drifter: “Becuase it’s Scion clone is already sold in US.”

Not exactly. It’s the same platform but the Scion xD has a 1.8L engine while the Yaris has a 1.5L.

Back in the day (20 or so years ago), there were those who bought three-door hatches because:

1) Some felt two less doors made for better proportions
2) Some argue that it makes for a more rigid body
3) Two less doors to rattle and cause wind leaks
4) Most back seats were too small to benefit from the additional doors
5) Some parents felt safer with kids in a back seat without doors that could be opened
6) Fewer doors meant a lower price

That being said, I don’t necessarily dispute the point. Aside from a couple of sports cars I’ve had as second (or third) vehicles, I haven’t owned anything with less than four doors since the 80s, including one pickup. And it’s not due to family obligations, since I’ve never married and have no kids.

People have sat in the rear seat of my car on one occasion, and they were not my friends, so I could care less about their ease of getting in the car. Even if they were… anyone sitting in my back seat is in no situation to complain.

I’d rather have 2 doors and hatch.

If Toyota has any brains, they’d take a look at the RWD sports car that they’re developing with Subaru and sell it as a Scion in the US. The Toyota version apparently won’t make it here, though. I haven’t lusted after a Toyota since the MKIV Supra was discontinued here ten years ago…

PLEASE tell me this means I no longer have to look at the Chevwoo Aveo any more!

People like me that rarely use the backseat for anything other than carrying groceries, tools, etc. I think that I can count on two hands the number of times that I’ve had three or more people in my current car. With these tiny subcompacts, a “three door” hatch typically looks better, the Mazda2 being a prime example. If you don’t have to worry about a baby seat, a 3 door could very well be more appealing than a five door.

argentla :

(b) drum brakes in back…

You don’t need rear discs in a car this light. Drums are fine for the rears, and have the added bonus of being less susceptible to debris damage or warping. They last longer, too.

dean :

ttacgreg: the center-mount instrumentation has nothing to do with cost savings. The instrument panel is still a handed assembly. It is merely a gimic, much the same as the MINI’s speedo. And really, how often are you looking at the gauges?

In the Yaris’ case, it has everything to do with cost savings. Transplanting the instrument cluster costs margin dollars, and the margins are razor-thin on cars like the Yaris. It’s cheaper to design the car (column routing, wiring), tooling and parts if all you’re doing is rotating the cluster. Even if it’s pennies, on a small-margin, high-volume car (Toyota sells a lot of these), those pennies add up fast.

In the Mini, though, it’s a gimmick. Notice that the Yaris’ (and Ion, and Nissan X-Trail) gauges are high-mount and away from the driver: you don’t take your eyes far off the road to look at them (the stat for the Echo/1G Yaris was, I think, 11 degrees away from the road, vs 22 in a traditional IP-behind-wheel car). In the Mini, you have to look down–way down–and refocus: the cluster is centre-mount, lower than normal and close to the driver.

The Yaris is form-follows-function; the Mini is form-results-in-bad-ergonomics.

offroadinfrontier :

The bigger engine is probably helpful to move the extra bulk of the xD, but what makes it so much heavier? Will the 5-door Yaris be as heavy as the xD?

No, not even close. Go to http://toyota.ca; the three- and five-door cars are only a couple pounds off each other, and the the five-door is much lighter than the US-Spec xD.

The xD (clone) is a few hundred pounds heavier, yet not really that much roomier. It also has a horrible turning radius for such a small car, and especially compared to it’s Yaris counterpart (I’m sure the bigger engine gets in the way). The Yaris was also more comfortable, while offering more “slingability” vs. the heavy xD.

The bigger engine is probably helpful to move the extra bulk of the xD, but what makes it so much heavier? Will the 5-door Yaris be as heavy as the xD? If so, I can’t see it achieving the 34/40 that the 3-door and (slightly lighter) sedan achieve.

I do like the 5-door looks a lot more than the xD, though – the xD headlights REALLY throw the car off; just OK from the front, but the bulging bug-eyes from the side are hideous.

Just please keep the 5-door lightweight… or offer the 3-door with the 1.8L and a 6-speed ;)

argentla: if you really think that discs vs. drums on a little wee car like the Fit is that big of a deal, then you should be driving something else anyway!

The 5-door Yaris has been a Toyota staple in many parts of the worlds for many, many moons. It has been proven time and time again that Americans no longer harbor the recalcitrant dislike for small hatchbacks as witnessed by the overwhelming success of the MINI Cooper in this country.

It seems to me Toyota doesn’t fully understand the lower end of the market spectrum in the US. Honda brought over the Fit, Nissan the Versa, yet Toyota only offered the 3 door hatchback and neglected the potential market for the 5 door model.

Personally, Toyota should re-evaluate Scion. Their current lineup is made up of cars aimed at hairdressers and black sock/bermuda short wearer set. Their product mix is lackluster and offers nothing that you can not get in any other Toyota product (Matrix comes to mind).

I’d still take a Fit. My only objections to the Fit are (a) lack of a temperature gauge (WTF?), (b) drum brakes in back, and (c) it could really use variable-rate rear springs, or even something like the old Air Lift leveling system. You can cram an amazing amount of stuff in the Fit, but if you get carried away, you can bottom the rear suspension.

And I thought Toyota was smart… well, obviously not so

I hope they were THAT cheap here. I’d buy a 3dr version for daily driver purposes.

By the way, do you get the 1.3lts or 1.5lts engine? I don’t want to go through your toyota website