Toyota Verso Business Users View

Can A Family-Sized MPV Really Also Work As A Company Car? Graham Motuel Has Been Running A Toyota Verso as Both Company and Family Transport To Find Out. He Told Steve Ghosley How Hed Been Getting On

Can a family-practical MPV really also make a great day-to-day business person's commuting tool? Graham Motuel and his five children have been putting our long term Toyota Verso to the test at weekends while Graham himself has been stacking up the miles between clients during the week. Here's how he sees it.

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A family MPV would probably not be the first choice for a businessman like Graham who spends many hours a week plying the motorways up and down the UK visiting customers. Yet on closer consideration, the size and flexibility that the Toyota Verso offers could make a compelling case for travelling business types who need to transport significant loads in the course of their working day. Running training courses at various locations forms part of Grahams regular work and necessitates the transportation of significant amounts of equipment and documentation. Much to his surprise, he found the Verso to be ideally suited for this role.

The large rear door aperture provides a low loading area that is so much easier to negotiate than trying to heave boxes and equipment into the boot of a saloon car and with the rear seats being able to fold into the floor in a single operation, the Verso offers the business user a huge amount of carrying capacity should it be needed. A thoughtful design touch that Graham really appreciated was the rear tonneau cover that neatly pulls out of the floor and hides anything stored in the back of the car.

"On the road Graham found the Verso to be a willing and extremely able companion"

The Verso can seat seven and, uniquely in its class, all five rear seats fold down into the floor to create a totally flat loading surface. Graham found this feature of the car suited both his working and family lifestyle exactly. Whether it was business equipment, colleagues or the local trip to the re-cycling depot, the Verso could be adapted in seconds to the right configuration. A lot of thought has gone into this system, the seats not only being the lightest in class but also requiring a simple one-touch operation to fold each one flat.

On the road, Graham found the Verso to be a willing and extremely able companion. Although resolutely an MPV in its high-roofed shape, he found that it cornered remarkably flatly and resisted the kind of pronounced body-roll that tends to hinder other models of the same genre. He felt that the 1.8-litre petrol engine in this car was certainly adequate for motorway use although the D4-D diesels would be the money no object choice and more economical.

The problem with the diesel is that the 2.0-litre D4-D is £1,000 more expensive than the 1.8-litre petrol and even with the fuel economy savings, that still looks a lot of money. Graham found that on long motorway runs, the 1.

8-litre petrol model was able to achieve fuel consumption figures of around 35mpg, close to the official published combined figure of 36.7mpg. Graham found the Verso a very easy car to drive and enjoyed the high driving position that affords a clear view of the traffic and conditions around the vehicle. Inside, he felt that the instruments were very well presented and easy to locate.

He particularly liked the radio/CD stereo that is fitted to this model, an important feature for drivers who travels long distances on our congested roads. The soft clutch on this model is a particular favourite of Grahams as he felt that it made long distance driving less tiring. On the debit side however, Graham found that when changing gear, the revs were slow in reducing making smooth gear changes difficult to achieve. He wasnt sure whether this was a typical feature of the 1.

8-litre model or a fault with this particular car. Graham also thinks that a satellite navigation system would be a sensible addition to the specification, especially for the business user. Many business users are very conscious of the impression they portray with the car that they drive for their company. There is a definite unspoken hierarchy in the model list that is available to most company car drivers.

It is no wonder then that mini-MPVs like the Toyota Verso dont often feature very highly on the company car wish lists of these motorists. But maybe they should? Graham Motuel found the Verso to be a very practical and comfortable car to use for his daily business routine. It is easy to drive, a doddle to park and will carry anything including a fully restored Sinclair C5 in its cavernous interior - but then thats another story.

FACTS AT A GLANCE

CAR: Toyota Verso Business Users View
PRICES: £14,445-£21,245 on the road
INSURANCE GROUPS: 5E-8E
CO2 EMISSIONS: 165-184g/km
PERFORMANCE: [1.8] 0-60mph 10.8s / Max Speed 122mph
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [1.8] (combined) 36.7mpg / (extra urban) 43.4mpg / (urban) 28.5mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Nine airbags / ABS with EBD
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: length/width/heightmm 4360/1770/1622mm WHO TO SEE: