Toyota Avensis (2009-2015) Review

Flair, excitement, verve, desirability and panache. These are five things you won’t find in the Toyota Avensis. Instead, you get dependability, reliability, practicality, robustness and refinement.

The fact is, there are an awful lot of people who view a car on the same level as a dishwasher, washing machine or central heating system. There when you need it, but not given a second thought when it’s not. The practicality of the Avensis Tourer gives it the edge over the saloon, but both versions go about their business quietly and efficiently. If you’re after a car that will be cheap to run, dependable and safe, the Avensis is an excellent used buy. 

We’d avoid the entry-level T2 trim, as it lacks the basic equipment we take for granted in 2020. The TR is arguably the range sweet-spot. It was designed with company car drivers in mind, so it packs a pretty decent level of standard equipment. The T4 and T Spirit were too expensive when the Avensis was new, but they make more sense on the used market.

Toyota renamed the trim levels in 2013, bringing the Avensis in line with the rest of the range. Active is best avoided, with the Icon offering the best value for money. Again, the Icon Plus and flagship Excel are better value now than when new.

As for the engine, there’s no need to look beyond the 2.0-litre D-4D diesel with a six-speed manual gearbox. It offers a terrific blend of performance and fuel economy. A Toyota Avensis saloon or Tourer with a 2.0 D-4D engine in TR or Icon trim would be our car of choice.

Saloons and estate cars are facing a fight for survival as buyers turn to crossovers and SUVs in their droves. Which is a shame, because saloons and estates tend to be better to drive, while the wagons offer the kind of practicality an SUV can only dream of.

Chief rivals for the Avensis include the Ford Mondeo, Honda Accord and Mazda 6. Although it’s not as good to drive as the Mondeo and 6, it offers the same level of practicality and reliability as the Accord.

Because the Avensis is no longer available, we’d recommend the Toyota Camry if you’re after a Toyota saloon, or the Corolla Touring Sports if you require an estate.

If you’ll excuse the playground analogy, it’s a case of ‘swings and roundabouts’ when it comes to the quality and finish of the Toyota Avensis.

On the one hand, the scratchy plastics on the dashboard and doors leave a lot to be desired. They feel hollow and cheap to touch, creating a sense that you’re driving a volume car that’s just one step above the rental lot. But how many times do you touch the top of the dashboard? Once, maybe twice, when the dust gets deep enough to write ‘clean me’ with your fingers. Does it matter what it feels like? Arguably not.

The point is, everything feels robust and built to last. The Japanese favour longevity over the short-term gains delivered by soft-touch and expensive materials. The buttons and switches might lack the tactile qualities of a car with a premium badge, but they don’t feel cheap or nasty.

The doors shut with a reassuring thud, while the leather steering wheel, which became standard across the range in 2011, provides a good feeling of quality. The leather and Alcantara upholstery in the Icon Plus has a quality feel, but the jury is out on the luxuriousness of the nickel and wood-effect centre console. Fine in the 1990's, but not so great in 2020.

A decade is a long time in the world of in-car technology, which means early examples of the Toyota Avensis lack the kind of media systems we take for granted in 2020.

At launch, most versions came with a six-speaker audio system with radio, CD player and an AUX-in socket for MP3 players. There was no Bluetooth on the entry-level version, while satellite navigation could only be ordered as an expensive option.

Things improved in 2011, when the Avensis gained the Toyota Touch & Go multimedia and satellite navigation, along with the world debut of the advanced Toyota Touch & Go Plus system. The 6.1-inch infotainment screen was standard on all models except the T2, while the Touch & Go Plus was fitted to the T Spirit.

The standard Touch & Go features European mapping, live traffic information, speed limit and speed camera warnings, text messaging, Bluetooth, rear-view camera and audio streaming from iPods and other portable music players. Touch & Go Plus includes voice recognition, advanced traffic information, access to email and improved mapping.

Following the trim level restructuring in 2013, Touch & Go became standard on the Icon, while the Icon Plus and Excel featured Touch & Go Plus. In August 2013, Toyota launched the Avensis Edition, which also featured Touch & Go.

Predictably, the Avensis Tourer is a practical hero, but both versions feature a generous amount of cabin space and a large boot. Indeed, there’s not a huge amount of difference in the space available when the rear seats are in use. The saloon offers 509 litres of luggage capacity, while the Avensis Tourer offers 543 litres. Obviously the space in the estate is more useful, helped in no small part by the large opening and additional height.

That said, the folding rear seats in the saloon create extra space if required, but this can’t compete with the 1,609 litres of capacity in the Tourer. Both models get a ski hatch in the rear seats.

The Tourer also boasts rails in the boot for securing loads (all except the entry-level versions), while the flush floor makes it easier to load heavy items. It’s not a class-leading luggage area, but the Avensis is an excellent load-lugger.

Things are even better in the cabin. Three adults can sit comfortably in the back, with the absence of a transmission tunnel meaning there’s plenty of leg- and knee-room for the centre seat. 

This isn’t always the case in rival cars. Up front, there’s a huge glovebox, along with one of the largest central storage bins you’ll find in any car. It’s large enough for a bag, while the lid slides shut to provide a comfortable resting place for your arm. There’s also an exposed cupholder in the centre console, another one in the central storage bin, plus large door pockets in the front.

The 2.0-litre D-4D 130 diesel engine is the star of the Toyota Avensis range, especially following the 2011 facelift. Despite offering a 0-62mph time of sub-10 seconds, the engine delivers some remarkable economy figures.

