In a Nutshell: Neither a Vice-Versa nor a Viceless one... a little of both.

Nissan, in a move that is basically similiar to what Honda did with the Civic and Fit, has moved its formerly entry-level Sentra up one marketing notch and has introduced the 5-door subcompact Versa hatchback as its new American market entry-level car. As I have already reviewed the latest versions of the Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit, Hyundai Accent, and Kia Rio, I felt that the Versa, naturally, should be the next small car I look at, not only to evaluate it on its own merits but to compare it to its established competition as well. The Versa has not been available until now......Nissan has dragged its feet somewhat getting it to market....and they are just now beginning to appear at American dealerships. Two different trim lines are offered, ( S and SL ) each with the same 1.8 L in-line four. The base S model has a choice of a 6-speed manual or 4-speed automatic, while the SL offers the same 6-speed manual plus a CVT. Versas are not exactly plentiful at most Nissan dealers right now, and the one I visited today had only one or two ready to go...and a dark blue S automatic one with beige cloth interior was parked right out in front, and as that particular model is ( usually ) better-suited to the driving conditions around here than the manual, ( but not necessarily better than the CVT ) I decided to go ahead and review it.

Nissan, in its public-relations hoopla, has made a big deal about this car's size and power advantages over its rivals for about the same price. I did find the interior, in general, well-suited for big, tall people (and my physical size is generally a good test) but, like with several other entry-level cars in this price range, I did not find this particular engine and powertrain combination very impressive. In spite of a clutch and manual transmission's awkwardness in heavy traffic, on cars like this, with small engines, a manual may be worth considering unless you have a foot or leg problem, simply can't drive a clutch, or don't mind being in the slow lane all day.

Other than that, the car, more or less, is visually a basically scaled-down version of larger Nissan products, trim and appearance-wise. There are some differences with other Nissan products in the ride-and-handling department, neither of which was particularly impressive. So now let's take a look at the car in greater detail.

Model Reviewed: 2007 Nissan Versa 1.8 S Automatic

Base price: $13,350

Major Options:

1.8 S Power Package $700

ABS Package $250

Freight $615

Price as reviewed: $14,915


Drivetrain: FWD, Transverse-mounted DOHC 1.8L in-line 4, 122 HP @ 5200 RPM, 127 ft.-lbs. torque @ 4800 RPM,
4-speed automatic transmission.

Exterior Color: Blue Onyx

Interior: Beige cloth


PLUSSES:

Good exterior fit-and-finish.

Good exterior hardware.

Well-designed automatic transmission lever.

Efficient 6-speed manual and CVT transmissions available.

Better-than-average small-car paint job.

Roomy for tall people and space-efficient inside.

Well-designed gauges.

Slick-feeling controls.

High-friction suede-like cloth on S-model seats and door panels holds you in place.

Solid-feeling exterior mirrors.

Relatively quiet-running engine.

Good torque.....but only starting from rest.

Nice stereo for an entry-level car.

Engine fits underhood nicely, reasonably good access to dipsticks and some components.



MINUSES:

Engine runs out of breath too quickly with 4-speed automatic.

Spongy brakes, with poorly-designed pedal for big feet and shoes.

Low-feel, feathery, non-self-centering power steering.

Suspension not a particularly good compromise of either ride comfort or good handling.

Lots of road and tire noise on coarse road surfaces.

Cheap-looking silver finish on much of the interior metallic trim. ( wood-tone trim not avalable ).

Oil filter unaccessible from above, plastic panel complicates access from below.

Absurd exterior paint-color choices.

Flat, square, oddly-shaped front seats with almost no side bolstering.

Small, triangular A-Pillar windows do not provide any significant added visibility.

Droop-down front fenders not visible from driver's seat....a hinderance in parking.


The first impression of this car as you walk up to it is that of a not-too-terribly original-looking car. The front end is strongly Nissan Murano-like in appearance, and the rear end, particularly the C-pillars, is strongly reminiscent of the new Toyota RAV4, Mitsubishi Outlander, and Pontiac Vibe, with Nissan 350Z-like taillights. Nissan, recently, has given all of its cars, and most of its other vehicles, the same general look on the outside, trim-wise, and this car is no exception......it is instantly identifiable as a Nissan product at first glance.

Having said that,though, it does benefit a little on the outside from Nissan's also-recent efforts to improve the fit-and-finish on its cars. The paint job is better-than-average for an entry-level car, though not quite to the level of Toyota / Scion small cars. The outside mirrors, a weak point on many vehicles, are made of solid-feeling materials and are well-screwed on. The outside trim is neatly and tastefuly done, again not lavish, but in line with the car's price. But the exterior paint colors.......an unbelievably poor choice. Come on, Nissan.....you can do better than THIS. Two medium-to-dark blues, two silver-grays, bright red, white, and black. Reminds me of Henry Ford with his model T, some 80-90 years ago.

Get inside, shut the rather light-feeling door, which shuts with a fairly solid thud, and the interior is reasonably well-done, although the all-too-common Nissan metallic-trim and low-finish cheapness is evident in some places, like the interior door handles. Even with the beige interior, where a number of automakers use wood-tone with the beige, and metallic trim with the gray / black, Nissan offers only the brushed-metal look...no wood-tone available.

