Comparison review: 10 subcompact hatchbacks (10th place)

When it's parked, the Toyota Yaris stacks up well. 

 

A recent 2012-model redesign brought a higher grade of interior trim, a superior dash layout, and far more comfortable seats, and it's now among the class's best in each of those areas. It retains smallest-on-the-outside dimensions – handy in tight quarters – and already-impressive gas mileage improved further. 

 

But although Toyota dedicated clear effort to making the Yaris's interior competitive with the latest new subcompacts, driving the car indicates where other models have advanced of late and this car has not.

 

Previous Toyota subcompacts – first the 2000 Echo and then the 2007 first-generation Yaris – suffered from a lack of suspension control and a generally insubstantial feel on the road compared to their contemporaries. As before, the 2012 Yaris has improved, but the competition is better still. This car is out of its comfort zone either on the highway or on a twisty road. 

 

Furthermore, the 1.5-liter engine and four-speed automatic transmission haven't changed much since the 2000 Echo, and more advanced competitors offer better power, refinement and fuel economy, particularly at high speeds. 

 

Since the 2000 Echo, and even since the 2007 Yaris, there has been an uptick in interest from consumers and automakers alike in the subcompact segment. New entries have added premium content and premium driving dynamics, and are successfully commanding premium prices for it. 

 

Toyota, meanwhile, is selling a new-and-improved old-school subcompact: a basic, fuel-efficient little car that's more pleasant to be in than the old Yaris. And for sure, there's room in the market for a decently executed basic car. But Toyota has followed the competition in charging premium-subcompact prices – more than $17,000 as tested, with an options sheet well short of decadent – for a basic car. And when there are an increasing number of alternatives available, that's hard to justify. 

 

 

Despite mounting evidence to the contrary, there is no shortage of people who believe a small car is by design a slow, dull and generally loathsome piece of trash that no one buys if they can possibly afford anything bigger. Of the 10 models in this comparison, the Yaris would be the least likely to dissuade them.

 

Let's start with “slow.” This reviewer has not been one to criticize small-engined light cars – the Yaris is just 2,315 pounds, the least in this comparison – but something in this Toyota doesn't give it any sort of punch. 

 

The competing Mazda2 manages an off-the-line zip that makes it feel zesty in low-speed city driving, even if the illusion is lost when you really get moving. The Yaris feels merely adequate in gentle driving, and weak and strained when you summon extra “go.” Both the Toyota and the Mazda are likely limited by their four-speed automatic transmissions, which have fewer gear ratios to choose from than more advanced competitors, and consequently have a harder time hitting their sweet spot for power delivery. 

 

Besides feeling like it's only just barely up to the task of high-speed acceleration, the Yaris also gets loud. The engine sounds smooth, but it's intrusively noisy. The lack of a relaxed additional gear or two for cruising also makes the Yaris less pleasant for a long distance – it can move along the highway at whatever extra-legal speed you favor, but even most other subcompacts will do so more quietly. 

 

The Yaris's powertrain also impacts its overall fuel efficiency, though it's certainly more than competitive. It ties for best-in-class city mileage of an EPA-estimated 30 mpg, but it's less outstanding at 35 miles per gallon on the highway. 

 

Average fuel economy is more heavily influenced in high consumption-per-mile conditions, though, which helps the Yaris land just 1 mpg behind this comparison's best despite those models' 40-mpg highway figure. 

 

Moving on to “dull,” the Yaris suffers from a soft suspension, skinny tires and light, vague steering. There's an inherent agility in a small, light car, but Toyota has minimized it. Car and Driver magazine raved about its tested Yaris SE model, which has firmer suspension tuning, but there was none of that happening in the LE that's far more common on dealer lots. Each competitor is more fun to drive. The Yaris also has a surprisingly wide turning circle of 36.6 feet, just inches better than Toyota's Sienna minivan. 

 

Soft suspension tuning does keep the Yaris from bouncing around over low-speed bumps, but it lacks the planted feel of better models on the highway. It's a step up from Yarises past, but the competition has also improved. 

 

The above combines with the drone from an overburdened engine to reach the third point. “Generally loathsome” is too strong for this particular car, but someone who likes the substantial feel of a bigger vehicle would find very little of that going down the interstate in the Yaris. 

