Test drove Fit, Versa and Yaris... Bought a Yaris!

[AlexK]

Even though on paper the Versa is the clear winner (in terms of what you get for the money), I chose the Yaris sedan. Here is why:

The Fit was very nice but it is impossible to get a manual transmission. The dealers said there are no more 2007 manuals available. The auto version was very slow off the line and not fun. The rear seats of the FIT are awesome but since I also have a pickup I won't be hauling huge loads with my commuter car. Also it has a timing belt instead of a chain which is like a little bomb waiting to go off at the worst possible moment (maybe I exaggerate a little here).

The Versa CVT SL (continuously variable transmission) model I drove was very nice. It was also slow off the line but once revved it accelerated very nicely. Too bad the price was $16900 for that model! The 6 speed manual was $13900 so I drove that one also. With a 6 speed transmission I was expecting a low first gear and a high 6th gear. Wrong on both counts! First gear is very high, and also the engine has very little low rpm torque (our Yaris engines are so much better in that dept). In 6th gear at 3000 rpm the Versa was doing 66 mph. My Toyota Tacoma truck is higher geared than that in 4th gear! Also the shifter was clunky feeling with obvious vibration from the engine. It made a hollow sounding noise with each shift. I work for a supplier for Nissan and could have gotten the car at below invoice price, but it still wasn't worth it. It is a POS in my opinion. It's such a shame too because it comes so well equipped and reasonably priced too (for the S trim level anyway).

The Yaris comes with few standard features but it felt like the smoothest, highest quality vehicle of the three makes I tried. The manual transmission and clutch are perfect. I do hate the annoying throttle-by-wire which causes the engine to rev up between shifts if I don't let off the gas a second earlier than I'm used to, but the Nissan Versa did that also (and I assume the manual Fit does the same). The ride quality is better than the Fit's and equal to the Versa's. The resale value of a Toyota is better than Nissan. The Yaris body also looks better than the Versa's.

I ended up buying a 5 speed manual Yaris Sedan in green. No options except tinted windows, bumper protector, and floor mats (not even a radio!). Interior color is black. The dealer knocked $300 off the MSRP for me, price was $12800 before tax.
I already ordered a in-dash DVD/MP3 player so I won't be without tunes for long. So far I've logged 200 miles and it's great! I bet I'm one of the few Yaris buyers who will be getting worse gas mileage than in their last car ('92 Geo Metro - I got 47 city, 52 hwy).