The Verso-S is Toyota‘s re-entry into the baby people carrier market, having not had a supermini-MPV since the Yaris Verso’s demise in 2006.
It’s a popular sector with the Honda Jazz leading the pack. Target buyers are traditionally older people but, apparently, families and empty nesters will also consider the Verso-S.
The engine line-up is simple with just a 1.3-litre 98hp petrol engine offering 51.4mpg and 127g/km of CO2. Unsurprisingly then, it’s not a motorway mover and, as the most compact vehicle in its class, is better suited to urban situations. During the test period with BusinessCar, the Verso-S was subjected to motorways and rural terrain and coped well, although body roll was noticeable. It is, though, definitely a low-mileage runaround above anything else.
Specification is high across the two trims, TR and T-Spirit, with a 6.1in multimedia touch-screen, rear view parking camera and Bluetooth connectivity. The top-of-the-range T-Spirit, as tested, has 16in alloys, panoramic roof and rear privacy glass.
Interior space has been a focus for Toyota and the Verso-S provides good head and knee room for front and rear passengers. Rear seats are divided in the normal 60:40 fashion, and can be individually folded flat using buttons located in the back. It is also possible to fold the rear seats from the boot using levers fitted on each side of the loadspace.
The Verso-S T-Spirit has a P11D price of £15,690 which compares favourably with Honda’s Jazz EX-T at £16,250. While the Jazz has stronger residual values at 33.7% versus 31.9%, all things considered, the Toyota works out cheaper for whole-life costs at 42.1 pence per mile compared to 43.3ppm. Sadly, the car fails to add anything new to the sector or offer excitement but succeeds in doing satisfactorily what is expected of a mini-MPV.
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