It’s perfectly in-tune with the Avensis, offering plenty of mid-range punch for overtaking and when joining a motorway, but settling to a reasonably quiet idle at cruising speed. 

The 2.2-litre D-CAT 150 diesel engine offers slightly improved performance at the expense of fuel economy.  Fitted with a six-speed manual gearbox as standard, the D-CAT 150 could also be equipped with a six-speed automatic, making it Toyota’s first diesel automatic passenger car. In truth, the performance gains are so marginal, we’d stick with the 2.0 D-4D. Alternatively, the 2.2 D-CAT 180 sees the 0-62mph time drop to 8.5 seconds in the manual version, but we’re not sure the car needs that much poke.

A 1.6-litre Valvematic petrol engine was available at launch, but dropped from the range in 2011. A 0-62mph time of 10.1 seconds and a top speed of 125mph was comparable with the 2.0 D-4D on paper, but it lacked the easygoing torque of the diesel.

The 1.8-litre Valvematic offered a small performance gain over the 1.6-litre version, but could be equipped with a power-sapping and frustrating CVT transmission. It added a second to the 9.1 seconds the manual version took to reach 62mph, while taking a chunk out of the fuel economy.

A 2.0-litre Valvematic completes the engine range. Once again, it could be ordered with a CVT transmission, but the six-speed manual is better.

It would be a stretch to say that the Avensis offers luxury levels of refinement, but it’s clear that Toyota has used its experience with Lexus to great effect.

That said, the diesel engines, while efficient and punchy, lack the refinement of the diesels you’ll find in rival Volkswagen Group cars, especially when pressed hard. Leave an Avensis diesel idling outside your house and your neighbours will think you’ve opened a taxi cab business.

There’s a fair amount of road noise in all versions, especially the pre-facelift cars, and some wind noise at motorway speeds.

Although Toyota’s CVT transmission is better than some units, it’s too noisy when you surprise it with a sudden press of the accelerator pedal, and it can be a little slow to react. Fortunately, you can override it with manual inputs, but that kind of defeats the object of the transmission.

Our recommendation is to adopt a relaxed stance in any version of the Avensis. As an aside, we’d also point to the fact that the Avensis tends to perform well in reliability studies, which should provide some peace of mind when buying a used car.

The Toyota Avensis was ranked number five of the 30 cars tested by Euro NCAP in 2009, finishing ahead of the Volvo XC60. The five-star rating applies to the saloon and the Tourer. The individual ratings were: 90% for adult occupant protection, 86% for child occupant protection, 53% for pedestrian safety, and 86% for safety assist systems.

At launch, the Avensis was fitted with driver and front passenger airbags, front side airbags, driver’s knee airbag, full-length curtain shield airbags, Isofix mounts on the rear seats, steering assist vehicle stability control and brake assist.

All models feature front seat headrests that reduce the risk of whiplash by moving forwards and up to support the head in the event of a rear-end collision. The 2.2 D-CAT 150 T Spirit with an automatic transmission also featured an optional pre-crash safety system with pre-crash warning, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist and lane-departure warning. This was an advanced package for the time.

Options include bi-xenon headlights that monitor the speed and steering wheel rotation to predict the area in front of the vehicle that needs illumination.

Insurance groups for the Toyota Avensis saloon range from eight to 26, which means cover should be reasonably affordable. The Toyota Avensis Tourer should cost roughly the same to insure, but although the lowest group rating is 15, the groups go up to 28. With a group rating of eight, the entry-level 1.6-litre diesel Active should cost no more to insure than a city car or hatchback.

For some context, the current Ford Mondeo, introduced in 2014, has a group rating of 21 to 33. The current Mazda 6 (saloon and estate) is rated at 16 to 31.

The rate of Vehicle Excise Duty (VED, or road tax) for the pre-facelift Avensis ranges from £150 to £240 depending on the engine. For example, the 2.0-litre D-4D emits just 134g/km, which puts it into tax band E (£150). Meanwhile, the 2.2-litre D-CAT 150 with a six-speed automatic transmission emits 169g/km, placing it in band H (£240).

Post-facelift cars tend to be cheaper to tax. For example, revisions to the 2.0-litre D-4D diesel engine resulted in the CO2 emissions dropping to 119g/km. This puts in tax band C, which means an annual VED rate of just £30.

The entry-level T2 trim (later Active) launched in 2009 with air conditioning, a six-speaker audio system with CD player, electric front windows and seven airbags. In 2011, the T2 trim was upgraded to include Bluetooth, daytime running lights, new interior trims and a leather steering wheel.

TR (later Icon) launched with 17-inch alloy wheels, front fog lights, automatic air conditioning, audio system with Bluetooth and an aux-in socket, cruise control (not the 1.8 with Multidrive S), automatic headlights and wipers, driver’s seat lumbar support, leather steering wheel with audio controls, leather gear knob, a titanium centre console finish, electric rear windows and, on the Tourer, rails in the boot.

The TR was upgraded in 2011 to include Toyota Touch & Go, satellite navigation, a rear-view camera, an auto-dimming rear-view mirror, plus smart entry and start on the 2.2 D-CAT automatic.

T4 (later Icon Plus) and T Spirit (later Excel) offer more equipment and cosmetic upgrades. In 2013, Toyota launched an Avensis Select, which was based on the Active, plus an Avensis Edition, which was based on the Icon.