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 Seems everyone
these days is introducing new entry-level vehicles, or rather, reintroducing
to the American market compact vehicles that have already proven their
mettle elsewhere. Most notable for 2007 is the new Nissan Versa (which
is a re-badged version of the popular Nissan Tiida sold in Japan), and
now Toyota is bringing its much-acclaimed Yaris to the States.
The big news about the arrival of Yaris is that in 2000 it received the
prestigious European "Car of the Year" award. Established in
1964 by a collective of European motoring magazines, the Car of the Year
award is a juried competition in which there are no categories or class
winners-the stated objective is to find a "single, decisive winner"
among all competing cars.
As only the second Japanese car ever to be voted European Car of the
Year at the time (Toyota's Prius subsequently won in 2005), Toyota's "supermini"
Yaris was a winner with the jurors thanks to its technical innovation,
spacious interior, clever styling and impressively powerful engine.
Well, five-plus years is a long time, and since winning Car of the Year,
Toyota has been able to refine and further improve on the features that
so impressed the judges back in 2000. As the American interpretation of
that winning combination, the 2007 Toyota Yaris Liftback is a commendable
vehicle.
Pricing for the 2007 Toyota Yaris Liftback starts at $10,950 and for
sure you'll want to spend the $300 extra dollars for the anti-lock braking
system. (The standard Yaris brakes are power-assisted front ventilated
disc with drums on the rear.)
Ours came equipped with other attractive options, including the power
package ($1,680) with 15-inch alloy wheels; power doors locks; power windows;
power outside mirrors; 60/40 split, reclining, sliding and fold-flat rear
seat; AM/FM CD with MP3/WMA Playback capability and auxiliary audio jack;
rear wiper; and rear defroster.
The Yaris' interior styling is upbeat and youthful in appearance. The
gauges sit squarely in the middle of the dash-a design move that was a
total bust for the Nissan Quest-but in the Yaris this placement somehow
works. The Yaris Liftback's instrument panel is bare bones. Except for
the temperature and fuel gauges, the speedometer is the only visible gauge,
but who needs a tachometer when your main functions are "Go"
and "Stop?"
Speaking of going, we drove the Yaris Liftback 5-speed manual which is
powered by a 1.5-liter DOHC 16-valve VVT-i 4-cylinder engine producing
106 hp. Given the price point and size of the car, this was totally adequate.
Be forewarned; the Yaris feels spunky off the line, but then there's no
torque for passing or accelerating.
The Yaris Liftback is also available with a 4-speed automatic transmission
starting at $11,850.
For everything we found commendable about the Yaris Liftback, unfortunately
we could not say the same about the 2007 Toyota Yaris 4-door Sedan, which
we drove in back-to-back comparisons. The Yaris 4-door Sedan was developed
specifically for the American market and feels more like distant cousin
than sibling to the impressive Liftback.
Even though they share many of the same interior and exterior features,
the Sedan was developed as an afterthought and it certainly felt like
one, although we were hard-pressed to put our respective fingers on precisely
why. Where the Liftback felt like a fun speedster, the Sedan felt like
a boring compromise. Where the Liftback seemed zippy, the Sedan felt underpowered.
Of course, it didn't help matters that the Yaris 4-door Sedan we tested
was the base model, with 5-speed manual transmission and no upgrades.
It was hard to get used to manual locks, manual mirrors and manual windows.
So few cars have manual locks these days that we found it easy to forget
that you have to manually lock the passenger-side front door. It was also
very hard for the driver to adjust the right-side mirror. Not to mention
that the outward expression of the 4-door Sedan isn't at all pretty or
even cute like the Liftback.
We were also concerned to be driving around in a vehicle without anti-lock
brakes and our test car had no side airbags. The base model Yaris Sedan
is an adequate transportation device but not one that we'd recommend without
some necessary options.
The Yaris Liftback and 4-door Sedan models did share some notable features
though, including great air-conditioning (which was tested in 100+ degree
weather), great fuel mileage and incredible interior roominess. Of course,
given the small size, parking was a breeze. On the downside, both manual
models were nearly impossible to shift in high heels due to the limited
foot well space.
Though small, the Yaris is still adequate.
To prepare for the U.S. introduction of the Yaris, Toyota made it less
of a "supermini" and more of a "maximini" by placing
it on an all-new platform. This next-generation Yaris is longer and wider
than its European predecessor. Measuring 150 inches in length, the Liftback
is longer than the Mini Cooper (at 143 inches). And the Yaris Sedan is
169 inches, the same as its closest competitor, the Nissan Versa.
Overall, we preferred Toyota's 2007 Yaris Liftback over the 4-door Sedan
version, although with Toyota's stellar reputation for dependability,
we are prepared to start seeing plenty of both versions on the road.
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