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MyVi = Toyota Passo Review


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#1
Xoomie

Posted 13 June 2005 - 11:26 AM

Xoomie

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Been surfing the net and found a Passo review by Autozine.


"If the 1999 Yaris was a statement of style, the 2004 Passo must be a
statement of practicality. Its exterior design is neither pretty nor
elegant. Its cabin design is uninspiring. Plastic quality is average. It
innovates nothing. It does not set any new standard in any areas.
Nevertheless, it is undoubtedly a practical, easy-living hatchback. Its
squarer shape provides plenty of interior space, so is the long wheelbase
that exceeds Yaris by 70mm. Four large doors enables the passengers to
access conveniently. A huge and wide-opening tailgate aids luggage access.
Rear seats fold flat to form a flat load area. A pair of simple hooks
allow 2 tilt angles for the rear seatback….

Passo has a twins sister named Daihatsu Boon. They are the first joint
venture between Toyota and its subsidiary Daihatsu. Basically, they are
the same car with just the slightest deviations in packaging. To Toyota,
Passo slots in the space under Yaris to be the company's bottom of the
range. On the contrary, Boon replaces Sirion (Storia) to be Daihatsu's top
model. According to insiders, the twins were basically engineered by
Toyota but the interior packaging was developed by Daihatsu taking
advantage of its small-car-big-interior know-how.

Apart from a lower price tag, the Passo is also designed to be cheap to
run. It employs a pair of newly developed engines. The base engine is a
1.0-litre VVT-i three-cylinder. Using one fewer cylinder helps it to
achieve lower thermal and frictional loss hence it can return more miles
per gallon of fuel. Its character is smooth, lively and surprisingly
powerful, if noisy at high rev. Another engine is a new 1.3-litre VVT-i
four-cylinder, with longer stroke and smaller bore than the Yaris' unit to
enhance torque and fuel efficiency.

The chassis of Passo has nothing exciting. It gets the usual suspension
design and the usual Japanese-style tuning. In other words, priority is
put on ride comfort instead of body control. If you push it into corners,
you will find it rolls and understeers more severely than European
hatchbacks. Besides, the steering is also set to the light side, opposing
to the taste of keen drivers. At the current setup, Passo is not going to
please car enthusiasts. However, once it is exported to Europe - more
likely to be in Daihatsu form - it will undoubtedly get some treatment.
But even so, it is not going to attract many attention. The point is,
Passo lacks a clear character to distinguish itself from countless of
other fine superminis. "


#2
Xoomie

Posted 13 June 2005 - 12:04 PM

Xoomie

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Below is review of Sirion by Car & Driving

"Driving a Daihatsu Sirion gives a firm two-finger salute to the supermini
establishment. After all, here's a car with virtually no image whatsoever.
For a brief period in the late nineties, luridly coloured green and orange
Sirions were trendy in big metropolitan areas, beloved by those with a yen
for Japanese esoterica, but otherwise the car has stayed firmly under the
mainstream radar. All that could change with the introduction of a car
that's new from the ground up.

Maybe that's a slight exaggeration. Two engines are offered and one of
them, the 87bhp 1.3-litre, has been developed from a unit shared by the
previous Sirion ' and indeed, the Toyota Yaris. The entry-level engine is
a 1.0-litre three-cylinder unit that punches above its 69bhp weight. There
are a number of technical highlights including an innovative catalytic
converter fitted to the 1.3-litre car that self-regenerates, redepositing
rather than eroding its palladium molecules. Prices start at £6,995 and
whichever engine you choose, there are two trim levels on offer ' S and
SE. All models have ABS with EBD, air-conditioning, driver, passenger and
side airbags, radio/CD player, four electric windows, remote central-
locking and electric power-steering tuned for feel.

The Sirion has quite a big job to do, replacing as it does two car ranges.
Not only does it pension off the old Sirion, but the latest car has to
cover for the YRV which bites the bullet. Marketed in Japan as both the
Daihatsu Boon and the Toyota Passo, the Sirion has already got off to a
sharp start. Since Daihatsu are part owned by Toyota, they have access to
a huge amount of know-how when it comes to small cars. Not that they lack
anything in pedigree having been selling cars in the UK since 1964 '
longer than any other Japanese manufacturer.

Obvious rivals include the Honda Jazz, the Fiat Panda and the Mitsubishi
Colt, the latter of which the Sirion most closely appears. The truncated
nose and nicely contoured rear wheelarch and rear wing combination are
redolent of the sharply-styled Mitsubishi, although the front grille is a
little anonymous. Prices look competitive, with the new model undercutting
the old car by a couple of hundred pounds. Unlike the old Sirion, we don't
get exotic all-wheel drive models just yet. There is some evidence of cost
cutting in the materials used inside the Sirion and if you're used to,
say, a SEAT Ibiza, some of the plastics used will seem a little low rent.
The counterpoint to this is that the dash is far more adventurously styled
with a silver centre console and a quirky cowled fascia pod. If you opt
for a model with a rev counter, this clips to the outside of the binnacle
rather like the aftermarket turbo boost gauges seen on Japanese evo cars.
This 'funkiness;' gives the Sirion a fun feel, even if it's no great
shakes when it comes to handling. If you can operate a payphone, you
should have no difficulty with the Sirion. No, scrub that.

