But what to do as an encore? Design this car, the second-generation Yaris due for launch here in December in three- and five-door forms. Here was a car you could have feelings about. Mission accomplished, then. The Yaris may not have been a great drive (bouncy, clonks and resonances, hard interior plastics) but most buyers didn't mind. Then Toyota invented the Yaris.This clever supermini, with cutely rounded details but a shape of substance and cred made Toyota a bit cool. You'd buy one for its style, its originality (check out the centre instrument pack viewed via a mirror), for emotive reasons on top of the obvious rational ones. For most cars, participants must be over 26 and have a clean licence..

Model: Toyota Yaris 1.3 Price: from about £9,500 (range will start at approximately £9,000) Engine: 1,296cc, four cylinders, 16 valves, 87bhp at 6,000rpm, 89lb ft at 4,200rpm Transmission: five-speed gearbox, front-wheel drive Performance: 106mph, 0 to 60mph in 11.2 seconds, 47.1mpg official average CO2: 141g/km

08/11 - 09/11 Bag Heart Tickets playing in Sleep Country Amphitheater, Sleep Train Amphitheatre. Heart is playing in Ridgefield, Wheatland and Kansas City. Heart tickets

07/11 - 08/11 Capture Eric Church Tickets performing in Bowery Ballroom, House Of Blues. Eric Church is performing in New York, North Myrtle Beach and Council Bluffs. Eric Church tickets

07/11 - 08/11 Capture Machine Head Tickets performing in MSU Riley Center, Mt. Laurel Pocono Mountains Performing Arts Center. Machine Head is performing in Meridian, Tamiment and Memphis. Machine Head tickets

Toyotas were for fuddy-duddies. If you drove one (certain sports models excepted), you had no more interest in cars than you had in your fridge They were high-quality consumer durables, nothing more. I suspect I'd be quite happy with a lesser 5-series as the M5's potential cannot be realised on public roads - but then, that's hardly the point of it.THE VERDICT: If you would like to take part, e-mail motoring independent.co.uk or write to: The Verdict, Features Department, Independent House, 191 Marsh Wall, London E14 9RS, giving your address, phone number and details of the car, if any, you drive. Despite their complexity, the controls (including the I-drive) are intuitive. I liked the digital speed display on the windscreen; it's useful as it's so easy to accelerate over the speed limit.

I'm not sure the gearbox is a successful combination of manual and automatic, but the paddles work well. Despite its power it was very easy to drive, as happy in town as on A and B roads Heavy rain made no difference to handling. I can imagine doing 150mph in it on a long autobahn journey and getting out feeling fresh; it is comfortable. I like the look; it's fairly understated considering this is the M version. The interior is slightly plain apart from the gadgetry, perhaps because the iDrive system does away with so many other buttons.Stephen Howie, 50 Trainee teacher from Cottenham, Cambs USUAL CAR: MERCEDES-BENZ 230E BMW has an image problem in this country so I was almost hoping to dislike this car, but it's very good.