Topic: Test Drive: 2010 Nissan Versa 1.8 SL hatchback

[Jaeger]

If I were looking for a conveyance for the basketball team, I probably wouldn't be looking at a subcompact hatch.  I'm 5' 10" and I fit quite comfortably in the back of the Fit.  But if rear seat legroom is your number one purchase criterion, the Soul should be an easy choice.

Jaeger

How you fit in the back seat depends a lot on who sits in front of you. I could probably fit correctly in the back seat of a Fit if my mother occupied the seat in front of me, but if I first set the front seat so that I am comfortable and then try to sit behind it, then I couldn't fit in it. Try getting comfortable in the back seat of a Fit with a six-footer in front of you, that is the real test.

Yeah, which is why I said if you need to carry the basketball team around, the Soul should be an easy choice.  Whaddaya want, a candy bar, too?  In all my years of driving I have yet to sit behind myself in a moving vehicle - so for me, that's not a terribly meaningful criterion.  And neither my wife nor my daughter are over 6'5" - so it's no bother for them, either.

Do me a favour - when you get your Versa or Soul or whatever - take a picture of you and all your 6'5" plus passengers inside the thing so we can see how very comfortably you all hold, mmmkay?

Jaeger

[dutch]

If I were looking for a conveyance for the basketball team, I probably wouldn't be looking at a subcompact hatch.  I'm 5' 10" and I fit quite comfortably in the back of the Fit.  But if rear seat legroom is your number one purchase criterion, the Soul should be an easy choice.

Jaeger

How you fit in the back seat depends a lot on who sits in front of you. I could probably fit correctly in the back seat of a Fit if my mother occupied the seat in front of me, but if I first set the front seat so that I am comfortable and then try to sit behind it, then I couldn't fit in it. Try getting comfortable in the back seat of a Fit with a six-footer in front of you, that is the real test.

I'll also point out that the idea that you need a large car for tall people is not necessarily true. For instance, the Versa offers more legroom and headroom in the backseat than most midsizers. The main difference is width. Also, consider that compacts and subcompacts are the popular choices of Europeans, some of whom are on average taller than North Americans (for instance the Dutch, whose average height for young males is now above 6 feet).

True - i'm Dutch and 6'3! - When we went car shopping I did the exact same thing - put the front seat where I was comfortoable (ie. all the way back) and then sit in behind it. The Versa was one of the few smaller cars that I had good leg room in - another factor in our decsion to buy it.

[safristi]

...DUTCH TREAT..................WE ALL PAY............... ......maybe U could treat us  to window shoppin'.... ...

[htwo]

Good article. I'd probably take the CVT over the standard 4 speed. Had a base Versa hatch as a rental two years ago and it was a solid piece, but felt a bit squirmy on the highway during the winter and high winds. My full size stroller JUST fit in the back with the seat up! I was impressed.

"optional CV transmission "

I think you mean optional CVT.

CV transmission is the same as CVT - T, stands for transmission