Bye, bye Echo. Hello Yaris. You’re looking at the car Toyota has chosen to fill the small shoes of the Echo in North
America, the Yaris. This little B segment car has been a hit for Toyota in Europe becoming its best selling model and
accounting for a quarter of its European sales. This is a true European small car, in the sense that it’s more refined
and better built than most of the small cars sold in North America. One wonders if Toyota’s decision to bring the Yaris
to the U.S. will cannibalize Scion sales, particularly those of the similarly shaped xA.
The list of equipment and features on the Yaris is particularly long, so while we can?t relay every detail we will
tell you it has modular seating that allows for more versatility in cargo carrying, 30% more storage space than the
model it replaces, ABS, electronic brake-force distribution and brake assist.
Three engine choices are available in Europe including a carryover 1.3L four-cylinder VVT-i producing 85 hp, a new
lightweight 1.0L three-cylinder VVT-i producing 68 hp and a 1.4L four-cylinder diesel producing 88 hp that carries the
little Yaris to 62 mph in a class leading 10.7 seconds.
We?re excited for the Echo to be gone, as its quality was generally lower than Toyota?s usual standards. Exporting a
European model to the U.S. will certainly give the company a serious contender in the budget class of cars.