Versa vs. Yaris

[orb]

Just ran across this comparison: http://www.askmen.com/cars/car...html .

I've never driven a Yaris, but I have only heard bad things about them. It's rather shocking to see the reviewer like it so much more than the Versa. The reviewer dings the Versa mainly for performance/driving experience. I don't understand the normal car reviewer obsession with this, as it isn't something I notice. The Versa felt really good on my test drive. I'm not a car guy, I guess. He also didn't care for the looks, but that's a personal thing. Interesting review, nonetheless.

[SVersaS]

i knew the versa was pretty slow but is it really that much slower than the yaris. I mean it got 19/20 thats pretty good, i mean if hes right. Even though some of the stuff he says seems extreme about the versa, hes right about some stuff, i used to think the versa looked like a mini quest at first too. But still i think im happy with my choice.

[proxim2020]

Obviously, this is bias review. When someone gives unbias review, you normally get pros and cons. It seems like for the Yoda it was nothing but pros and nothing but cons for the V. The best review will be the one you do yourself. I felt the exact same way. The V's performance was good for me. Same with the amount of power. It was just as peppy if not more than my truck. It gets annoying when people compare power/performance from one vehicle to the next as if they are everything. Yes there are a lot of other cars that may have more power than the V, but I enjoyed how my butt felt in the seat and it's performance. So I'm stickin with it.

[xu_chen]

If you want performance, get a Maxima or a BMW. Look at the crash test ratings, the Yaris is a death trap. Versa is probably the safest car in its class (probably thanks to Rouneault engineering... forgive me I'm a Euro guy).

[OKVersa]

He doesn't know what he is talking about. Look how many of us have not only families, but grandchildren, and we were attracted to the Versa.

And comparing a 3-door hatch to a 5-door hatch does what?

[hgp]

who ever did the review needs to go over their math one more time. If you take a look at the interior marks given to both cars. Yaris gets a 10/20 and the Versa gets a 10/10. So the Yaris total potential score turns out to be 110 while the potential for the Versa is only 100. Talk about having the deck stacked against you from the start.

[XterraVersa]

Versa vs Yaris or Fit is not apples vs apples.

Versa vs Matrix is a fairer battle size wise.

[Ever Victorious]

Wow, that has got to be one of the dumbest reviewers evar!

"The Yaris is always peppy and ready to go!!!" Uhm, PM and other publications have PROVEN that the Yaris is the SLOWEST of the subcompact hatches, by far. The Fit is the only one that can compete on an even footing with a Versa. Though the tester DID drive a CVT, and it appears you have to have the O/D off in order to get better acceleration.

The reviewer didn't mention the overhang issue with the Yaris doors (but the name at the top of the article is a FEMALE name... Miranda? Come on....)

Yarii are ugly. Versas are cool.

Yarii are tin cans. Versas can get hit by pickup trucks and still keep going.

How many times do I have to point out the PM head-to-head-to-head-to-head article that said that NOONE wanted to drive the Yaris because it was so blah? Or that same article that said that the guy doing the slaloms preferred driving the Versa, even over the FIT?

Yet another example of someone getting their paychecks signed by Toyota.

[brownbrix]

i dont know if it matter or if this has been posted before but here is a website of pretty much all the cars i test drove before i pick up my versa

http://www.caranddriver.com/co....html

it place the versa second and had the yaris 4th to the rio if this was my review i prolly would flip that

[hgp]

not sure if you got what I meant. But if you look at the review, the score is supposed to add up to X out of 100 for each car with the Yaris getting 86 and the Versa 68. Well if you look at how each area was scored, compare the score given each car for interior design. And look at what the potential total score could have been for each car. you will see the Yaris is scored out of 20 and the Versa out of 10.

[orb]

Ha - I missed that. It's funny that the reviewer even makes a point that he double-checked his math.

[OKVersa]

GREAT POINT!

[Link3]

Just my $0.02 worth - but I think that this reviewer just does not understand what factors are really important to the car market segment that the Versa is aimed at or that finds the Versa and similar cars attractive.

This is the first time that I've seen the Versa's looks referred to as a "mini-Quest". I seen/heard numerous other references (which match my own perceptions) that it looks like a "mini-Murango".

As long as an economy/fuel efficiency aimed vehicle (Versa or whatever) has reasonable PERFORMANCE in terms of accelerating and handling to not be dangerous or annoying - the weighting of this factor should be lessened. If I wanted "performance", I'd have stuck with a Porsche 944 or Mitsubishi GT-S Eclipse Spyder, but then the Versa has a REAL "Back Seat" and Cargo Capacity (trunk) and a LOT better fuel economy than either of those two alternatives.

