The Sunday News
Lovert Mafukure
The reliability of Toyota makes it a car of choice for many people, those experienced and first time buyers alike.
Toyota has as of old mass produced cars to a point where even their parts are mass produced by other after market players. It makes their parts easy to get and also cheaper.
The Toyota Axio is in the Corolla family line and having come out in 2008 they are still quite recent and still fresh on the market.
World over the Corolla has earned itself a reputation for never breaking down. I said it last time that if you ever see someone flagging you down with a broken down Corolla, they are probably trying to rob you, it’s unlike them to ever break down.
The Corolla Axio is the model Corolla that came after the Bubble Shape. The older Bubble shape Corolla still shares the same drive train with the Corolla Axio. You will find the same Corolla closer to home in South Africa although the South African version is slightly bigger.
It comes with a variety of engines you can choose from, the most popular being the 1,5l 1nz fe.
This is a very popular engine across a lot of small to medium Toyota sedans and Hatchbacks. It’s a durable engine that won’t hurt your pocket with hefty fuel bills.
Parts are plenty and when the day comes for repairs it won’t sit on bricks because of parts unavailability.
A lot of people in the taxi industry find them very reliable as they are the same engines you will find in cars like the Fun Cargo.
Higher spec models come with the 1,8l 1zz fe engine which is popular as well. It is found in other Toyota models like the Corolla Bubble and the Toyota Wish just to mention a few.
The Zz engine has been tried and tested even in the South African market. Parts for these are no longer a problem as there are many of these on the market now.
Most modern Toyotas now come with the D4 Direct Injection as the war against emissions is being intensified so you will find that most Toyotas from the mid-2000s now use D4 and can’t exactly run away from it.
This technology has not yet settled well with a lot of people, the good thing is that the Axio does not come with an engine that has D4.
The Axio, by design like all Corollas is a front-wheel drive car with front wheels being driven by a CVt transmission.
It is the first corolla to ever have a Cvt transmission and does a very good job at saving fuel. 5 and 6-speed manual transmissions are available though they are rare. The 4-wheel drive models do not have a CVt but a 4-speed automatic.
Interior is neat and tidy, straight to the point with no unnecessary buttons all over the place.
Some models however, have wood panelling on the dashboard and steering wheel to give it that executive look. Keyless entry is standard, airbags all around, air-conditioning and abs come standard as well.
Somehow, Toyota figured out that just because Corollas are entry level cars for everyday use does not mean that they have to be boring! So what did they do? They came up with the Corolla Axio GT. It was tuned by Toyota Racing Development TRD.
The GT is powered by a turbocharged 1nz fe, it’s got bigger brakes and the ride height is slightly lower than the standard Axio.
White the standard Axio is powered by a continuously variable transmission, the GT is powered by a manual gearbox for that determined driver.
Overall, this is a good car to look out for as it is a stylish and sporty car that isn’t very heavy on fuel and parts are very much available now unlike yesteryear.
As they are relatively new cars you may find that it may be hard to find parts but most of them are compatible with other Toyotas like the Corolla Bubble.
I should tell you that this car doesn’t come too cheap though. Till next time. Happy motoring!
@lovert116 – Automart Used Spares Centre – Quality Used Japanese Spares -+263 772 33 99 38 – [email protected] – Facebook: @automartusc
