spwolf

bigger pic shows a lot more details...

LexFather

I lol'd

Interior is way better.

MR_F1

lol.

The interior is ok. The center console desperately needs help though.

venom21

Meh before, meh now.

Blackraven

I have no problem with centre-gauges though. It's probably cheaper for the automakers (esp. when creating Left hand drive and Right hand drive components) and is symmetrical.

Unfortunately, not many people like center gauges so I guess that's why it was not pursued for the upcoming model......

Danimal

I am in love with my fiancee's '07 Yaris (Sedan). It doesn't do anything particularly well, and isn't super comfortable but it has 3 big things going for it:

1) It gets stupidly high gas mileage. Our all time best (driving 55mph, with tail wind, flat road, car full of luggage) we got something like 47mpg. I wasn't shutting the car down at stops or doing anything crazy, and got that. Her overall average is around 37.5mpg.

2) It was inexpensive.

3) It is remarkably easy to work on for regular maintenance.

I'll be excited to see the next generation come out!

Edit: Forgot to mention, I don't notice the center cluster any more. Any when I do, I enjoy it just fine.

mmarshall

Agreed. But it doesn't take much, IMO, to improve on the Fit's looks. And the Yaris, unlike the Fit, has that annoying center-dash speedometer....that's something I hope they dump for 2012. (it's simply a cost-cutting device to make it easier to do left/right-hand-drive versions for different markets)

mmarshall

The posted version is a 5-door hatchback, yet we get only the 4-door sedan and 3-door hatchback here in the American market. That's something else they should consider...bringing the Euro/Asian-market 5-door hatch here to America. I think the 5-door would sell....that style, of course, has more flexibility/utility than the 3-door, although it may (?) cost a little more.

Ford, for example, seems to be having a lot of success with the similiarly-sized 5-door hatchback Fiesta. They don't even sell the 3-door version here in America.

-J-P-L-

As seen from the interior shot, center gauges are now gone. Everyone who drives a current Yaris likes center gauges however and forget that it's out of the norm. Problem is, that sales have suffered from that one feature because people think it would be distracting.

Actually mmarshall, the 5-door has been on sale in the US since the 2009 model year.

-J-P-L-

I own an '07 sedan S and love it more than anything. There's just something about it that makes you love it more each day regardless that it is an economy car. It's just more than the sum of its parts.

Yeah, its mileage is on par with a hybrid for much less money.

It never needs fixing. I know of one with 420,000 miles and has had only one part replaced (alternator). Another one with 220,000 miles and the owner is still wondering when his first repair will be. I have 93,000 miles and am also wondering.

I actually love the center gauges. Realized it was a better place for gauges after driving it the first day.

Oh, and having the tightest turning radius in the auto industry is a feature I never get tired of.

The car just has such an abundance of "character" that makes me want to always drive it.

mmarshall

Perhaps so. I have not owned or driven a center-gauge car for any real length of time, so I can't predict what my long-term reaction would be. But I have test-driven a number of vehicles with them....(Toyota Echo/Yaris, Scion xA/xB, Saturn Ion, Nissan Quest, etc....) and found each of them, at least short-term, to be a PITA. Most of the auto-press members and auto-test magazines who have sampled them have not liked them, either.

But.....I understand. This may (?) be one of the automotive issues where you mind COULD change over a period of time.

But that still doesn't change the obvious factor, either, of it being a easy cost-cutting measure for doing both left/right-hand drive models for different markets.



Thanks. You're correct. Toyota does (now) list it on their American website. I don't recall seeing a single one in the D.C. area, though (just 3 and 4-door models), which would be unusual with the huge number of cars here.

Perhaps it's me, though...maybe I didn't look hard enough, or just don't remember one.

You got my curiosity up now..... The largest Toyota shop on the East Coast is just a couple of miles from me. I'll have to check and see if they have 5-doors in stock. This will be interesting.

MR_F1

Why does both a 5 door yaris and the scion xa exist in the same market?

mmarshall

The xA is no more. It was replaced, a couple of years ago, by the xD...a slightly larger vehicle. I agree, though, that there is probably some overlap with the 5-door Toyota Yaris...and the slightly larger Toyota Matrix.

Scions, though, are generally marketed to a younger potential group of buyers than Toyotas, and, with the sticker-price/no-dicker policy, make it easier for first-time buyers and those who don't want to price-haggle like in a bazaar.

MR_F1

xA, xD...... Tomato, Tomahto.....

The matrix is a fair bit larger than the Yaris though... people haggle on cars that size?

-J-P-L-

They are two completely different vehicles. They don't even share engines. The Scion xD has the Corolla power plant and doesn't achieve the stellar MPG figures the Yaris gets. Although it isn't far behind.

The xD rides higher, is night and day in the styling department, and offers numerous features not found in the Yaris. And they are all standard while the Yaris is available bare bones.

The xD is a nice niche offering between Yaris and Matrix. Certainly not a wasted offering even as sales have slowed. I praise Toyota for offering as many small cars as they do and significantly distinguishing them, not mearly re-badging.