New High-Performance YRV Turbo 130 Arrives

The UK’s most powerful 1.3 litre car – the Daihatsu YRV Turbo 130 – enters dealer showrooms late May priced at only £10,995 on-the-road despite an extensive equipment list which includes a steering wheel-mounted automatic gearchange.

• UK’s most powerful 1.3 litre
• 129 PS and 125.4 lb ft of torque
• Turbocharged with Dynamic Variable Valve Timing
• Automatic transmission with ‘steershift’ gear change
• 0-60 mph in 8.1 seconds
• 50.4 mpg on Extra Urban Cycle
• Standard air-con, alloy wheels, ABS and radio/CD player
• Standard ‘panorama’ fixed glass roof
• Rear seats have 150 mm of sliding adjustment
• Distinctive ‘double wedge’ side windows
• Available late May at only £10,995 on-the-road

Featuring a versatile body similar in length to a supermini yet with the passenger space of the next size up, the YRV Turbo 130 combines blistering performance with excellent fuel consumption and low exhaust emissions.

Maximum power is 129 PS at 6,400 rpm while the 125.4 lb.ft of torque is similar to an advanced 1.8 litre car and is achieved at an especially low 2,800 rpm.

This results in rapid acceleration – 0-60 mph, for example, takes 8.1 seconds – coupled to excellent flexibility, refinement and fuel economy as the strong torque allows high gearing.

For example, second gear can exceed 75 mph, while the overdrive top helps contribute to Urban/Extra Urban and Combined figures of 30.1/50.4 and 40.4 mpg.

Meanwhile, exhaust emissions of 165 g/km mean a company car driver would only pay 17 per cent of the car’s value under the new Benefit-In-Kind tax rules for 2003-2004 – less than for the best Euro 3 diesel.

All YRVs feature a 1,298 cc all-alloy four-cylinder 16-valve twin overhead camshaft petrol engine with DVVT – Dynamic Variable Valve Timing. This optimises power and torque over a wide rev-range. When coupled to the lightweight, fast-response turbo with intercooler, engine efficiency is further boosted.

The turbo itself uses sensors to precisely match boost with the torque required, giving particularly strong throttle response.