Toyota Auris Touring Sports Hybrid practicality & boot space
There are few complaints when it comes to the practicality and space offered by the Toyota Auris Touring Sports Hybrid
The Toyota Auris Touring Sports Hybrid is unusual, as there aren’t many hybrid estate cars available in this size. Few will criticise the space on offer or the all-round ease of use. Despite the increasing popularity of SUVs in the last few years, estate cars still have plenty to offer.
Toyota Auris Touring Sports Hybrid interior space, storage & comfort
All four doors open nice and wide, making it easy to get in and out, especially if you’re strapping children into child seats. There’s also no transmission tunnel running down the middle of the car to reduce legroom – that means there’s more space for three adults in the rear than you’ll find in most cars of this size.
In the front, the steering wheel adjusts for angle and reach, plus the driver’s seat adjusts for height. That means most will find a comfortable driving position pretty quickly.
Visibility is good thanks to relatively thin windscreen pillars, and the car is easy to park thanks to short overhangs (the bodywork that juts forward past the front wheels and behind the rear wheels). Parking is made even easier thanks to the rear parking camera fitted as standard.
There’s the usual array of interior storage spaces, with sizeable door pockets, a pair of cup-holders and a lidded storage box between the front seats. There are also coat hooks for rear passengers, plus shopping-bag hooks.
Boot space
Unlike some hybrids, the Auris' batteries don’t eat into interior space. That means you get the same 530 litres of boot room as the petrol-powered Auris Touring Sports. Fold the back seats and space grows to 1,658 litres, figures which are only slightly behind the best petrol and diesel-powered rivals such as the Skoda Octavia Estate and Peugeot 308 SW.
It’s worth looking past the numbers, though. The boot opening is nice and wide, there’s no lip to lift luggage over and the seats fold flat – all factors that make loading large and bulky items easy. There’s additional underfloor storage and a pull-out luggage cover.
