Topic: 2010 Toyota Yaris RS Hatch; Day 1

[Mitlov]

It was sarcasm

sar·chasm ('sär-"ka-z&m) : The giant gulf between what is said and the person who doesn't get it.

Anyway, the Yaris just needs to be brought back to the drawing board.  For the "I just want fuel-efficient and reliable basic transportation), a lightly-equipped Accent seems to me to be a better deal than a lightly-equipped Yaris.  And here, in the well-equipped subcompact market, the Yaris RS just gets absolutely pounded by the Fit and Fiesta.

[JoBlo]

I'm sorry to say that but the car is a piece of ... crap.  I had a loaner the first time for a week the second time for 2 weeks I can't believe people buy a car like this one.

First the seats are made by Portland (cement maker) second it's impossible to keep the car going in staight line the car wobble, economy the first car I drove was using as much as a Mazda 3 (around 8L/100km) the second was better (both automatic and 2008 model year).  The instrumentation on the driver side ? of course it's a matter of taste but if you drive a car and never watch the instrumentation you should take the bus.  Over 90 km per hour the power dissapear and one of my friend own one and parts are expensive.

The good side it's a peppy car for stop and go driving I like the driving position and the best is the suspension I like the feel it's solid but not too hard.

Like other people were saying Toyota need a new Yaris the Versa Fit Mazda 2 and Ford fiesta coming are better than Yaris and by far.  But it'a a Toyota and some people will buy anything Toyota can build no matter if it's good or a piece of ... crap.  It's gonna be always good with no flaw (check on the net and you will see Toyota has serious problem with rust on Tundra etc...) 

[drederick]

JoBlo holy cow - where do you get off having an opinion that a Toyota is anything but the best? Are you in fact 'JoBama'?

I may never recover from the posting you have just made.

[aknutson]

This is a city car, not a road car. I will let that predefine my comments, because they aren't going to be nice. RS - is that supposed to stand for Rally Sport? You've got to be kidding me, in a Yaris!? I love B-segment cars, they are some of the most fun to drive because they have manageable power that you can work with and not get bitten too hard, they are light, tossable in the corners, and typically have a fun-oriented demeanor. The Yaris is just stupid. The center-mount instruments are ridiculous, I don't care if you chose to spend your hard-earned money on a Yaris and feel the need to say 'they're OK once you get used to them' - they aren't, I shouldn't have to get used to something. In a normal car, my eyes are on the road directly in front of me, and a fraction of a glance below that I can count on my instrument cluster telling me what's what. On the Yaris, I have to take a full glance towards the middle of the car, and if I look up I would be looking at the right shoulder of the road...how is that in any way better? It's a cost-cutting measure so they can make the car multi-national (steering on different sides) and not have to re-arrange the steering column. And speaking of steering, that has to be the worst steering wheel I have ever seen in a recent automobile - a $10K Kia has a nicer spinner.

Continuing my disapproval, mileage is not that good unless you're strictly driving sub-80 km/h. Anything over that and it sucks gas like a C-segment car, or more. With the archaic 4-speed auto revving at about 3700 RPM at highway traffic speed, it's fighting just to keep up let alone have the gumption to pass anybody. Around town it's zippy enough, but a highway cruiser it is not.

Along the lines of what another poster said, I also found the ride to be unsettled and the steering unresponsive. There is no confidence of direction, road feel or stability in this car - I would hope for a heavier weighted steering at speed. The seats are uncomfortable on long distances, cargo space isn't that great, material is visibly crappy (it doesn't have to be, Hyundai does it better) and overall it just feels cheaper than it should be. Wrapping this all into a (in my opinion) crappy package and asking over $20K for it is robbery. Save your money! Buy a 2-year-old Ford Fusion, put some money in the bank, and don't be tempted to stab yourself in the leg every time you wake up and see a horrible Yaris in your driveway.

[aknutson]

Look at the Mazda2 interior, image borrowed from km77.com ~ It's no Audi, but it's a heck of a lot better than the Yaris.

[Winterpeg]

Which is worse?
The digital speedometer or the centre-mounted speedo/instrument cluster?

You do get use to the center mounted speedo cluster....and it even promotes the increase use of rear view mirrow...which is always a good thing.     

[Sival]

The center-mount instruments are ridiculous, I don't care if you chose to spend your hard-earned money on a Yaris and feel the need to say 'they're OK once you get used to them' - they aren't, I shouldn't have to get used to something. In a normal car, my eyes are on the road directly in front of me, and a fraction of a glance below that I can count on my instrument cluster telling me what's what. On the Yaris, I have to take a full glance towards the middle of the car, and if I look up I would be looking at the right shoulder of the road...how is that in any way better? It's a cost-cutting measure so they can make the car multi-national (steering on different sides) and not have to re-arrange the steering column. And speaking of steering, that has to be the worst steering wheel I have ever seen in a recent automobile - a $10K Kia has a nicer spinner.

I have a ION, so I can safely say, I don't just "get used" to the center instrument cluster, I just plain prefer it. It is never obstructed by the steering wheel or my hands and it is a bit higher than the typical cluster. This means that you look to the right instead of looking down, and our eyes are better at seeing horizontally rather than vertically, so you can keep looking at the road better this way. After all, you have one eye to the left and one to the right, not one on top and one on the bottom (unless you actually do, in which case I apologize for mocking your deformity... euh "difference", yeah that's it).