I've been into some payphones that are a whole lot trickier to figure out
than a Sirion. All the controls are legibly marked, the steering is light
and the ride is surprisingly supple for a small car. The manual gearbox
probably isn't as direct as it could be and the windscreen pillars can be
intrusive when negotiating tight roundabouts but other than that this is
an extremely being car to drive. Performance from the 1.0-litre engine is
best described as unhurried, the 69bhp unit getting the Sirion to 60mph in
13.6 seconds and on to a top speed of 99mph. The off-beat three-cylinder
thrum is deeper and more characterful than the rather anodyne engine note
of the 1.3-litre model and for that reason alone, it would be my pick. The
fuel consumption is not to be sniffed at either, the 1.0-litre managing a
combined total off 56.5 miles per gallon. Carbon dioxide emissions are
pegged at a lowly 118g/km. Trade up to the 1.3-litre model and you also
get the option of a fow direcÀ è[è[Œss (pid, edit_time, author_id, author_name, ip_address, post_date, topic_id, post_title, new_topic, edit_name, post_key, post_parent, post, old_UserID) VALUES ('409344', '', '1106', 'Xoomie', '210.19.57.10','1118633199', '28126', 'MyVi = Toyota Passo Review', '1', 'Xoomie', 'e16ac95c5bf01338a7f30eebbb99ebfc', '', 'Been surfing the net and found a Passo review by Autozine.\n\n\n\"If the 1999 Yaris was a statement of style, the 2004 Passo must be a \nstatement of practicality. Its exterior design is neither pretty nor \nelegant. Its cabin design is uninspiring. Plastic quality is average. It \ninnovates nothing. It does not set any new standard in any areas. \nNevertheless, it is undoubtedly a practical, easy-living hatchback. Its \nsquarer shape provides plenty of interior space, so is the long wheelbase \nthat exceeds Yaris by 70mm. Four large doors enables the passengers to \naccess conveniently. A huge and wide-opening tailgate aids luggage access. \nRear seats fold flat to form a flat load area. A pair of simple hooks \nallow 2 tilt angles for the rear seatback…. \n\nPasso has a twins sister named Daihatsu Boon. They are the first joint \nventure between Toyota and its subsidiary Daihatsu. Basically, they are \nthe same car with just the slightest deviations in packaging. To Toyota, \nPasso slots in the space under Yaris to be the company\'s bottom of the \nrange. On the contrary, Boon replaces Sirion (Storia) to be Daihatsu\'s top \nmodel. According to insiders, the twins were basically engineered by \nToyota but the interior packaging was developed by Daihatsu taking \nadvantage of its small-car-big-interior know-how. \n\nApart from a lower price tag, the Passo is also designed to be cheap to \nrun. It employs a pair of newly developed engines. The base engine is a \n1.0-litre VVT-i three-cylinder. Using one fewer cylinder helps it to \nachieve lower thermal and frictional loss hence it can return more miles \nper gallon of fuel. Its character is smooth, lively and surprisingly \npowerful, if noisy at high rev. Another engine is a new 1.3-litre VVT-i \nfour-cylinder, with longer stroke and smaller bore than the Yaris\' unit to \nenhance torque and fuel efficiency. \n\nThe chassis of Passo has nothing exciting. It gets the usual suspension \ndesign and the usual Japanese-style tuning. In other words, priority is \nput on ride comfort instead of body control. If you push it into corners, \nyou will find it rolls and understeers more severely than European \nhatchbacks. Besides, the steering is also set to the light side, opposing \nto the taste of keen drivers. At the current setup, Passo is not going to \nplease car enthusiasts. However, once it is exported to Europe - more \nlikely to be in Daihatsu form - it will undoubtedly get some treatment. \nBut even so, it is not going to attract many attention. The point is, \nPasso lacks a clear character to distinguish itself from countless of \nother fine superminis. \"\n',nnÑ À INSERT INTO ibf_posts (pid, edit_time, author_id, author_name, ip_address, post_date, topic_id, post_title, new_topic, edit_name, post_key, post_parent, post, old_UserID) VALUES ('409344', '', '1106', 'Xoomie', '210.19.57.10','1118633199', '28126', 'MyVi = Toyota Passo Review', '1', 'Xoomie', 'e16ac95c5bf01338a7f30eebbb99ebfc', '', 'Been surfing the net and found a Passo review by Autozine.\n\n\n\"If the 1999 Yaris was a statement of style, the 2004 Passo must be a \nstatement of practicality. Its exterior design is neither pretty nor \nelegant. Its cabin design is uninspiring. Plastic quality is average. It \ninnovates nothing. It does not set any new standard in any areas. \nNevertheless, it is undoubtedly a practical, easy-living hatchback. Its \nsquarer shape provides plenty of interior space, so is the long wheelbase \nthat exceeds Yaris by 70mm. Four large doors enables the passengers to \naccess conveniently. A huge and wide-opening tailgate aids luggage access. \nRear seats fold flat to form a flat load area. A pair of simple hooks \nallow 2 tilt angles for the rear seatback…. \n\nPasso has a twins sister named Daihatsu Boon. They are the first joint \nventure between Toyota and its subsidiary Daihatsu. Basically, they are \nthe same car with just the slightest deviations in packaging. To Toyota, \nPasso slots in the space under Yaris to be the company\'s bottom of the \nrange. On the contrary, Boon replaces Sirion (Storia) to be Daihatsu\'s top \nmodel. According to insiders, the twins were basically engineered by \nToyota but the interior packag

#3
cucuk

Posted 13 June 2005 - 12:23 PM

cucuk

    White Lightning

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u will be surprised that the person that maintain the autozine website
(his name is mark or sumthing lidat) is a hongkee and does not hv a
driving licence or own a car, he writes his review by simply reading lots
of car magazines and make a conclusion from there accordingly in his
review, do read the FAQ section of his website to find out more about his
background