Whole Nine Yaris: 2014 Toyota Yaris
When it comes to manufacturing family sedans and practical city cars for a bustling, overpopulated city like Dhaka, Toyota is hard to beat. Their Corolla is the largest selling family sedan in the world, a brand name by itself, Toyota a veritable powerhouse in engineering cars for the masses. Over the course of the Corolla's history, many have challenged, often unsuccessfully, the dominance of the Corolla. Now, in Dhaka, it seems the next challenger to the Corolla's crown is coming from Toyota's own stable.
The Yaris does not seek to displace the Corolla from the top of the family sedan food-chain. As with older models, the Yaris is marketed as a budget friendly, fuel bill saving sub-compact car for families. It's an alternative to the larger, more refined Corolla, but the Yaris is in no way compromising the quality in its attempt to be a cheaper alternative.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The old Yaris/Vitz/Belta/Vios (many names, one car for different markets) was a well-rounded small sedan, with zesty engines which, although they lacked the oomph in horsepower and torque figures, were actually quite suited to Dhaka city driving. In a city where you can use just a fraction of an engine's power, only required for darting in between traffic after standing still for hours, the Yaris made a lot of sense with its 1.3 liter engine. It was also fuel-efficient, to boot.
The same formula is retained for the new Yaris. The engine is the same 1.3 liter 2NZ-FE, a DOHC VVT-i equipped 4 cylinder putting out 84 horsepower and 89 lb-ft of torque. It doesn't seem like much on paper, but when we took it out for a drive, the Yaris surprised us with smooth throttle response and seamless power delivery.
For city driving and as a family runabout car, the Yaris gets the job done without any complaints. A little more power would have been better, naturally, but keeping in mind that fuel efficiency is a high point for this car, the low power figures make more sense.
Handling is also similarly precise and as sharp as it gets for a basic family sedan. There is a little bit of float, but that is expected from a car without any particular sporting aspirations. Its easy to maneuver in traffic, with good visibility from the large, tall windshield and side windows, the car going where you point it with relative ease. The suspension is optimized for Dhaka streets, a major selling point for brand new Toyotas here, since the terrible state of the roads are taken into account when the cars are specced for Bangladesh. The suspension is stiffened up for our potholed roads, ensuring longevity of the suspension components, but its still soft enough to not be annoying. An obvious downside to this is a bit of a harsh ride over bumps, the car jarring over speed-breakers if you take them on at a fast pace.
The padded seats and the interior cancels out most of the downside to having a stiff suspension setup, though. The cabin is sharply designed, with the materials that are more up-market than the previous generations.
The center console has an intuitive layout and the dials are sporty and easy to read. There's plenty of leg room in the back, the body design allowing the car to have a more spacious interior than the body seems to allow.
Its longer than the previous generation Yaris, although the wheelbase is the same, due to a shared chassis. Its also taller, the front and rear overhangs are slightly stretched out, with sharp looking wraparound head and taillights giving the Yaris a distinctive appearance. Its certainly a departure from the bulbous, cutesy face of the last gen model. The 2014 Yaris looks sharp and has a hint of sportiness to it, which will obviously please the younger crowd.
SPECS
2014 Toyota Yaris G
Engine:1.3 liter2NZFE VVT-i 4
cylinder (84 HP @6000 RPM,
89lb-ft @4400 RPM)
Transmission:4 speed auto
Wheels and tires: 185/60 R15
tires with original Toyota alloys
Brakes: Ventilated discs front,
drum brakes rear with ABS
Options:Front airbags (driver, passenger), push start, wireless remote system and boot release, USB and auxiliary cable supported audio system, steering mounted audio controls, four cupholders
Price: Starts from 28,00,000 Taka, two grades available (G and E). Contact Navana Limited for details.
Alternatives: Honda City, Hyundai Accent, Ford Fiesta.
VERDICT
The Yaris is a viable zero-mileage alternative to more upmarket family sedans, with good driving dynamics, decent value for money, and a newfound sense of style, the whole nine yards. If you can set aside your preferences for the grey market Toyotas and consider the advantages a brand new Toyota comes with, the Yaris is a very good option.
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