Toyota C-HR+ review

The prices and UK trims aren't confirmed as we write, but our finger-in-the-wind speculation puts them at £34-42k.

We know this covers three powertrains – FWD 167bhp, with a battery of 54kWh. Then a bigger 72kWh battery with a 224bhp motor power. Finally there's a twin-motor one with 343bhp.

Trims start at Icon (proving how that word is abused in our language) ascending through Design to Excel.

Toyota people say two-thirds of UK sales will be the middle one – that is big-battery FWD Design. Expect it to weigh in under £37k, which looks like value. It's well equipped and the 378 miles range, on 18in wheels, is a draw.

As for the top version, the idea of 343bhp and AWD will be too much for most. Toyota has a powerful AWD hatch, but it's a GT Yaris.

That said, the small minority who tow with an EV might want the twin-motor one as it'll hook up 1,500kg braked. The big-battery single motor is rated for a 750kg trailer, but the small battery doesn't tow at all.

So your £34k Icon gets you 283 miles WLTP – call it 210 for most journeys if they include a motorway portion, more if not. Like all trims it has a heat pump and heated seats to reduce winter range loss, and battery preconditioning to improve charge time in low temps. Its 18in wheels also save around 25 miles on mixed driving versus the top-trim 20s.

All versions have Toyota Safety Sense, which now includes warning if you're opening your door into a vehicle or cyclist. Active cruise and lane support is in that bundle. Top grades get around view cameras and self-parking.

Electric seats, heated screen and boomtastic 800W JBL stereo come with Excel trim.

Toyota has built up an ecosystem of charging suppliers, so you can use your one Toyota Charging Network account, via the MyToyota app, to access multiple charger networks. That's standard for EVs these days, if less of a bonus than it was because public charging is no longer that hard if you DIY anyway.

Toyota's big headline remains the battery guarantee. Get it checked every year and it runs to 10 years and 650,000km. Albeit that's to a SoH of 70 per cent, where some shorter warranties are triggered at 80 per cent, but the overall reassurance is a big asset.

That explains why Toyota cossets the battery by leaving a big buffer at both an indicated 100 per cent and 0 per cent – the margin between gross and net capacity figures is wide. The 72kWh (net) pack is 77kWh (gross). It might also be why the peak charge speed isn't a headline-grabbing number.