EZi Automatic 5dr Hatchback

Back to basics - reliability and value

My wife wanted a small car, easy to park, enough power for a proper auto box and good reliability, without spending ten grand plus on something new. It has proven to be 100% reliable, as you'd expect from a thinly disguised Diahatsu Sirion (or more heavily disguised Yaris). From talking to various dealers the only weak points seem to be anti roll bar links, and electric window on early ones - all cheap to fix. Spares availability seem OK, and most electrical & mechanical parts are from the Sirion anyway (and its a Yaris engine). The dealerships tend to be helpful, family run outfits with low labour rates, although there are only a few in each region.
The ride is reasonable, but its not much of a drivers car, although grip is fine on the Goodyears fitted to later ones. The autobox is really smooth, and fairly quiet, whereas the manual is quicker but has more engine noise due to the lower gearing, so I prefer the auto.
Its very spacious inside, very tall - I could even start wearing a driving hat like my grandad used to. These cars are still decent value new at 6.5/7 K, a bit off the pace for a supermini now but much better equipped and more power than the city cars at that price. Secondhand they are a steal - I've just downsized and bought myself a one year old manual for 4.5K- a Yaris for that money would have been a good few years older. I do keep my cars a long time, so purchase price is more important than resale price to me. Possibly the best kept secret of the used car market

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