SCARCELY has a political programme started recently than the sackcloth is rent asunder and there is a wailing an gnashing of teeth. This is surely the first time we have seen a party attempt to weep its way back into office.

Taking the biscuit, if not the crumb of comfort, we have Alastair Campbell the man who put the bull into bullying. You can't go around being the local media hard case then suddenly burst into tears because Andrew Marr suggests your work of fiction is a work of fiction. That's like John Terry claiming to be good with colours.

If grown men feel the need to show their feminine side they should stick to shopping for shoes or fitting plugs with the butter knife.

Thankfully the men facing the cameras at Toyota, where they really do have something to make their eyes sting, are made of sterner stuff.

Bad enough that the bill for checking out dodgy accelerator pedals is going to top $2billion and now the Prius, chariot of green self riotousness, may be recalled with braking problems. Life is not currently a runaway success. Just runaway.

To make matters worse one newspaper has warned readers not to drive their Toyotas because this could severely affect property prices. Actually the Daily Mrs Bucket said readers would indeed die but house values are far more important than life and death.

Could things get any worse? Er, well yes actually.

You probably haven't read an awful lot about the 2010 Auris, not while there is such a cloud of despair over candle light suppers.

I have to admit that my expectations were badly managed when the Auris was launched. Mainly I had issues with the interior and specifically with why anyone would fit a small harp where most cars have a centre console and the quality of plastics. I wonder, are you at all familiar with granite work surfaces?

Last year Toyota added three new engines to the Auris range including the 1.33 Dual VVT-I petrol with stop start technology costing £14,000.

Because I may have given the impression that the Auris is about as comfort focused as a log let us just dwell here moment. This engine is, frankly, brilliant. Ridiculously smooth for such a small unit and good for almost 50mpg. Fast? Not really but adequate at 13 seconds to 60mph.

The ride an handling are good, cruising at speed painless so let's move on to the latest models where interior materials have moved away from those found in a slate quarry. ZZ Top's guitar still stands in for a normal centre console, putting the gear shift at almost armpit level, but soft touch plastics are introduced and instrumentation generally tidied up. It's good. Very good. As well as outside restyling suspension has been tweaked to improve an already fine ride.

Basically it is a quality and styling revision which is really the only area of concern, the engines in the outgoing model were excellent and there was no want for equipment.

That then is what you are missing while the Daily Mail is forecasting the end of the Rotary Club as we know it.

By the way, Toyota is not alone. Honda is recalling 646,000 Jazz models and PSA 97,000 vehicles. So stay with it lads, chin up. As for you, Mr Campbell you can cry me a river but I'll always think they are the tears of a clown.