2008 Toyota Yaris Sedan 5-Spd MT

Pros

Gas mileage is wonderful. I average 38 in combined driving. On hwy trips have seen as high as 46.

Cons

Arm rest made of hard plastic, cup holder placement

I have owned this car since July of this year. I now have 6,000 miles on and feel I can write a real review. This is my first toyota and I'm impressed. If this experience holds up across the time I will own mly Yaris, I'll look to toyota when it needs to be replaced. I paid 15k for this car, so compared to other vehicles it was inexpensive. The interior/ride are comfortable. The performance is acceptable. As others have said, the space on the inside and truck is amazing for a small car. What is also amazing is the fuel economy. The amount of fuel cost savings, compared to my last vehicle (Ford Ranger 4x4 @ 18mpg), covers much of the monthly loan payment. When the car si paid for, will be way ahead of the game and not be placing $'s into Middle Eastern hands. I can, without reservation, recommend this car to anyone seeking a reliable, fun and ecornomical vehicle....read morehide

Pros

Smoth of drive into city. Very good.

Cons

On Highway it becomes a little hard to control after 70 miles. The radio stereo is too weak.

In general it's a very good car. The space inside is awesome! I guess it is better than Corolla.The engines still might sound powerfull for who looks an economic car.

Pros

I get about 37 to 39 miles to the gallon

Cons

the ride is good for a small car. handles like a tight little sports model

this car has plenty of room to stretch out love the center console very easy to read don't have to look through the steering wheel. The only complaint I have is wind, the little thing definitely doesn't like the wind cross winds especially, but when you get used to that. all is good with this vehicle. I needed a gas miser and I definitely got one I am 100% satisfied with this car, I would recommend it to anyone needing a gas sipper. I'm now sold on Toyota's I might try the corolla next time....read morehide

Pros

love the milage and despite size has amazing int room

Cons

needs back seat to fold flatter to make good cargo space

good sound from a factory mp-3 able cd player, has amazing milage and lots of space in a car this small

Pros

Fuel economy. I have done 49 MPG. Worse was 38.5 because I drove like a race car. Cute.

Cons

better seats for long rides.

Yaris is great. I have had car for 15 months 37,500 miles later and it still is going strong. Average 42.35 MPG all around driving. Cup Holders are great. Inside room is larger than most small cars. Regular Maint and nothing else yet. Thinking of buying a second one and having my daugther take this one. My total Savings in Gas paid for this car in 15 months. Have freinds with the Fit and other small cars. They wish they had a Yaris for the fuel savings....read morehide

Pros

Gas mileage, affordable insurance, quality

Cons

No keyless entry

I have consistently gotten over 40 mpg with this car in mixed highway and city driving. The lowest mileage I ever got was 39 mpg and the highest was 44 mpg on a highway trip (70 mph with the air conditioner running). Not a head turner but who cares? I now have 40,000 miles and my car and no problems at all....read morehide

Pros

as good or better than advertised fuel economy, very good stereo, great handling

Cons

nothing too much given the price

a wonderful little, economical car from Toyota. It is hard to find any real fault with it, I am almost forgetting how to pump gas

Pros

41 MPG combined, good audio system, actually fun to drive

Cons

Why complain? It's NOT an Avalon people! Remember why and how much you paid for it!

I'm tired of hearing people complain about this and that about these sub-compacts...It's an entry level car! Quality, fit and finish is not the objective. What is, is fuel economy, cost effective transportation. Forget about the sport suspension, leather and seat heaters!

Pros

Good fuel economy, peppy little engine

Cons

can get noisy at 70mph, goes high on RPM

I was the first person in Jackson, MS to buy this car, since everyone around here drives trucks or SUV's. I bought my 2007 in '06. They couldn't give these great cars away. Gas at the time was $2.05 a gallon too. So I was getting a lot of laughs at me! Anyway - it is 2008 gas is at $3.85 a gallon and I am looking like Albert Einstein. I get 35mpg in the city and 41mpg on the hwy., due to my lead foot. It rides great on the highway. But if you want to weave in and out of traffic - get the manual, the automatic is way to slow! In first gear you can peel some rubber quite easily. For an economy car it is pretty strong in the low-end! I need a new set of tires and I only have 36,000 miles on this puppy. I am 32, male, 6'1.5" and 225lbs. I ride comfortably with 3 in my sedan, but have squeezed 5 people in trips up to 20 miles without anyone complaining! Air condition blows snowballs and you know I need that in Mississippi. I have officially gave it the nickname "The Baby Camry!" I stronlgy recommend this car to anyone! Male, female, young or old! Can't beat the value! Go get one today, that's if you can find one on a lot! lol!!!!!!!!!...read morehide

Pros

Toyota nameplate, low initial cost, excellent mileage, good looking, thoughtful touches.

Cons

Poor audio, steering wheel lacks telescopic adjustment, gauge cluster location.

This car does have it's faults. For me, the ergonomics are not great. The steering wheel is too far away and does not adjust telescopically, if it did the comfort level would improve 100%. I also find the center armrest to be too low and far back for me. The radio is not the highest quality. I find the reception to be poor and an ipod doesn't sound great when played through it. The biggest problem with the radio is that I have the power package with the top level radio and I don't think it can be switched out, as it doesn't have a standard opening. I don't really mind the center mount gauges, but I wish they'd at least angle them towards the driver a little, so you're not viewing them from the side.
As noted elsewhere, the fit and finish is not the best. You can feel that the materials are lower grade. The shifter is sloppy. I agree with others that it is fairly noisy at speed, but I disagree that it is from the wind, I believe it's road noise transferred up from the tires. Also, the handling is a little twitchy at speed. A sixth gear would be awesome on the highway as well. The side impact rating scares me, if side curtain airbags bring that rating up to 5 stars, then they should come standard on every one, I'm sure very few would mind paying for the peace of mind.
So why do I rate the car so high after all this? Because I love it! First of all, I don't understand those people citing all of the things I just did and rating it so low. Why? Because, it's an economy car! Complaining about those things is like going to McDonalds and then complaining about the food- you get what you pay for. If I had spent 30k on it, I'd think it was a piece of junk, but I didn't. I got a loaded one year old sedan with the convenience pkg, cold weather pkg, carpet option, and keyless entry for $11,900. I'm only financing it for 4 yrs at $180/mo (5k down), it costs $550 to insure for an entire year, and it gets awesome gas mileage (43.89 mpg on my first tank (i know it seems high, but it's true, I'm not what you'd consider a hypermiler, but I don't speed, accelerate judiciously, and coast when I can). Most importantly, it has those three little circles in the shape of a T on the hood which shows that it's from one of the two best car companies in the world (in my opinion) for value and reliability- the other being Honda, of course.
There's many things that I love. Aside from the steering wheel I find it comfortable, with good seats. That poor handling at speed is an absolute joy at low speeds. Parking, city driving, swerving, etc. are all a joy in this car, especially when coupled with its compact dimensions and short overhangs. I think it's a sharp looking car. It has many little thoughtful touches like the ability to still operate the power windows for a short time after shutting off the car, an interior light that fades out after a while or after starting the car, an off-set handle on the glove compartment, fold flat (though not truly flat) rear seats, an mp3 jack, little compartments all around it, etc. etc. Did I mention it's a Toyota and is incredibly economical.
I researched a lot before buying. Although it didn't always fare well in reviews by professionals (edmunds, car & driver, etc.) it's custumer satisfaction is incredibly high. Higher even than civics and corollas. It's a very popular car in Europe. Every owner I spoke with liked theirs, and the sales of them are through the roof right now. I see more on the road every day....read morehide