Considering Yaris vs. Elantra

[businezguy]

The alternator on my Ford Focus ZTS (purchased by my wife prior to our marriage) has died, and was replaced by another dead alternator a couple of years ago. In addition, I had to do extensive repairs to fix an issue with the car overheating, and it's beginning to demonstrate the same issue as before. Needless to say, with only 98k on it, I'm fed up and need to replace this car ASAP (the next two the three weeks at the latest). I am forced to drive my wife's 1995 Ford Explorer getting 19 MPG driving 55 MPH.

I'm trying to decide between an Elantra and a Yaris, and I've pretty much made a decision to go with the Yaris. While the Elantra has by far the best interior of the two, and quite honestly is the better vehicle overall, I love the minimalism of the Yaris, and most importantly the better MPG I'll get from it. There is nothing I would love more then to spend less of my money overseas supporting terrorism and saving about $50 a month at $2.50 per gallon.

So I need your help! I would be getting the base Sedan with the convenience and power package, and added on Bluetooth. However, can somebody break down all of the storage compartments that come with this car? I do a lot of commuting (132 miles round trip 5 days a week) and need to have storage readily available for my MP3 player, toll money, cell phone, organizer (can put that in the glove compartment), etc. Also, I love a huge thing of coffee during my commute. How large of a cup could I fit in the cup holder that's in front of the air vent? Could I for example fit a 1 quart bottle of Gatorade in it as an example?

Sorry for all of the questions, I am going to be making me purchase soon, and this will be the first new car purchase I'll make (paying cash so I'll own it outright).

Thanks!

[rningonfumes]

Storage:
Non-locking glove box,
arm rest (small),
pockets behind the driver and passenger seats
coin box underneath the driver's cup holder.
and Valet locking Trunk-60/40 folding rear seats(they don't fold flat.

Cupholders:
two on dash-- under the vents-can hold up to a large/xltra large of Carl's Jr/Hardee's drink cup.
Driver's and front passenger has an indentation in the lower door pocket that can hold the standard water bottle.
Rear of the arm rest is one more cup holder that flips out.


It looks like you've done your homework. I would pick one or the other of the packages to save money. I hope you are thinking of the manual too-- more money saved. The advantage of the Yaris over the Elantra is the price.... don't option out the Yaris any where near the price of the Elantra. If we were talking Hyundai competitor for the Yaris, it would be the Accent.

When you say you're going to save 50 bucks a month, I'm going to assume you mean over the Focus and not the Explorer. I say you're gonna save a lot more than that if you drive it right.

How large a laptop do you have? Bare with no bag, it should fit with other things in the glove box.

I hope I addressed most of your concerns, Good luck on either car.

Feel free to ask more questions.

[businezguy]

Originally Posted by rningonfumes

Storage:
Non-locking glove box,
arm rest (small),
pockets behind the driver and passenger seats
coin box underneath the driver's cup holder.
and Valet locking Trunk-60/40 folding rear seats(they don't fold flat.

Cupholders:
two on dash-- under the vents-can hold up to a large/xltra large of Carl's Jr/Hardee's drink cup.
Driver's and front passenger has an indentation in the lower door pocket that can hold the standard water bottle.
Rear of the arm rest is one more cup holder that flips out.


It looks like you've done your homework. I would pick one or the other of the packages to save money. I hope you are thinking of the manual too-- more money saved. The advantage of the Yaris over the Elantra is the price.... don't option out the Yaris any where near the price of the Elantra. If we were talking Hyundai competitor for the Yaris, it would be the Accent.

When you say you're going to save 50 bucks a month, I'm going to assume you mean over the Focus and not the Explorer. I say you're gonna save a lot more than that if you drive it right.

How large a laptop do you have? Bare with no bag, it should fit with other things in the glove box.

I hope I addressed most of your concerns, Good luck on either car.

Feel free to ask more questions.

Thanks for the information you've provided, much appreciated. I read on some threads that folks were losing coins that were going behind the dashboard when storing them somewhere. Does the coin holder you describe have that issue?

As for the price, I need to get the automatic transmission and power package. Since the Yaris has no incentives and the Elantra does, a comparably equipped Elantra with more features standard, actually costs a few hundred dollars less. However, I figured that I would save about $50 in gas per month with the Yaris vs. the Elantra because I drive so much. VS. the Explorer I'll be saving about $232 per month. VS the Focus I'll be saving about $78 per month. All of this is assuming $2.50 for gas of course. If gas goes up, the savings obviously go up as well.

