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Hatchbacks Toyota Yaris Toyota Yaris: Test Drives & Rentals
21 messages, Last post on Jul 05, 2006 at 1:04 PM
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I just came back from a test drive. The car I drove was an S-trim sedan, manual shift, stickering at $13,985 with no options at all. My initial impressions are all pretty good. The car is much more substantial than my Echo - it doesn't skitter over the top of bad stretches of pavement, where the Echo tends to get unsettled. It has less body lean when cornering, and less noise overall, although while road noise is way down, I think wind noise may actually be up a little. The engine is very muted from inside the cabin. It is less peppy than the Echo, but never feels underpowered. You would have to have just stepped out of an Echo the way I had to notice this. I did not so much like the fact that it revs at 2700 rpm at 60 mph in top gear, where, the Echo feels more relaxed at highway speeds. The Yaris manual revs at 3200 rpm at 70 mph. The brakes are nowhere near as strong as the ones on my Echo, but the car is heavier and I bet that also has a lot to do with the fact that the car was brand new - doubtless the brakes need a little time to wear in. Inside, I very much like the map lights the new model has, and everything feels very "Toyota", which is a good thing. The HVAC controls are all electronic now, no more having the dials actually pull levers behind the scenes, the way they do in my Echo. The stereo is very good in the S (160-watt version). The base models have a lower-powered stereo. The ipod jack is on the right side of the center stack, and there is a plastic bin there to put the player in after you hook it up. The gauge cluster looks really nice in "Optitron", if a bit bright. Intermittent wipers are standard now, as is the clock, and the rear defogger too (only in the sedan though). On the downside, perhaps the stupidest thing is the cupholders. They have moved up from the floor between the seats, where they should be IMO, to fold out of the dash by the window, one on each side. Not only are they shallow little things that have me wondering how long my Super Big Gulp would sit in there before it fell out in my lap from way up there, but also they are RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE SIDE VENTS. I really thought the Japanese carmakers had moved beyond dash-mounted cupholders that hold very little and block the vents or controls. As far as the accomodations, there is as much hard plastic as in the Echo, but it looks better. Everywhere you touch is still hard plastic. The steering wheel still feels a little bit cheap when you grab it, but looks better now also. The shifter is definitely better than the one in the Echo, more tight through the gates with less play and shorter throws. The outside mirrors now have little remote handles to adjust them from inside the car, unlike the non-power mirrors in the Echo which make you reach out the window and monkey around. The seats are better bolstered and have better cloth. The driver's seat height adjustment, which as I understand it is only in the 'S' model I drove, is the ratcheting tilt-forward-and-up type that VW uses, not a proper wheel-operated true up and down. There is a lot more room for knees in the back seat, vs the Echo. Lastly, I have a bone or two to pick with the contenting here. If you want the factory CD player and 15" rims (there is no stereo at all otherwise, just four speakers), you might as well get the 'S' sedan, because the base sedan comes within a few hundred dollars of the base price of the 'S' once you add in the convenience package that provides those items. The 3-door, of course, still has no tach, and no cruise is available at any price. The 3-door, however, is substantially less expensive than the sedans if you just want the convenience package (more than $1000 less, equipped that way). We did a little tour of some cars they had on the lot, and the Yaris has some stiff competition right in its own yard from other Toyotas: - they had an xA manual shift, stickered at $13,3, and at that price it is equipped BETTER than the base Yaris with convenience package would be at the same price, because it also has power windows, locks, and mirrors, not to mention ABS. Same powertrain, almost the same mileage. - they had a base Corolla CE, which stickers at $14,6 and is equipped exactly as the Yaris sedan with convenience package (which stickers around $13,2) is in terms of features, but has the larger engine with 20% more power, engine immobilizer, etc, not to mention more wiggle room in price negotiation (there is like a $700 spread between invoice and MSRP on the minimally-optioned Yarii) and a bit more space. Plus, it actually does a point BETTER in fuel economy on the highway. And has non-silly cupholders. But is also very very common, and is a 4-year-old model. So, $1400 more for more engine, a bit more more space, a few more features (power mirrors are standard on Corolla, for instance), some soft-touch plastics around the cabin, and more wiggle room in price negotiation. All in all, it is hard to say what I would do if I were buying today. The xA is a heck of a deal, and the Corolla is more peppy and gets better mileage for maybe an extra $800-1000 stretch. The Yaris is the best-looking of the three to me, though. But the Yaris 3-door, equipped only with convenience package (gotta have the CD!  ) is probably the deal of the bunch, if I could get past the fact that they omitted the tach from that model AGAIN, the same way they did in my Echo. 
