New Toyota Verso or Prius+ for our family MPV?

Hi,

We are planning to purchase a new MPV this year. We've three kids so need a good sized five-seater with two additional seats for occasional use. We've narrowed the list to the following: Toyota Verso - looking at the 1.6 D-4D - or the Toyota Prius+. We do around 17,000km a year with about 5k of that long motorway journeys and the rest short school runs, local shops etc. We've never owned a diesel and I'm a little concerned with going that route given our usage is mostly in town and I've heard horror stories about EGR/DPF problems . The Verso (Luna Skyview) is going to work out about €3K cheaper than the Prius+ so my head is saying Verso but perhaps the Prius is a better fit for our usage patterns? I'd appreciate any advice!

S G (Dublin)

Jan 2015 Filed under: choosing new car

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Expert answer

Hi Shane,

Go for the Verso. It's a lovely car anyway, really practical and well built, and your regular motorway hops will keep the DPF clear. The Prius+ is one of the most frustrating cars I've ever driven - tight on space in the third row and horrendously thirsty when you take it out of town. Motorway journeys in it are hell...

Neil Briscoe - Complete Car Adviser
@neilmbriscoe