The new Toyota Yaris Hybrid, the first supermini hybrid car on sale in Britain, will be cheaper than rival ‘eco-signature’ cars, according to the Japanese manufacturer.
Toyota is keen to stress, especially to company car drivers, that the new Yaris Hybrid is between 10 and 44 per cent cheaper to run than its ‘eco’ version key rivals from the Ford Fiesta, Vauxhall Corsa, VW Polo and Honda Jazz ranges.
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Comparing Yaris Hybrid prices against the Yaris petrol counterparts is difficult as the specifications differ, but the Yaris 1.33-litre T Spirit 5-Door costs £14,735 and the 1.5-litre Hybrid T Spirit £16,995 so Hybrid power costs £2,260 more.
However, despite the significant extra amount in a price sensitive sector, it costs less to run in taxes and fuel and appears more competitively-priced compared to other manufacturer’s eco versions, which all carry a price premium over conventional petrol/diesel models.
At the international press launch this week in Amsterdam, Toyota UK managing director Jon Williams said:
“The Yaris Hybrid is a major step forward for the company rolling out its latest technology and I am confident of selling 2,600 this year, just under 6,000 next year, and it will help to break into more company business because of the 100 per write-down allowance for companies, 10 per cent benefit-in-kind company car tax rating as well as zero rated congestion charge.
“Even if the London congestion Charge is changed to become zero rated only for cars emitting less than 85g/km of CO2, as has been suggested, the Yaris Hybrid T3 and T4 models will still be charge free."
“Yaris sales last year were 18,000 units, this year they are likely to be 28,000 and next year about 28,600 models with an increasing proportion being the Hybrid derivative."
Meanwhile Toyota retail product manager Alan Barrett added that with the changing economic situation he believes the Yaris Hybrid might see more retail customers choosing a lease or finance purchase scheme rather than buying one outright.
He also expects the Yaris Hybrid to have more appeal to fleets and even publicly-funded authorities and bodies.
“Because Yaris Hybrid will take us into a new sector of the market with this technology it will also allow dealers to engage with customers who do not already use a hybrid or who have never considered a Toyota before," said Barrett.
“It is going to give us great opportunities and with support from Toyota Financial Services I think that we might see about 80 per cent being acquired on PCPs, which are particularly attractive for this car."
Due to the initial strong residual value forecasts of 39 per cent retained value, the Toyota Yaris three-year PCP charges range from £199 to £219 per month, with deposits costing from £3,619 to £3,926, depending on the model chosen.
The Toyota Yaris Hybrid is covered by a 5-year/100,000 new car warranty extended to 8-years/100,000 for the hybrid system components with the battery designed to last the lifetime of the car.