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Replying to: nippononly (Mar 22, 2006 10:44 pm) Personally, I like the looks of the Yaris hatch better than the Scion. Thanks for the report. |
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I have owned an Echo automatic and xA stick shift and drove each for my typical 10,000 miles before trading them in. I am writing this brief test-drive impressions on the Liftback from that perspective. The Yaris liftback is much improved over both the Echo and the xA, although the xA interior still looks and feels like a little Lexus while the Yaris looks and feels like a little (and quirky) Corolla. Although the Yaris liftback cabin is well put together (no trim fit/warp issues like the Lienert's noted in their 2007 Camry review), it's about as bargain basement as it gets these days. The center arm rest, an option, is especially rickety and degrades from the general cabin appearance. The lower panels on the doors are plain "Rubber Maid" plastic with no texture, and since you have to reach there for the window cranks, you will be reminded of this cost-cutting portion of the interior. The 2006 Kia Rio interior is actually much nicer (and unlike Backy and iluvmysephia, I am not a fan of Korean cars). Despite the negative sound of my comments on the interior, the Yaris is still much nicer than the Echo and not THAT much below the Scion xA - it's just that since 2003 when I had the Echo, the state of small cars has gotten much better (Cobalts are in Golf Mark IV territory in terms of interior appearance, the Scions with their wonderful interiors came out, the Kias and Hyundais are upgraded, etc.). In summary, I wouldn't have any problem driving a Yaris liftback as a commuter, but I'd be a little bashful about inviting a colleague from work to hop drive over to lunch in one. I wouldn't be in my Cobalt, and given that the Cobalt gets similar mileage (in real world driving), it's the old problem of why get a smaller car for more money? But I digress. From the outside, the Liftback is wonderful! Great design, the most fun design I have seen in years, I would have loved to see this design from VW. It is totally unexpected from Toyota. (I also looked at Corollas this weekend and those things are just toasters.) When I pulled away from the dealer's lot with the salesman (about 220 pounds to my 170) in the car and the aircon on, I expected this heavier-than-the-Echo replacement to be sluggish. On the contrary, it felt like it hauled monkey butt. This may have been due to an aggressive tip-in on the throttle - I can assure you I was using very little of the throttle, since I take it easy on test drives - or it may have been due to revised gearing on the automatic tranny. Or it may have been due to the apparent revised VVT valve timing profile (although hp is up about 5 from the Echo - a real 5, after taking into account the adoption of the SAE testing standard, the power I experienced was readily available at low and mid rpm). The transmission allowed the car to hold an optimal gear rather than shifting early, which is a brave design decision given the amount of engine roar that comes into the passenger compartment from the engine when it is revving up (the noise was non-existent at 70 mph cruise on the freeway, where light wind noise dominated). I didn't experience any tire roar as reported by some other reviewers on the average freeway surface I drove on. The tires were the 15" Bridgestone RE92's, and it seems that despite the generally poor reviews on this "line" of Bridgestone tires at tirerack.com, in fact Toyota must have given OEM specs to Bridgestone that turn this tire into a grippy relatively quiet and smooth performer. If I were to own this car, there would be no immediate pressure to upgrade the tires. In addition to a stronger engine, with peppier acceleration, the ride and handling were better than either the Echo or xA. The firmness was in the middle of those two cars - not wallowy like the Echo, not harsh like the xA. In some strong crosswinds, as evidenced by bushes along the side of the freeway getting blow around, there was only a slight feedback into the steering wheel. This is a car that can easily cruise the freeways, something I could not say about the Echo. On the other hand, it lacks the Echo's tall seating position and open, spacious cabin feel. The Yaris liftback is more similar to a conventional hatchback. On the other hand, it never felt tippy like the Echo always did. The trunk is better than on the xA, but nothing compared to the gargantuan trunk on the Echo sedan. It is marginally useful, while the xA's was marginally useless. The hatch cover is solid on portion nearest the liftback, with a flexible rear felt portion that sticks to the seatbacks via velcro on the rear seat. This is how Toyota adapts the mechanism for the tilt/slide rear seat feature on some trim lines. When folded flat, the rear seat (not split on the base model) is mostly flat. Two