Toyota Aygo Review 2026

• Typical used price (UK): £6,500–£11,000 (2018–2021 facelift cars; special editions sit near the top)
• This car: £9,999 (MJ21HTP, HPL Motors Stockport)
• Insurance group: 6P
• MPG: 56.5 (official combined)
• CO₂: 114 g/km
• Best for: Cheap city and first-car motoring; low-cost commuting; easy urban parking

Is It a Good Choice?

For city and first-car buyers, the Toyota Aygo is one of the smartest used buys around. It was designed to be small, simple and cheap to run, and it delivers on all three. Light controls, a tight turning circle and a footprint barely over three-and-a-half metres make it effortless in town and easy to park anywhere.

This example is the JBL Edition, the plushest version of the range, so you get a lot of standard kit for the money: a JBL premium sound system, 15-inch gloss-black alloys, a reversing camera, air conditioning and smartphone connectivity. Mechanically it's the same willing 1.0-litre Aygo underneath, so it drives just like any other, but you're getting the best-equipped cabin. With Toyota's reliability record and rock-bottom running costs, it's an easy car to recommend.

Pricing & Running Costs

The second-generation Aygo was on sale from 2014 to 2022, so there's plenty of used choice, and prices are among the most affordable in the city-car class. What you pay depends mostly on age, mileage and trim.

Typical UK Used Price Ranges:

• Early cars (2014–2017): roughly £5,000–£8,000
• Facelift cars (2018–2021): roughly £6,500–£10,500
• Top trims and special editions (x-cite, JBL Edition): roughly £9,000–£11,500
• This car (JBL Edition, well-specified): £9,999

Running Costs

• Insurance group 6P — very cheap, and a big reason the Aygo is a first-car favourite
• An official 56.5mpg, with many owners seeing the low-to-mid 50s in real-world driving
• Standard flat annual rate of VED road tax (check the current DVLA figure)
• Simple mechanics and Toyota's parts network keep maintenance costs low
• Euro 6 means it's exempt from ULEZ and Clean Air Zone charges

Performance & Driving Experience

Nobody buys an Aygo for outright speed, and the figures reflect that: the 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol produces 70bhp and takes a leisurely 13.8 seconds to reach 62mph. But the numbers only tell half the story. The little three-cylinder engine is characterful and eager, thrums along happily around town, and feels perkier than its output suggests thanks to the car's light weight.

Where the Aygo shines is low-speed manoeuvrability. The steering is light, visibility is good and the five-speed manual is easy to use, which makes town driving genuinely relaxing. The trade-off comes at higher speeds: it's noisier and less settled on the motorway than a larger supermini, and the ride can feel busy over rough surfaces. For its intended job, though, it's a willing and likeable companion.

Key Performance Figures:

• Power: 70 bhp (71 ps)
• Cylinders: 3
• Engine capacity: 998cc
• Gearbox: 5-speed manual
• Drive: Front-wheel drive
• 0–62 mph: 13.8 seconds

Interior & Technology

The Aygo's cabin is simple and hard-wearing, and the JBL Edition lifts it above the basic models. This car has Toyota's 7-inch x-touch multimedia system with DAB radio, Bluetooth and smartphone integration powered by Pioneer, which brings Apple CarPlay, along with a reversing camera to make parking easy. The headline feature is the JBL premium sound system, a genuine upgrade over the standard stereo for anyone who values their music.

Other niceties on this trim include automatic air conditioning, a leather-trimmed steering wheel and gear shift, auto headlights, front fog lights and privacy glass. Material quality is functional rather than plush, which is exactly what you'd expect at this price, but everything is logically laid out and easy to use. It feels solidly screwed together in typical Toyota fashion.

Space & Practicality

The Aygo is a small car and it makes no secret of it. The front is roomy enough for two adults, but this is a strict four-seater, with no middle rear seat, and rear space is best kept for children or short trips. The boot is small at around 168 litres, though the 50/50 split rear seats fold to free up more room when you need it. As a city runabout or a first car it's perfectly practical; as a family car it has clear limits.

Dimensions:

• Length: 3,465 mm
• Width: 1,615 mm
• Height: 1,460 mm
• Boot: ~168 litres
• Seats: 4
• Doors: 5

MPG, Emissions & Tax

• Combined MPG: 56.5 (official)
• CO₂: 114 g/km
• Euro status: Euro 6
• Fuel type: Petrol
• Engine: 998cc, 3-cylinder
• Gearbox: 5-speed manual

Running costs are where the Aygo really wins. Euro 6 compliance means it's exempt from London's ULEZ and other Clean Air Zone charges, and real-world economy in the low-to-mid 50s mpg is easy to achieve with gentle driving. Road tax is charged at the standard flat annual rate, so check the DVLA's current figure at the time of purchase.

Safety & Reliability

This car comes with Toyota Safety Sense as standard, which adds automatic emergency braking and lane-departure alert, plus six airbags, stability control, hill-start assist and a reversing camera. In Euro NCAP testing, the Aygo earned four stars when fitted with the Safety Sense pack, as here (three stars without it). That rating dates from the 2010s and has since expired as crash-test standards have toughened, so it's best not compared directly with a brand-new car's score — but the core safety kit remains sound for a city car of this age.

NCAP Ratings (Euro NCAP, with Toyota Safety Sense):

• Overall: 4 Stars
• Adult occupant: 82%
• Child occupant: 63%
• Note: rating now expired (standards have since tightened); this car has the Safety Sense pack that earned the four-star result

Reliability is the Aygo's trump card. Toyota has one of the best dependability records in the business, and the Aygo family is no exception, with strong owner-satisfaction scores and famously low repair costs. The 1.0-litre engine has been in production for years and is well understood, and there are no expensive complications to worry about. This car has covered a sensible 34,634 miles and comes with service history; as always, confirming the full record and an HPI check is worthwhile. HPL adds its 128-point check and a warranty, so you're covered from day one.

Alternatives

• Hyundai i10 — The class benchmark: roomier, seats five and feels a step more grown-up.
• Kia Picanto — Practical and generously equipped, with a strong warranty on newer cars.
• Volkswagen up! — Arguably the classiest city car to drive, with a quality feel.
• Fiat 500 — The style pick, if character matters more than outright space.
• Peugeot 108 — The Aygo's mechanical twin, with softer, more grown-up styling.
• Citroën C1 — The same car again under a different badge, often keenly priced.

Verdict

The Toyota Aygo is proof that cheap motoring doesn't have to mean miserable motoring. It's easy and fun to drive in town, costs very little to insure, tax and fuel, and carries Toyota's superb reliability reputation. This JBL Edition adds a welcome dose of kit and style on top, which makes a strong used case even stronger at £9,999.

You have to accept its limits: it's a four-seater with a small boot, and it's noisier and slower than a bigger supermini on faster roads. But as a first car or a city car, it's very hard to beat for the money.

Overall Rating: ⭐ 4.2 / 5