Toyota Yaris AND Mazda 2 review: Two for the price of one!

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Other than the badges, the names and a few other minor details, the Toyota Yaris and the Mazda 2 are the same car. So our Nicola has saved us all some time by reviewing them both at the same time. Watch, learn and thank us later...

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[Android-vkyh]

There's nothing wrong with two companies sharing platforms, especially when they are both good companies like Mazda and Toyota. They're helping each other. It works both ways. The excellent engineering of rotary and hybrid and 6 cylinder technology is being shared with Toyota from Mazda

[toninocars]

This car is very good and probably the best of all small cars just because of the hybrid system. Once you understand how this car drives and you like it you will never go away and if you do you probably gonna go to full electric car.

[Theoriginalramjammer]

Another reviewer moaning about Hybrid CVT gearboxes. Yawn.. They are really good for everyday driving and really efficient, which suits a vast majority of the driving we actually do.. Dull fact but true. If you mash your foot to floor in many cars the engines can sound gruff.

[robsmall]

Mazda 2 Hybrid isn't based on the current Yaris. It is the current Yaris. It's an example of badge engineering. Not sure if there is a GR sport ( body kit, stiffer suspension ) alternative for the Mazda 2 Hybrid. Should of obtained a base Yaris for comparison

[Grahamvfr]

Still lots of misunderstanding about cvts, they were tried in F1, but proved to be too fast. Although the sound is alien to us, they are still the best way to keep the inherently inefficient internal combustion engine at peak efficiency.. And after all that's the only purpose of any gearbox.

[stephandolby]

2:10 The best example is when Suzuki partnered with Toyota to reduce its fleet-wide emissions, and that's how we ended up with the Swace (Corolla Touring Sports) and Across (RAV4). Mazda have been working with Toyota for some time, so I wonder why it took them so long... perhaps Skyactiv-X hasn't earned them as much as they expected?

[KootBear]

CVT is great! I really liked it in Yaris (hybrid)

[megapangolin]

Great review, brilliant outfit. Good to see reviews of small, planet savers instead of massive, heavy, SUV planetkillers.

[deet]

They did the same thing in America and Canada but reversed, Toyota was selling the Mazda 2 as a Yaris.

[parenthlete]

You didn’t mention about it’s WRC roots

I always threw a rock at a Yaris like this the other day. Why is there a GR badge on a non GR Yaris?

[johns]

And the price of your affordable car of the year

[andrewtaylor]

Does it reduce the emissions even if nobody buys it? Is it the average emissions across the availability of the range?

[jdmguy]

The Yaris defo looks sharp in GR sport trim but 18" wheels are too big for a car of this size and given the state of UK roads.

[zacharyreynolds]

oh how i would love to have this car in the usa

[jonburnell]

Toyota really is the village bike of the car world. Mazda Yaris, Aston Martin IQ, Suzuki Rav4.... Suzuki Corolla, Citroen/Peugeot Aygo. They must be raking it in from their partnerships

[leesmith]

never driven a cvt so question - when i accelerate quickly in a manual i keep the low gear and rev high. so how is revving high in a cvt mor annoying than revving high in a manual when you want to go quick? is it a have to try to understand thing? on the face of it it's just high revs which happen with any type of gearbox i thought.

[jamiep]

I enjoyed watching the Video Review. The Toyota Yaris Is the Model I would chose 😊

[dfdmcb]

Isnt this the Mazda 2 HYBRID not the regular Mazda 2, might be worth renaming the title

[anthonystevens]

I great quick review Nicola. If you live somewhere where you don't have the capability to pump a bunch of sparks from your home into an electric car or that you occasionally do some longer journeys to visit people who also don't have a home spark generator then this makes a lot of sense. The CVT should be brilliant in traffic but less on a motorway. As a local runabout with longer distance potential and not hobbled by its range it's worth considering if you don't need the space. Oh! and it'll fit in an old carpark parking space, which is nice. Why have the size of parking spaces not increased with the size of cars today? Answers on a post card to most city councils and MP's.