Toyota Yaris Cross Compact SUV Gets a Makeover

The Yaris Cross is a very important car for Toyota having sold 200,00 units in Europe and 76,00 in the U.K. since its launch in 2021, so a refresh is both inevitable to keep its best seller up-to-date, and necessary to keep up with the flurry of new compact SUVs coming to market this year.

Toyota doesn’t want to rock the establishment when it has a working formula, unlike Nissan with the new JUKE, so the updates are not radical, but aim to keep the Yaris Cross simply fresh.

The moustache grill has gone for a much more dynamic looking honeycomb style grille that draws the eye to the Yaris Cross, and with squared off wheel arches, with the wheels sitting comfortable at the extremities, the Yaris Cross has a purposeful stance.
Overall, the design changes are positive and provide a sense of renewal to the 5 year-old car.

Available in Icon, Design, Excel and GR Sport trims, new 17-inch alloy wheels are available on the Design trim and the Excel trim gets new 18-inch alloy wheels.

Inside Design grade now adds sports-style front seats with a platinum colour insert to the door trim, and contrasting three-tone stitching.
There’s also some ambient lighting and a wireless mobile phone charger.

Move up to the Excel trim and it comes with a powered tailgate, whilst inside has partial‑leather trim with contrasting highlights. A new SakuraTouch® material incorporate plant-derived PVC, waste cork and recycled PET.

The GR Sports tim draws from its sporting heritage and includes exclusive GR Sports exterior and interior features plus retuned suspension for a sharper and more rewarding handling that sit on GR Sport 18-inch machined alloy wheels.

The suede-type sports seats are covered with grey upholstery and red stitching and the GR logo is found on the front headrests and steering wheel.
The door trims and instrument panel gets GR Sport-specific gunmetal silver inserts.

Toyota says “the Hybrid 130 powertrain is featured across all models in the new Yaris Cross line-up, available with a choice of front or intelligent all-wheel drive (according to equipment grade)”.

The full hybrid system is unchanged after its debut in 2024 that’s said to deliver smooth, responsive acceleration, with excellent fuel economy and low emissions.

The hybrid engine puts out 129 bhp 185 Nm of torque providing a 0-62mph acceleration in 10.7 seconds for the front-wheel drive models. It’s usable, but nothing to get excited about.

Toyota Safety Sense safety and driver assistance are standard equipment on all trims. However, the Design trim receives a parking support brake, while Excel trims feature a Blind Spot Monitor. I feel this is a retrograde step for Toyota since safety should not be dependant to trims, but a basic and standard feature on all trims.

The Yaris Cross now gets the Toyota Smart Connect multimedia system and cloud-based navigation as standard. This also features a new voice recognition system and voice agent. Wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is included.

There’s no information on specific fuel efficiency, but expect approximately 55 mpg - 62 mpg based on the outgoing Yaris Cross with a starting price similar to the current entry point of £27,295, rising to £33,095 for the GR Sport.

There’s 397 litres of boot space with the seats up and 1,097 litres with the seats folded down. It’s not outstanding, but the Yaris Cross is a compact car at only 4,172 mm in length with a 2,560 mm wheelbase. Some competitors will offer more space for similar money.

But what the Yaris Cross lacks in length, it gains in an exceptional warranty. Toyota’s warranty is one of the best out there covering up to 10 years / 100,000 mile.

Toyota states “If your Toyota is under 10 years old or 100,000 miles, you’ll receive new warranty cover every time you complete a qualifying service at an Approved Toyota dealer. Qualifying services are availableuntil your vehicle is 10‑years old or reaches 100,000 miles”.

The refreshed Yaris cross will be available to order in the UK this autumn.

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About the Author

Graeme Cobb is a lifelong car enthusiast with a passion for writing about cars, EVs, industry updates and more.

You can find Graeme on 𝕏 at @graeme_cobb or YouTube @REV-EV.