Edmunds.com | Inside Line | Auto Observer Your Account | Help | Directory
You are here:
![[F]](http://a332.g.akamai.net/f/332/936/12h/www.edmunds.com/media/townhall/webxicons/site.gif){kind=small}
Forums
Hatchbacks Hatchbacks - Archived Discussions Which New Budget Car Better? Fit/Yaris/Versa? 
225 messages, Last post on Dec 30, 2007 at 3:02 PM
You are in the Hatchbacks - Archived Discussions Forum. Your Host is pf_flyer
This discussion is ARCHIVED. To reactivate the discussion, post a request in the Lost? Ask the Hatchbacks Host for directions! discussion.
|
Replying to: qbrozen (Jun 28, 2006 5:43 am) Rocky |
|
|
Versa best choice We saved the best for last. We've now checked out the trio of new Japanese mini cars: the Honda Fit, Toyota Yaris and now the Nissan Versa. Toyota and Honda have more brand recognition, but Nissan gets the "atta boy." It also gets my Best Buy nod. The 2007 Nissan Versa that arrives in showrooms in July has the most-spirited 4-cylinder, most-nimble handling, and by far the most spacious, roomy and comfortable cabin of the three. But Versa is the one that we'd hop in if all three were parked in the drive and we needed a set of wheels for work or vacation.
|
|
|
Replying to: moparbad (Jun 28, 2006 6:01 pm)  While the article did make me want to check out the Versa, I had intended to do that anyway. And he takes a few cheap shots at the Fit that are pretty underserved, such as his lumping in of the Fit with the Versa and Yaris when it comes to 'added cost options'. Huh? There are no big option packages with the Fit, you choose one of two trim levels, and then manual or auto and you're done. The 'its like motoring around in a phone booth' comment was pretty lame too. I dunno... I think I'll take Car and Driver and MotorTrend's Fit > Versa opinions over these guys. But still, ultimate judgement will be reserved 'till the Versa actually shows up. And, on the up side, if it really is stiff competition, that will help get rid of some of the more ridiculous dealer add-on scams we're currently seeing on the Fit. |
|
|
|
|
a Versa last night when the dealership was closed. Very nice styling, I thought. The pictures don't do it justice at all. It was only $13,900 with the six-speed manual and all the safety gear except ABS, which is the only one not standard when compared with the Fit. The really annoying thing about the Fit is that there is never one available to test drive. I liked Fit the best of these three initially (on paper), but if it is this hard to find one, I will pass, thank you very much. I did build a Versa on the Nissan website, putting in the moonroof and stereo with subwoofer, and it only came to about $1000 more than the Fit (most of the other features were comparably equipped between the two). I like that - it was still under $17,000. Oh, and did I mention the latest annoying quirk? If you build the Versa with all those "luxury" features, which includes the keyless entry and start, you can't have ABS. The two are mutually exclusive. If you build the Versa with ABS, you can't add any of those other packages, not even the convenience package.
|
|
|
aren't always representative of what most people want, especially Car and Driver. The reason? They tend to heavily wait the "sporty" aspects, so a Fit will tend to win since it is more go-cart like. But, more sales go to people that are interested in the extra passenger room, featurs, more comfortable ride on the highway, etc. So, it is entirely possible that a car with the atributes of the Versa (which seems to always get the "best all around" award, even if it doesn't win the test), might be more popular with the American driving public.
|
|
|
Replying to: nippononly (Jul 03, 2006 12:10 pm) Hmmm... I'd check with the dealer on that. Seems VERY odd. I would have to assume that's an error on the website builder. |
|
|
Replying to: nippononly (Jul 03, 2006 12:10 pm) I've said it before in other topics, Nissan makes a great car, but they're very lax on safety features. For example, stability control is available only on the fully loaded ($30k-plus) models of the Murano, Quest and Maxima lines. You can't get it at all on a sparsely-optioned model. |
|
|
Replying to: stickguy (Jul 03, 2006 12:22 pm) But, more sales go to people that are interested in the extra passenger room, featurs, more comfortable ride on the highway, etc. So, it is entirely possible that a car with the atributes of the Versa (which seems to always get the "best all around" award, even if it doesn't win the test), might be more popular with the American driving public. I agree with that... mags like Car and Driver tend to wish that every car was a sports car and tend to rate "driver's cars" more highly than practical or comfortable ones. One can see it in their recent econocar comparison, for example. Look at how their point scale was weighted... fuel economy accounted for 5 out of 250 points, aka only 2% (!!!). Pretty laughable considering it was an ECONOCAR (read: high mpg vehicle) comparison, and that we're in the era of 3-bucks-a-gallon gas. Meanwhile, acceleration/0-60 times were weighted a lot more heavily than mpg. I found it unintentional comedy at its finest. 
|
|
|
So I visited a Nissan, a Honda, and a Toyota dealer last weekend. Only test drove the Versa because the Fit had already been sold and the Yaris didn't catch my attention, but here are my comments: The Versa is a sporty, large-on-the-inside car. It's fun to drive and reasonably quiet (although the roads I was on were pretty smooth). It'd be great for driving around with my tall friends. Not a huge cargo area in the back. The Fit is a bit smaller. It beats to Versa in cargo versatility, what with the seats that fold both up and down, but not so much passenger room. It'd be great for the college kid who needs to haul stuff around in a small package. It felt a *bit* cramped to me, though. The Yaris is completely unremarkable. I just checked out the sedan, because I need at least four doors. The Yaris is great for someone who needs a dependable cheap little car. I'm not sure what more can be said about it. Both the Nissan and Honda dealers were marking their wares way above MSRP because, well, people really want the Versa and the Fit. Not willing to pay $18k for a $15k car, I'll be passing on those cars. The Toyota dealership I went to had a couple of Yarii available, and weren't marking them up
|
|
|
Replying to: pdxtaurus (Jul 05, 2006 7:09 pm) For $18k, you could get a leftover '06 Altima... |
|
You are here:
Forums
Hatchbacks Hatchbacks - Archived Discussions Which New Budget Car Better? Fit/Yaris/Versa?
New? Join Now!
Forum Tools
Search Forums
Browse by Vehicle
2010 Toyota Yaris
2010 Honda Fit
2010 Nissan Versa
Browse by Board
Browse by Topic
Today's Chats