people could go car camping in this mode if they packed carefully. Two people are not going to pick up a third at the airport if the third has any significant luggage. The main appeal of the Yaris to me is its uniqueness, scarcity, high gas mileage, and FTD (fun to drive) factor. I would recommend it to any young sporty male, and the young at heart, but steer single moms to the much heavier, and presumably more crashworthy, Chevy Cobalt which actually stickers lower than either of the Yarii if you stay away from options. One final comment. The Echo drove me nuts with its outside mirrors - there was no interior lever to adjust the view, you had to crank the windows down to adjust the mirror angle. That's not so bad, but the housing for the mirrors moved with the mirrors, so everytime I went through a car wash, I had to readjust both outside mirrors. The Yaris liftback uses fixed housings with a mirror on the inside that you adjust, so unless you switch drivers, the lack of an interior adjustment shouldn't be a problem. |
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Replying to: micweb (May 06, 2006 3:13 pm)
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Replying to: reddroverr (May 06, 2006 3:45 pm) considering it is a lower end car I absolutely agree. The first time I sat in a Yaris, a week and a half ago, it seemed nicer than expected. But we have been shopping for a replacement car for our minivan (crashed) and I have been used to seeing Malibu's and '07 Camry's, so the psychological frame of reference is a little different. Part of the "niceness" of the xA, I am sure, is all those free bells and whistles (power mirrors, door locks) and jazzy stereo unit (at least it looked snazzy until you tried to use it), in addition to the finish on the plastic panels. But I joke not about the optional center armrest. I did the "sit behind myself" test of rear seat room and noted that the optional center armrest is anchored to the seat bolts on each side by a vertical run of a couple of wire frames that look a heck of a lot like coat hanger wire, in gauge and finish!
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Replying to: micweb (May 06, 2006 4:08 pm) |
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Replying to: micweb (May 06, 2006 3:13 pm) sorry, i just dont think there is any truth to that statement. the guys i know that work for a local, fairly high volume chevy dealer would love to know to what cobalt you are referring. they are having far too many customers buying cobalts, then weeks or months later coming in to complain that the car isnt getting near the epa estimates. (pretty sad considering the epa numbers on the cobalt are an anemic 25/34 on the manual)--ive seen similar complaints w/dodge caliber. i also know 3 people personally who drive cobalts. they get around the epa estimates, but still i consider that quite poor for its class.(compared to its rivals, civic, corolla) not only are epa estimates for yaris much higher, i see few people not achieving those numbers or close to them. imo, cobalts "real world mileage" is disturbingly diappointing--as is the aveo, not surprisingly.
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Replying to: kato1 (May 07, 2006 2:30 am) For gas mileage, a LOT depends on your driving route and driving habits. It doesn't take much city driving AT ALL to bring down a highway average. It doesn't take much aircon or lead foot to bring down city mileage. Finally, Car and Driver reported their Cobalt was one of the best mileage cars they had. The numbers they reported weren't very good - but they are very hard drivers. Other cars took more mileage hits.
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Replying to: micweb (May 07, 2006 7:15 am) from here: http://www.caranddriver.com/roadtests/9267/chevrolet-cobalt-ls-page2.html and in C&D testing, Yaris managed to pull: "36 mpg, the best we observed" from here: http://www.caranddriver.com/comparisons/10980/2007-toyota-yaris-s.html It appears Yaris will save most folks 25% or more on their gas bills vs the Cobalt. Just to provide everyone with a standardized frame of reference. Most folks in the Yaris thread seem to be reporting everyday mileage of around 38 mpg, slightly worse than the 41 mpg running average I manage in my Echo. |
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I drove a MT version Tuesday 4/11/07. It was very tight and needed break-in. Center of gravity was higher than my old corrolla. It sold 2 days after hitting the lot. There are about a dozen available in the metro-Phoenix area but the rest are sedans with gas-guzzler automatics in them. AC was good as we are using it already in Phoenix. The tires were still too new to get a good feel for handling. After a week of scuff-up one should be able to get a feel for evasive maneuvers. With transplanted road-rage california drivers you need to be able to steer and reload at the same time.
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