Toyota C-HR review - Entertaining Qashqai alternative - Toyota C-HR ride and handling
Lacks the performance to do justice to a capable chassis, but there's still plenty to like about the C-HR
Ride and handling
If the C-HR’s engine options are a disappointment, then Toyota’s crossover goes some way to redeeming itself in its chassis setup. Toyota has spent the last few years attempting to renew its 1980s and 1990s reputation for offering drivers’ cars (most notably with the GT86 and the promise of more sports cars on the way) and the C-HR suggests that attitude extends to even its humbler models.
You sit high, but not so high you feel like you’re teetering over the front wheels, and ensconced within a wrap-around cockpit the surroundings are off to a good start. That continues when you turn a wheel - literally, since the C-HR’s steering is admirably precise and there’s no shortage of front-end grip, so you can dive through corners with surprising accuracy and alacrity.
There’s enough grip in fact that you’re allowed a small degree of throttle adjustability, albeit at higher speeds than almost all C-HR buyers are likely to experience. What they’re more likely to appreciate are the low levels of body roll and reasonably pliant ride quality, and this mix of qualities puts the C-HR towards the upper end of its class for driving dynamics.
It’s just a shame there isn’t an engine option to make even better use of the C-HR’s chassis. The underpinnings are undoubtedly capable of handling more power.
