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I am in the process of buying my first car and after lots of research I have narrowed my decision down to the Toyota Yaris. My budget is about $7-8k which seems to get about a 2007 model.

I have been struggling with choosing between the 1.3L and 1.5L models. I'm a midwife (with clients across Wellington region) and will mostly be using my car to travel between Wellington City and outer suburbs on the motorway, with some inner-city zipping around too.

I want the car to be fuel efficient in both of these scenarios.

I am deciding between a 1.3L and 1.5L (both 2007 NZ-new, regualarly serviced, the 1.3 has done 95,000km and the 1.5 has done 90,000km). The prices are pretty similar ($500 between them, before any negotiating). Any advice??

Hi there,
The Yaris is quite a good car and would be good with either engine, the difference would be when loaded up or driving up the country the smaller engine could struggle a bit.
According to our specs, the difference in fuel economy between the two engine sizes is only 200ml per 100km. 6.7 and 6.5ltrs/100km combined fuel economy.

Thanks for your help. I will be arranging an AA inspection next. Would you recommend getting the inspection at the AA motoring site rather than mobile so that a hoist can be used for better visibility? Thanks

The quality of the inspection is the same either way, but it is a bit easier for a technician to work on a hoist. However it does depend on whether the seller will permit the vehicle to be taken off-site for the inspection.