Forget about small crossovers and SUVs, the Toyota Sienta is all you need for the school run.
What’s new?
After being on the market for three years, the Toyota Sienta has received its mandatory mid-life update which mostly includes the smallest of details.
Outside, there’s a new face with the most striking element being the chromed bar on the front grille that now has a concave rather than flat line.
The interior, particularly on the higher G spec, sees orange-coloured stitching for the leather-covered seats and steering wheel, plus updated touchscreen operating the brand’s telematics and all-round driving view system.
As with most mid-life revisions from Japanese brands, the Sienta’s engine has been carried over from the pre-facelift model, that is, 108hp 1.5-litre petrol mated to CVT automatic with seven-speed manual override.
Prices have risen marginally due to more features. Tested here is G going for 875,000 baht, while V asks for a good 110k less.
The most immediate selling point in the Sienta is the electric sliding doors, highly useful in tight urban areas or when dropping off your kids at school.
All other seven-seat MPVs and SUVs priced below 900,000 baht have conventionally hinged portals. That also include Toyota’s very own Avanza.
And while threads may appear trivial, that aforementioned orange-stitching helps lift quality of the cabin made mostly of tacky plastics.
Despite those cheap-feeling bits inside, the funkily styled fascia hasn’t compromised on storage practicality. The same goes for the exterior design which makes most nearby competitors look completely boring.
Although the 1.5-litre non-turbo engine does nothing special on the move, it has ample shove in comparison to those used in the Avanza, Mitsubishi Xpander and Suzuki Ertiga. The Sienta is only jaded marginally by the Honda BR-V/Mobilio.
Sure, price is a sensitive issue among cars in this segment, but it would have been nice if Toyota extended some more features to the V spec. That multi-purpose central screen, for one, is useful for most drivers and shouldn’t be considered a luxury.
But most downsides in the Sienta are inherent in this generation: super-noisy engine when pushed, steering imprecision in corners, brittle ride over broken road surfaces and complex storage of third-row seats.
Compact seven-seaters in Thailand (and other Asean markets) are usually tailored with costs in mind due to concerns of pricing in emerging markets.
The Sienta happens to be one of them and this update really hasn’t done much to lift its appeal. But this particular mini-MPV still deserves some attention due to its practical portals. Actually, the Sienta is like a (very) poor man’s Alphard.
Unlike in the thrash-worthy Avanza, you can feel how the Sienta’s downsides can be rectified to be made into a more refined MPV overall. After all, the Sienta is sold in Japan (with a hybrid option, too).
If you don’t mind the Sienta’s small price premium over the competition, it's still the compact seven-seater by far to be had at the moment despite some crudeness here and there.