But the interior is generally quite well-done. There is plenty of room for large, heavy people like me, there is no sunroof to cut down on headroom ( I had no problem even in my ubiquitous baseball cap ), there is adequate legroom front and rear....especially with the front seats a little forward, and a reasonable amount of room to carry things behind the seats. Looks like Nissan's advertising was correct when they bragged about the room inside.

The gauges and controls are also generally well-done. The well-designed dash gauges had the usual Nissan / Infiniti yellow-orange lighting and numerals. Almost all of the controls and stalks were clearly labelled and easy to operate. About the only thing I missed was a proper radio tuning knob instead of the small button provided, but that is the case on many vehicles today. The dash gauges were surrounded by the now-trendy chrome rings... much nicer than the regular Nissan metallic trim.

OK...start her up. The 1.8L 122 HP four is quite refined and idles smoothly and quietly, with little noise or vibration. Shift it into gear, which is a real pleasure with the fore-aft shift-lever movement ( none of that zig-zag nonsense here ) and take off. It is obvious that Nissan's engineers programmed the engine's computer, fuel injection, and transmission ratios to try and create an artificial feeling of power, which it does provide right on take-off. Unless you feather foot it, the throttle is quite jumpy from rest...up to about 10 MPH, where it then goes flatter than Twiggy in a stack of pancakes. Get rolling from a stoplight up to about 15-20 MPH or so, and THEN give it some gas, and, with the 4-speed automatic at least, you'd better be ready to stay in the slow lane. I did not check-test a manual or CVT model ( none were available today ), but rest assured, the 4-speed automatic model is not going to win any Friday-night drag races.

The automatic transmission, though it obviously saps a lot of power from the engine, is quite exemplary in other ways. Despite a lack of a manual-shift mode and having only 4 gears. it is smooth and quiet, and has the " OD/OFF " mode that Mazda and Ford pionered on their automatics years ago. Punch a button on the left side of the shift lever, about halfway down, and the OD OFF lights up on the dash. This locks out fourth overdrive gear and prevents the transmission from going above third... useful for going up and down long, steep, hills, for engine braking, for keeping the tranny out of O/D in the twisties where you want quicker response, and just for situations in general where you don't want the engine to lug. And it still allows the transmission to downshift to 1st automatically when you stop, and then upshift automatically back up to 3rd when you start up again.

Unfortunately, the suspension and the relatively high-profile 185/65-15 all-season tires (a rarity on today's cars) do not deliver either a very smooth ride or particularly sharp handling....often one is a trade-off for the other. On the road, and particularly in the twisties, I missed the superb driving dynamics of the rival Honda Fit. I wouldn't call the Versa's ride particularly rough, nor its handling particularly sloppy, but both, especially compared to other rival entry-level cars, could be better. The power steering had neither much road feel nor self-centering characteristics. And, while the Versa's engine and 4-speed automatic transmission are quiet, and the body ( by entry-level car standards ) well-sealed against wind noise, a pretty fair amount of tire noise penetrates the cabin, especially on concrete and grainy surfaces. There is some body roll, but the suspension and chassis keeps it in check.

The brakes are also nothing to write home about. The pedal is spongy, especially with light prssure, the response is not even, and the pedal is too low and too close to the gas pedal for my big size-15 clodhoppers, which tend to catch the brake pedal as I lift them from the gas. ( This is not a Versa-only problem....my big, wide, clown-shoes have that trouble in many smaller vehicles, and I just have to drive them carefully at first until I get used to them ).

So...the Verdict? And how does it compare overall with its entry-level competition? Well, about average, overall. The Versa has nice interior space efficiency with plenty of room, acceptable fit-and-finish except for the cheap metallic trim, a reasonable price, and an efficient CVT option. But I found it mediocre in the important categories of ride, steering, handling, refinement, and braking action. In the form I reviewed it, it is little more than basic commuter transportation. Nissan needs to rework the steering, suspension, and brake systems a little, offer better metallic trim, and offer a MUCH better exterior color choice. I would rate the Versa well above the Daewoo-built Chevrolet Aveo, and just slightly above the Yaris, overall.. mostly because the Aveo is just too much of a toy, and because of the Yaris's too-stark interior and awkward, unacceptable center-mount gauges. But the Honda Fit trounces the Versa in chassis dynamics, steering feel, and interior fit-and-finish, and both of the Korean entry-level cars...the Hyundai Accent and the Kia Rio... substantially outdo the Versa in value for the money and in the warranty department. None of these cars, particularly with a conventional automatic, really has enough power to handle a situation where you need to accelerate quickly.. like on a short expressway on-ramp.

So there you have it. If you want to save money and gas, don't want to pay the higher cost of a hybrid ( or the ADM's that Honda dealers are charging for Fits ) don't care much about automotive status or big-car crash protection, and are satisfied with base transportation, and want a vehicle that is at least reasonably reliable, here are definitely some cars to look at.