set-up and 17in wheels mean the ride can become clunky and brittle, especially over consistent imperfections. When riding over sharper edges and potholes, or travelling over lumps and bumps at slower speeds, you do get jostled around more.