I have a large laptop bag, so I'll just put my laptop in the rear of the car while commuting and obviously if I stop that the market or something on the way home, throw it in the trunk. I'm more concerned with what to do with my toll money, MP3 player, and cell phone. Believe me, when it comes to toll money especially, I feel like I risk life and limb just to get the correct change for the toll.

[scape]

oh, and yes the cup holders are awesome in this car! haha

[rbell]

Gald to see you're picking the Toyota. I just purchased a Yaris 3dr hb 3 weeks ago. I don't have any issues tooling around between 70-75 mph. I think it handles fine. Previous vehicle was a 2004 Tacoma. It now has 225,000 on it. I only had to replace the front brakes and change oils and fluids. Toyota quality is fantastic. Hate to be harsh, but I wouldn't consider buying a Hyundai or KIA piece of crap.

[TinyGiant]

i paid less than that on my yaris and i added the paint/interior protection, spoiler, and some other stuff

wait till the last day of the month like 4 hours from closing and then go talk price. the dealers have quotas they need to fill.. play hardball. there are people on the forums paying 12-13k for a brand new yaris

[TinyGiant]

bring quotes from out of state dealers too.. you can always tell them "look i could drive two states over and pay $X. But i would rather buy local ..so what are you going to do for me?"

[scape]

i waited til july 4th or 5th, expecting some kind of deal... no such thing with toyota haha.
either way, corolla is much more comparable to an elantra, and the corolla will get awesome gas mileage as well, and much, much better resale (it appeals to new families as well as singles of almost all ages). i still like my yaris though ;D

if you're so uncertain about buying, lease for 2 years, a yaris lease is like 100$/mo or something silly...it's a complete waste of money, but hey if you really like the car you can always pay it off to keep it.

[businezguy]

For the record, I wouldn't be frustrated if it wasn't for the fact that I loved the Yaris. I love the car, it's just that in the current environment the car is actually costing more then other cars, and is actually appearing to cost almost as much as the Corolla.

I'm really not concerned about resale or trade in value. I will drive the car into the ground. I want to have this car for at least 200k miles, and would love to get 250k to 300k out of it. Even with all I've stated, I'm STILL considering the Yaris.

I think that those who are getting these cars for 12 to 13k are getting less features then I am.

I don't remember if I mentioned this or not and I don't feel like reading everything I wrote, but my wife has MS and she doesn't always have the best motor function as a result. So I need a car with automatic door locks/windows, and an automatic transmission. If it wasn't for that, I'd be considering a manual transmission to save on the price.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but with a manual transmission wouldn't I expect even better gas milage?

[supmet]

Originally Posted by businezguy

I'm really not concerned about resale or trade in value. I will drive the car into the ground. I want to have this car for at least 200k miles, and would love to get 250k to 300k out of it.

Well you just made a decision on a yaris then. Elantras WILL NOT make it to 200k without rebuilding the entire thing. A yaris will.

[businezguy]

Originally Posted by supmet

Well you just made a decision on a yaris then. Elantras WILL NOT make it to 200k without rebuilding the entire thing. A yaris will.

That's really a generalization, but for the most part you're right, I'm close to making my decision and strongly favoring the Yaris. I love the car, I love the ride, I love the set up, and most importantly I love the awesome MPG I'll be able to get from this car without the need to dole out extra money for a hybrid.

[roxy1]

Originally Posted by businezguy

Correct me if I'm wrong, but with a manual transmission wouldn't I expect even better gas milage?

IMO, you are absolutely correct. back in 07 when i was shopping for my yaris, i made a crude spreadsheet from every forum i could find discussing real world mileage from yaris owners. i tried to compare apples to apples as far as driving conditions with the manual vs the auto. the vast majority (88%) of the highest mileage (identified as non hypermilers based on their posts) drivers were driving manual transmissions.

here is another site comparing a pretty good sampling of drivers of the 2007 yaris (which is identical as far as engine/transmission to the 09 yaris). you will see the manual transmission has an average of 38.8 mpg vs the auto transmission at 34.8 mpg.

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/calcu...ta&model=Yaris

additionally, id have to say if you can get a corolla for the same price as a yaris, it would be a no brainer to go with the corolla. but, it you really want a hatchback, then the yaris is a no brainer, unless a base model fit appeals to you (which would already be equiped with power windows/locks.

