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Behind the Wheel: 2007 Nissan Versa: Another David Wielding a Slingshot

24.10.2006

Earlier this year, the Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris made a convincing case that today’s small cars could advance some big ideas. The 2007 Nissan Versa is the latest contender to step up, joining two Korean cousins, the redesigned Hyundai Accent and the Kia Rio. Chevrolet is rolling out a revamped Aveo, also from South Korea. A step up in price and prestige, a redesigned Mini Cooper is on the way. In 2008, a tiny Smart from Mercedes-Benz will roll onto American shores.

Are Americans, who have long embraced a bigger-is-better approach to their personal transportation, ready to hug these smaller, friendlier cars?

The prospects seem pretty good, according to J. D. Power & Associates, the market-research company. “It’s irrefutable that the segment is doing well,” said Tom Libby, senior director for industry analysis at an affiliate, the Power Information Network. For instance, sales of compact basic cars — which include, among others, the Aveo, Fit, Versa and Yaris — jumped 118 percent last month compared with August 2005.

I compared the Fit and Yaris last spring and concluded that the Fit was the better all-around package in terms of functionality and driving dynamics, although it was also the more expensive car.

This summer, the Versa landed as a four-door hatchback, filling a spot vacated when the Nissan Sentra moved up in size and price. A Versa sedan is due to go on sale early next year.

Like the Fit and the Yaris, the Versa aims to be diminutive without being punitive. It comes in two trim levels, the S and SL, with the least expensive model starting at $13,165 (all prices include the $615 destination charge).

I tested a preproduction version of the 1.8 SL, the top-of-the-line model, which started at $16,165 with a continuously variable transmission. My test car came to $17,415 with the convenience package ($700), audio package ($300) and antilock brakes ($250). On all of these small vehicles, options can quickly raise the sticker price.

This is the first Nissan in America to be built on architecture jointly developed with Renault, which controls Nissan, and the Versa’s styling has strong hints of Renault as well. The Versa shares its mechanical platform with the Renault Modus and Clio; the Japanese-market Nissan Cube also uses this subcompact B-class foundation. The Versa is known as the Tiida in most of the world.

While the Versa is configured much like the Fit, which also rides on a B-class platform, the Versa is almost a foot longer. The added length is especially notable in the back seat, where the Versa has 38 inches of legroom, beating the Fit by more than 4 inches.

A new compact rear suspension pushes parts off to the side, a design that provides a generous 17.8 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seats. Still, the Fit does better, with 21.3 cubic feet, even while casting a smaller shadow.

But with the rear seats down, the longer, wider Versa has the biggest cargo area: 50.4 cubic feet, compared with 41.9 for the Fit and only 25.7 for the Yaris.

Still, for a vehicle whose very name is intended to evoke an image of versa-tility, the Versa isn’t nearly as flexible as the Honda Fit. The Fit’s seats flip, flop and dive to form four distinct configurations. In one mode, the rear seats fold into the floor to form a very low, completely flat cargo hold.

Although the Versa’s rear seatbacks fold flat, the seats don’t go into the floor like the Fit’s. As a result, the storage in the rear ends up being lower than the area just behind the front seats, creating a two-zone compartment. All in all, the arrangement is rather clunky.

The Versa is not just larger than these competitors, it is heavier — outweighing my Yaris test car by 400 pounds and the Fit by 170. It should be no surprise, then, that its gas mileage isn’t as good.

On a trip from Nashville to Cleveland, I averaged 31.8 miles per gallon on one segment and 30.1 on the other. My driving included highway travel slightly above the speed limit, along with some enthusiastic sprints on hilly two-lane roads in southern Ohio. With the continuously variable transmission, the Versa is officially rated at 30 m.p.g. in town and 36 on the highway.

Earlier, I had averaged 37.4 m.p.g. in the Yaris and 35.5 in the Fit in two days of spirited driving out West.

The Versa’s interior generally has a high-quality feel, with attractive, tightly woven upholstery. Padding and soft materials cushion high touch areas like the armrests and door trim. But like many other automakers, Nissan has trouble making black dashboards look rich. The beige interior looks much better.

The 1.8-liter engine is new, delivering class-leading horsepower (122) and torque (127 foot-pounds). It is paired with a redesigned continuously variable transmission.

The engine ran fairly quietly during my 600-mile drive except for times when I insisted on more than modest acceleration. Then it would give out a moan that might have indicated dismay or the joyous unleashing of its innermost mechanical passion. (I never figured out which.) The car droned around 1,500 r.p.m. under light acceleration.

A six-speed manual is also available. This month, a four-speed automatic will be offered as a stopgap measure because the supplier of the continuously variable transmissions cannot deliver all the units Nissan needs for the Versa and the Sentra.

To compensate for jarring American roads, Nissan has made some suspension changes from the European model. For a small car, the Versa rides quite comfortably.

In southern Ohio, we left the interstate for playtime on the Appalachian Highway (Ohio Route 32). On wide, sweeping turns, I found the electric power steering to be linear and predictable, but on Route 327 out of Londonderry, where turns became tighter — more of an L shape than a C — the Versa posed a challenge to my confidence.

The problem was its initial tippy-feeling body lean on entering a turn. But I found that the body settled down pretty quickly, the leaning ended and it was possible to proceed quickly and confidently. Still, the body lean meant that transitions from a tight turn to another in the opposite direction were not as quick as I would have liked.

For me, the Fit remains the champ when it comes to driving dynamics, including steering response.

In addition to its larger engine, the Versa offers upscale options not available from Honda or Toyota: a sunroof, Bluetooth hands-free phone system with wireless connections and a smart key with a sensor that unlocks the car as you approach it. You can also get satellite radio, with a choice of XM or Sirius.

Six air bags are standard on all Versas (including side curtain and side impact bags), and the Nissan’s front seats have active head restraints, which move forward in a rear-impact crash to protect against whiplash injuries.

Have American attitudes changed enough that small cars like the Versa can make it here? Automakers and market research firms expect sales to grow, although projections vary. Still, the Fit and Yaris seem to be off to a good start. The Versa, with more rear legroom and cargo space, offers a significantly different choice.

And it makes another powerful argument in favor of downsizing.

INSIDE TRACK: Pint-size punch.

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