Driving the Altis I've been making quite a big deal about Toyota choosing to retain the old engines in the new Altis. Obviously I would have been much happier with the Dual VVT-i units, but just how bad are the VVT-i engines? Well, the 1.8 I drove was as sweat a unit as you could hope for.
At idle the engine is all but silent. Power is ample for this car, and although I didn't clock the acceleration (such things don't really matter to me) I was happy with the throttle response. The automatic box shifts smoothly too.
Previously I'd been driving a Chevrolet Optra, and there is simply no sense in comparing these cars. But I will anyway. To be perfectly and blatantly straight about it, the Toyota is so far ahead in terms of refinement it is simply not funny. In the Optra, pressing down on the accelerator in the hope of more speed would usually result in a lot of engine noise, and very little in the way of power. The Altis never felt underpowered, and even when I played with the sequential box and tried to make it break a sweat.
The Civic might have more power in its 140 hp 1.8 litre, but I think you would be hard pressed to notice that extra 8 hp, and the refinement in the Altis is impressive.
Taking my attention away from the engine for a while, I started to critically assess the ride quality. Again I'm impressed. The new Altis deals with bumps and potholes very well, and although there is the initial impression that the ride is soft, this doesn't result in any of the usual negative side effects. The car settles quickly after a bump, and deals with minor bumps very well. You feel them, but they don't bother you. Although I didn't spend an extended time in the car, I feel confident to say that it will make a very comfortable vehicle for long trips.
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