[businezguy]

Originally Posted by roxy1

IMO, you are absolutely correct. back in 07 when i was shopping for my yaris, i made a crude spreadsheet from every forum i could find discussing real world mileage from yaris owners. i tried to compare apples to apples as far as driving conditions with the manual vs the auto. the vast majority (88%) of the highest mileage (identified as non hypermilers based on their posts) drivers were driving manual transmissions.

here is another site comparing a pretty good sampling of drivers of the 2007 yaris (which is identical as far as engine/transmission to the 09 yaris). you will see the manual transmission has an average of 38.8 mpg vs the auto transmission at 34.8 mpg.

http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/calcu...ta&model=Yaris

additionally, id have to say if you can get a corolla for the same price as a yaris, it would be a no brainer to go with the corolla. but, it you really want a hatchback, then the yaris is a no brainer, unless a base model fit appeals to you (which would already be equiped with power windows/locks.

To put it simply, I don't like the Corolla. It's a boring ride, with a plain interior that is...well, boring. The Yaris has a more basic interior, but somehow the overall experience is a fun/high MPG.

I have to admit it, part of the fun is going to be seeing how high I can get my MPG up to, and to me the Yaris is the most affordable route to do that. Unless I change my mind, once I gather all of the cash I need, I'll be going ahead and purchasing a Yaris. That's pretty much my decision.

Thanks for taking the time to answer all of my prices. I can't wait until I own my new car!

[Yaris Hilton]

I certainly could've bought a Corolla (or two.) I wanted a Yaris. (Got two.)

[roxy1]

Originally Posted by businezguy

To put it simply, I don't like the Corolla. It's a boring ride, with a plain interior that is...well, boring. The Yaris has a more basic interior, but somehow the overall experience is a fun/high MPG.
!

id agree the yaris hatchback has a more fun overall appearance, at least on the outside. the yaris sedan is even more plain looking on the outside than the new corolla. on mostly highway driving, i easily pull similar mpg's as i did in my yaris. the yaris had a slight advantage in more stop and go situations. i just dont see the value in a yaris sedan unless it can have some type of price advantge over a corolla (or even the Elantra).

[kimona]

This issue has been flogged to death here and elsewhere. Most drivers will get better gas mileage with the automatic transmission.

[businezguy]

I'm surprised that the manual transmission doesn't rev at lower RPMs because it is a 5-speed. I would be going around 55 to 60 MPH so I would think the 5-speed would run at lower RPMs for me.

Thanks for the clarification! I do not plan on "pulsing and gliding". I would certainly be very conservative with shifting, and intentionally leave the car at very low RPMs however.

[roxy1]

Originally Posted by kimona

This issue has been flogged to death here and elsewhere. Most drivers will get better gas mileage with the automatic transmission.

flat out false. (odd that the epa highway estimate is worse for the automatic transmission)

if you want to...

-get the best mileage (not really debatable, IMO)
-save money on your purchase price (not in question)
-have a more fun driving experience when the mood hits you (hard to debate this)

...then get the manual transmission.

drivers of the automatic might have come to that conclusion in their own heads. a vast majority of the highest mileage yaris drivers are the manual drivers. auto transmission drivers can try to rationalize their choice of an auto transmission all they want. just admit you got the auto tranny for the convenience. the epa estimates and real life data bears out better mileage in the manual transmission.

i dont know how big of a sample you want:

68 automatic transmission drivers and 44 manual transmission drivers.
not only does the manual transmission yaris fare better in mileage, its not even that close. 38.8 mpg vs 34.8 mpg in favor of the manual transmission.

this forum is made up of a majority of auto transmission drivers (natural since there arent that many 5 speeds being made). it is natural they will want to believe the auto tranny can achieve equal mileage with the manual transmission. the facts wont show this to be so. the lower rpm argument doesnt cut it with this car as the rpm differences are minimal. the small rpm advantage cannot make up for the parasitic losses inherent in driving an auto (yes, even todays automatics). there is also a weight advantage, though it is not great.

now, taking the civic or fit as an example where the rpm differences between the auto are extremely different (something around 800+ rpm's at highway speeds) and you could see where that would make a difference.

the only argument to be had is someone who cant drive a manual transmision and doesnt understand efficient shift points might as well drive the auto.

i dont fault anyone for getting the auto transmission. it is more convenient (there are occasions where i widh i had one, such as traffic tie ups) and it still gets very good mileage, but not quite what the manual transmission will achieve.