Scion xA:14300
-good interior materials
-fair power
-no cruise control
-availability
-no negotiations
-sprung soft
-center mounted guages FTL
Nissan Versa SL: about 16000
-best power
-cvt without fake gears
-6 spd
-best interior
-good options -has blutoof
-fair resale?
-fair availability
-Mexican built Renault? LeShitbox?
Honda Fit Sport: about 16000
-5spd auto w/paddles
-good 5spd shifter
-power is 1.weaksauce
-handles well
-nice interior
-availability is teh suck
-good resale?
I’m leaning toward the versa, mainly because Honda dealers are charging over sticker and I’d have to go out of area for a Fit. Plus I love hondas like Newman loves F-bods. Despite this the Fit still looks pretty damn good.
Buying a Microhatch… the only two things I would consider would be gas mileage and price, as I cant imagine you using it for anything other than the daily grind. So the Yaris would probably be my vote.
just find one on a lot and if they dont want to give you sticker, then walk away. I literally laughed in a dealers face when we were at one dealer when he said they were marking them up 500.00
if you want to drive, i can give you the dealer info for the dealer my friend got it from, its in NJ though.
knowing nothing about your size and body type i have to say get into the cars first. My buddy has a yaris and hates the seats. He’s over 6’ and a decent build.
Interiors seem like a pretty simple thing to change through out while sharing a platform. So just because the suspension is the same you can still end up with a unique car.
I think the B16 is due out in 2007, not sure though.
Versa but I am biased…but in real life none…to small for me and since i am poor and can only affrd one car i woudl go more towards a Sentra SE-R Spec V
being that i work at a nissan dealer, ive gotten to drive the base and fully loaded versas. theyre actually pretty comfy cars. if you can get past the goofy look that all those cars have, id take the versa for the interior space / comfort. plus you can get a lot of cool options with them like the intelligent keys and the cvt tranny which is cool as hell.
Let me share some info, because I just finished my shopping for small hatchbacks today.
Versa looks like a scaled down Quest. It was on my list but got eliminated for a few reasons:
Made in Mexico
Same crappy shifter that the Spec V uses.
I’d be embarrased to be seen in it.
Nissan paint. (Can never be overstated… after 5 years my car looks like it has a case of psoriasis, and I took good care of it, too)
Good luck on a Fit, nobody has one, and they won’t be getting them until January. IMO, they are also way overpriced in the typical Honda fashion, and Honda dealers suck at incentives and deals.
Yaris is just tiny, Scion Xa and Xb are a much better deal, and they are pretty decent, I liked the Xb that I drove. HOWEVER: They do not haggle on the price at Scion, so you might not get that great of a deal.
I just signed the deal on a 2007 Focus hatch instead of a Scion Xb. Comparably equipped, it is costing me $60 per month less than the Xb would have. It also gets 37mpg on the highway, which is about what the Xa gets and better than the 33mpg that the Xb gets. It also has almost 30% more power than the Scion. Four wheel independent suspension, not a rear beam like the Scion. Warranty is good, too.
Also worth consideration is the Hyundai Accent hatch… looks pretty nice, and Autoweek liked it better than the Yaris and many others.