 

Someone used to and comfortable with subcompact cars, meanwhile, might not notice anything out of the ordinary (someone has to be responsible for the car's greatly improved sales) but would get a better experience in a competitor. 

 

 

There's only so much room a 153-inch-long car can offer, but the 2012 Yaris – like its nearly-as-small predecessor – maximizes that space. 

 

The front seats are well-padded and well-bolstered, among the class's best and a step up from the thinner, flatter chairs offered in the previous generation. The rear seat's cushion is similarly improved, and it's high enough off the floor to offer good thigh support. It has no excess leg space, though – passengers' knees will be nearly touching the front seatbacks. 

 

Note that some reviewers have long complained about not finding a comfortable driving position in the Yaris, and that it still lacks a telescoping steering column. This reviewer was comfortable in both the 2012 and a previously tested 2009 Yaris. 

 

Toyota reports a decent 15.6 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seat, but the roof slopes in to make it difficult to carry anything bulky without folding down the rear seat. The seat folds flush with the cargo floor but doesn't lie flat, and you must either adjust the front seats or remove the rear head restraints. Toyota doesn't publish a specification for maximum cargo volume with the rear seat folded, but it would not be among the best in this class. (A three-door hatchback is also available, but Toyota no longer sells a Yaris sedan.)

 

On the positive side, the Yaris's rigid cargo cover is easier to remove than in competing models; it rests in place and can lift straight up rather than having to be pulled loose.  

 

In a further positive, the Yaris has one of the nicest interiors in this comparison. Toyota did not go for an upscale appearance, but materials feel solid and are nicely textured, including a rubbery section of the dash. The seat fabrics are also much improved over the previous generation. There's no center armrest, though, and the padding on the doors is thin. 

 

And in the most obvious improvement to the interior, Toyota relocated the gauge cluster from the center of the dash behind the steering wheel, and enlarged the speedometer in the bargain. Unfortunately, though the gauge cluster was clearly designed to accommodate a tachometer, the tested car only had a large blank area where it would go. In another ergonomic foible, the stereo's power button is small and too far from the driver; controls are otherwise straightforward. 

 

 

Toyota's apparently successful advertising campaign is based around the slogan “It's a car!” The message Toyota is pushing is that if you just want affordable transportation, skip the flashy competitors and go for a Yaris. 

 

Unfortunately for Toyota, makers of competing products could rightly declare of their offering that “It's a better car!” Driving dynamics, refinement and interior space lag many models with nearly identical purchase prices and operating costs. An estimated $17,553 out the door (see notes on pricing*) is rather steep to accept deficiencies in such fundamental areas.

 

That's not to say that the Yaris is without merit. As a city car, it excels for its tidy size, and it drives decently at low speeds. Interior comfort and quality are also above the norm, as is city fuel efficiency. If you're looking for a comfort-focused car to be used primarily in urban conditions, the Yaris surely rates above last place. 

 

But if you spend any significant amount of time on the highway, or favor interior room over tiny dimensions, you'd likely be better off choosing one of the other nine. 

 

Overall grade: C
Full "report card"

 

 

 

Vehicle tested: 2012 Toyota Yaris

Vehicle base price (MSRP): $14,115

Version tested: LE

Version base price (MSRP): $16,100

Vehicle price as tested (MSRP): $17,290

Vehicle price as comparable (MSRP)*: $18,140

Estimated transaction price as comparable**:  $17,553

Test vehicle provided by: Darcars Toyota of Silver Spring, Md. 

 

Length: 153.5 inches 

Width: 66.7 inches 

Height: 59.4 inches

Wheelbase: 98.8 inches

Weight: 2,315 pounds 

Cargo volume behind rear seat: 15.6 cubic feet

Cargo volume with rear seat folded: Not published

Turning circle: 36.6 feet 

Engine: 1.5-liter I4 with 106 horsepower 

Transmission (as tested): 4-speed automatic 

EPA city mileage: 30 miles per gallon 

EPA highway mileage: 35 miles per gallon 

EPA combined mileage: 32 miles per gallon

Assembly location: Japan

For more information: Toyota website