Under the hood of a 2012 Yaris

[roxy1]

Originally Posted by CanIHazYarisHatch?

I will have to see it in person, of course. I really also dig the magnetic grey metallic, lagoon blue mica, and blazing blue pearl.

Nice to have so many cool colors, instead of just red, blue, white, black and silver. Different can indeed be good, vive la différence, and all that.




I respectfully see it differently than you do. I find it amazing that with the strong yen, weak dollar, etc...that Toyota can even sell this car for this price, especially when the $100 million or so it no doubt cost to heavily refresh this subcompact.

Is the '12 Yaris going to be the most advanced with direct injection, 40mpg highway, 6-speed transmissions, etc.? No, more in the middle of the pack, compared to most of the other new cars in it's class, such as the new Accent, Fiesta, Rio/Picanto, etc.

I.

heavily refreshed?? theres the rub. nothing about it feels that way except the change in interior/exterior look.

thing is, compared to the cars now in this class, i just cant say it in the middle of the pack. it falls short in most every way....maybe a little cheaper than some of those, but not by enough. if you go drive a base model accent hatch, you's be absolutely stunned that the yaris competes in the same class (and ive always been a toyota junkie, so i really dont like saying that).

the only car that feels and looks as cheap is the new versa.

what shocked me was the super cheap looking dash material.

if you look at pic #9 above you can see the what im talking about a little bit (look just above the dash vent).....in person it is really sad looking.

as hard as it is to believe, they actually cheapened the interior from the previous gen. it may appeal to more people because of the more conventional layout.

i dont mind toyota offering a cheap looking product. we know it will get good mileage and be dependable. however, the interior screams at you that you bought a really cheap car, and to me it screams about $13k.

i could see the SE being priced at $15,500, but not the base model stick.

[CanIHazYarisHatch?]

Originally Posted by roxy1

heavily refreshed?? theres the rub. nothing about it feels that way except the change in interior/exterior look.

thing is, compared to the cars now in this class, i just cant say it in the middle of the pack. it falls short in most every way....maybe a little cheaper than some of those, but not by enough. if you go drive a base model accent hatch, you's be absolutely stunned that the yaris competes in the same class (and ive always been a toyota junkie, so i really dont like saying that).

the only car that feels and looks as cheap is the new versa.

what shocked me was the super cheap looking dash material.

if you look at pic #9 above you can see the what im talking about a little bit (look just above the dash vent).....in person it is really sad looking.

as hard as it is to believe, they actually cheapened the interior from the previous gen. it may appeal to more people because of the more conventional layout.

i dont mind toyota offering a cheap looking product. we know it will get good mileage and be dependable. however, the interior screams at you that you bought a really cheap car, and to me it screams about $13k.

i could see the SE being priced at $15,500, but not the base model stick.

This is going to be long, so I apologize to all of you. Let me make my case for the new Yaris, as apparently few in the auto media or auto message boards even care to try.

I respectfully feel differently. I think you are forgetting that this is a B-class car. It isn't going to have the interior of an Audi A8. If this were a Lexus LS you were reviewing, I would agree, but it isn't. What part of "B-segment car" do you not understand?

It has ABS, ESC, 9 freaking airbags, etc...cost has to be cut somewhere, and I am frankly surprised Toyota can build (and import) it at this price. This car has "red ink" all over it, unlike, say a Fiesta built in Mexico. But, if you dare to select "automatic" on the options list, your PowerShift tranny goes south well before the warranty runs out. Such nonsense is highly unlikely with the proven "old" drivetrain in the Yaris.

Having driven both the 2nd gen and now 3rd gen Yarii (?), I can say the interior gives off a sportier impression, which I like. Also, the interior panels have very even panel gaps, unlike the '09 base hatch I test drove a while ago.

Is the car going to have "hard plastic" interior pieces? Um, yes...it's a $15,000 car. Why do so many people complain that the dash of a subcompact car doesn't feel like silk and feather pillows?

Here's a hint: the interior is designed to be hard-wearing.

I like simple. I like roll-up windows. There are fewer things to break, and the car is more affordable, and lighter. I don't want a "premium" compact (see Fiat 500). Where I live, the "cheap" Fiat 500 Pop model) is stickered at $18,000, and has an interior comparable to the Yaris when you look past all the shiny plastic bits pretending they are chrome. I'm not knocking the 500, but does anyone think it will last 100,000 miles before falling apart? Please. Just like VWs, fun to drive, nice-looking, but they don't last for the long haul, historically.

We enthusiasts forget that this is the cheapest car Toyota has on offer in my country (the U.S.). I'll take you one step further: If Toyota offered the 3-cylinder Aygo in the U.S. (as a 3-door 5-speed, natch), I would gladly give one a go, but that will never happen. Americans hardly accept 1.5 four-bangers, much less 1.0 three-lungers. Just ask my '94 Geo Metro about that last part...

With the currency issues, I can assure you that Toyota is probably breaking even on this car, perhaps even losing a couple hundred per unit (especially on the stripper L models that must have next to zero profit built-in). They are still building the Yaris for their CAFE fleet numbers, and to have something in this segment until the 4th gen Yaris is launched in a few years. Keep in mind, the Yaris is still built in Japan, not Mexico, like the aforementioned Versa. As I understand, Toyota has no factory there, so cannot lower costs through cheaper labor.

Could the '12 Yaris be more competitive? Oh, certainly.

I don't know about you, but the 1NZ-FE is a pretty solid little engine, smooth and still somewhat efficient, if a bit long-in-the-tooth.

I have no illusions that the '12 Yaris is going to be the hugest hit in it's class. In fact, I am pretty sure it will have a lukewarm reception, and demand will cool and they will collect dust on dealer lots. I can't control that.

What I can control is the decisions that I, as a consumer make about which car will be my first new car. For this choice, I will chose the '12 Yaris.

Why do I chose the Yaris? I wanted Ford to bring the 3-door Fiesta to the U.S., and instead they brought the 5-door and a stupid little sedan. They lost my sale, as I loved the interior and test-drive of this car. I fell in love with the 3-door's elegant looks and it was my screen saver for the longest time. I wanted to buy American for once, but the marketing idiots threw away my sale with the body styles on offer.

Exact story with Mazda and their awesome and "mechanically dated" 2 hatch. No 3-door, no sale Mazda. I also loved the "cheap", but simple and intuitive interior of the 2.

Toyota offers a 3-door that has reliability, high resale value in it's class, "good enough" economy, is comfortable, has no stupid infotainment gimmicks, a proper manual gearbox, and is on offer as a 3-door (why is it only Toyota and Fiat that offer 3-doors here?! We want 3-door hatches!) that no longer looks like a puking guppy...guess what? They will have my money.

It could be worse: I could get the Versa instead. Now that is a depressing car! I could also start listening to Lady Gaga and watching Jersey Shore.

The Yaris isn't steak by any means, but it is Subway, and that's much better than McDonald's!