[Winterpeg]

As much as fellow blogger Aknutson explains (complains?.... ), yes the Yaris is far from perfect and a new version is badly needed but it is still a solid vehicle for going from A to B, anywhere.....scuttlebutt aside.   

[aknutson]

Here's a good article on center-mounted gauges (for and against) for those more interested, like me!

http://www.autoblog.com/2004/10/04/toyota-pushing-center-mounted-instrument-clusters-because/

Read through the comments, some interesting posts. But you'd think, if it was really easier for us to use center-mounted gauges, wouldn't race cars be the first to adopt this since drivers need to have fighter-pilot reactions? But in every race car, and even supercars (Ferrari, Lamborghini) uses either HUD or traditional column-mounted gauges - none in the middle. It is human tendency to direct ourselves to where we are looking, and if we are looking to the side and not ahead, well...that's just bad news for drivers everywhere!

[aknutson]

As much as fellow blogger Aknutson explains (complains?.... ), yes the Yaris is far from perfect and a new version is badly needed but it is still a solid vehicle for going from A to B, anywhere.....scuttlebutt aside.   

Indeed, it is a fair A-to-B'er, as most of my (complaints) are related to high-speed or highway driving. 

[Mitlov]

As much as fellow blogger Aknutson explains (complains?.... ), yes the Yaris is far from perfect and a new version is badly needed but it is still a solid vehicle for going from A to B, anywhere.....scuttlebutt aside.   

Of course it'll get you from point A to point B.  Any new car that costs $20,500 will.  But is the Yaris RS 4AT nicer, or even as nice, as any other car at that price point?

[wing]

Race car drivers don't look at gauges just big flashing red lights they are looking at the road.

[MMMB89]

In addition to the obvious reasons why I wouldn't buy nor recommend a Yaris, the IIHS video of the Yaris vs. the Camry is reason enough.

I don't have the link, however if you search Yaris vs Camry on Youtube you'll find it.  Basically the Yaris crumples up like the tin can that it is.

[Mitlov]

In addition to the obvious reasons why I wouldn't buy nor recommend a Yaris, the IIHS video of the Yaris vs. the Camry is reason enough.

I don't have the link, however if you search Yaris vs Camry on Youtube you'll find it.  Basically the Yaris crumples up like the tin can that it is.

Yaris v. Camry:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcTf78b8WfY

Accord v. Fit:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLfK35O91gE&NR=1

And for a grand finale, C300 versus ForTwo:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=he6TL15pJtw

...wow.  I knew there was a difference between vehicles of different weights, but I didn't realize it was this big.  In all fairness, it's an issue with the entire subcompact segment, not the Yaris specifically.

[MMMB89]

Thanks Mitlov!

If I had to be in any of those 3 subcompact/minis, I'd rather be in the Smart ForTwo because at least it has a strong passenger safety cell, where you see with the Yaris, the Camry almost ploughs right through it.  The Fit fares slightly better, but still poor overall.

[jpd]

After an Echo, a 2008 Yaris, Toyota made us an offer that we could not refused and now my wife has a Yaris RS 2010!  This is not at all the same car as her previous 2008 Yaris.  The engine is the same but seems more powerful, the brakes are better, the ESP, seats, etc

We really like it.  I was looking for the FIT and the Fiesta came too late.....May be in 3 years!

[Mitlov]

Thanks Mitlov!

If I had to be in any of those 3 subcompact/minis, I'd rather be in the Smart ForTwo because at least it has a strong passenger safety cell, where you see with the Yaris, the Camry almost ploughs right through it.  The Fit fares slightly better, but still poor overall.

Really?  The ForTwo went flying backwards across the room like a pool ball!  Think of the deceleration at the moment of impact.  Your spleen is going to fly out of your navel.

[MMMB89]

That is true. I suppose you could get out of the Smart easier after a crash versus requiring the jaws of life with the Yaris, however, whether you're in any better shape is debatable.

[johngenx]

Run an F350 vs. my motorcycle in the same test, my bike loses 100% of the time, sure fatality to the motorcycle rider.

But, I'll still ride my bike and ride it at speeds that are likely to have me arrested just talking about it here.  Weight = might in crash tests.  This is news?  Instead of buying a behemoth, maybe just hide in your basement.  Safer than going outside, and better for us if morons aren't tooling around in SUVs anyway.

[Mitlov]

Run an F350 vs. my motorcycle in the same test, my bike loses 100% of the time, sure fatality to the motorcycle rider.

But, I'll still ride my bike and ride it at speeds that are likely to have me arrested just talking about it here.  Weight = might in crash tests.  This is news?  Instead of buying a behemoth, maybe just hide in your basement.  Safer than going outside, and better for us if morons aren't tooling around in SUVs anyway.

You expect a motorcycle to always lose against an F-350.  You don't expect a Yaris to get mangled by a four-banger Camry, especially when both get a "good" rating when launched into a fixed barrier.  I would have thought that both the Camry driver and the Yaris driver would walk away from that crash, but in fact, only one of them looks like they will.

Another reason the motorcycle analogy fails: I don't carry my kids on my motorcycle.