While there are somethings that I'd prefer were different (shape of rear hatch - specifically the width of the bottom hatch opening) and not having ABS brakes on the SL with the Convenience package - overall I am very happy with my Versa and after 3k+ miles I would still purchase a Versa over all the other cars that I looked at. When I consider passenger capacity & comfort, cargo capacity & flexibility, fuel economy, styling, initial cost of ownership, and overall performance - the Versa right now cannot be touched in the U.S. market.

In my own evaulation and assessment, the Yaris finished 5th behind the Fit, and Scion xB and xA. Just my $0.02 worth.

[proxim2020]

Now that's what I call a "REAL REVIEW"

[Jemdawg]

If you ask me, whoever wrote that review is waaaay biased. He took off more points from the V when he could than he would if he had to with the Yaris.

[jacksan1]

If anything good has come out of this particular review, I feel that is the car assessment template that this reviewer has provided. We can then adjust the weighting (scoring) of each category the way we like it. This particular review and how the scores came out in the end are because of the way the reviewer decided to assign the weight and to score accordingly. We are at perfect liberty to make an adjustment according to what each of us feel is important.

[rwanttaja]

i knew the versa was pretty slow but is it really that much slower than the yaris. I mean it got 19/20 thats pretty good, i mean if hes right. Even though some of the stuff he says seems extreme about the versa, hes right about some stuff, i used to think the versa looked like a mini quest at first too. But still i think im happy with my choice.

My choice of a Versa over the Yaris came down to the finest edge. In fact, if the Toyota salesman had gone home 1/2 hour later the evening before, I'd be driving a Yaris right now...we stopped by the dealership to buy the car we'd driven earlier that day, he wasn't there, and on the way back the next day decided to take a second look at the Versa. We'd rejected the Fit as the Honda dealer had a ~$4,000 "Marketing charge" tacked-on and wasn't going to take it off.

I'm (mostly) immune to styling issues, so the appearance of the Yaris vs. the Versa didn't make much difference. Actually, I found the Yaris more appealing, on a "so ugly it's cute" sort of basis (we were looking at the hatchback).

Handling issues seemed a wash. The Yaris (auto transmission) did seem to accelerate a bit stronger than the Versa (CVT). I *did* like all the storage compartments on the Yaris. The Yaris was also about $2000 cheaper.

Primary use of the car would be just commuting 20 miles round trip each day; if I'd found a local electric car dealer I would have been seriously look at one of those. But both the Yaris and the Versa would have worked equally well.

Room/comfort seemed about equal. Didn't notice any special problems getting in to the Yaris vs. the Versa. Definitely not as much room in the back, but since I don't drive from the back seat, I didn't care. The car was replacing a mid-size Oldsmobile; neither would match the Olds for room, comfort, and occupant features, so there really wasn't that much to decide between them.

Where the Versa *did* win out was in how it was equipped. The Yaris was a bare-bones econobox. It had a single CD player, but not much else. I wanted a remote entry system; I wanted a CD changer, and durn it, I wanted a center console to rest my arm on while I drove. The sole Yaris hatchback at the Toyota dealer had none of those. Which did explain why it was so much cheaper, of course.

I did consider adding the features later. The CD player upgrade would be easy, the car stereo place could add a key remote system, too. The Yaris Sedans had center consoles, maybe one could have been ordered.

But by the time I'd done all that, I'd have had weeks of hassles and probably a thousand bucks or more into the car.

Contrast to the Versa, which was an SL with the intelligent key and a 6-CD changer. A nice little center console. It didn't ride as smooth nor was it as quiet as my Oldsmobile, but it certainly was quieter and smoother than the Yaris. And it was basically the way I wanted it right out of the box, rather than having to spend time and money to get it set up the way I wanted it.

I certainly don't regret getting the Versa. But if Toyota had had a Yaris Hatchback equivalently equiped as my SL, I probably would have been happy with that, too.

Ron

[motoguy128]

I test drove a Yaris Hatchbakc (3 door) before I looked at the Versa. I had intended ot compare only the Fit and Yaris, but I decided to stop by the Nissan dealer and just take a look. The Yaris was too small for me to be comfortable. The center mounted gauges were a deal breaker. The interior was cheap and had some goofy looking blue poka dots on the fabric. It had good power.... with 1 or 2 people in it, but at freeway speeds it felt unrefined, buzzy and strained... just like the Fit. The extra torque of the Versa and close ratio 6 speed, despite it's extra weight make the difference. In every day driving, it has more useable power.