I bought a new car this weekend and I had been looking at an xD or a Versa. Now, I've been lurking around here on SL obsessing over the xD since March, and my wife was tired of it, so it was time to finally go out and start really looking at cars.

I sat in an xD right off the truck and thought it was great, but couldn't drive it right away. Man, did it look good (in Black)!

Then, at someone on this board's suggestion, I took a look at a Versa. Maybe it was the white paint job, but I thought it was horrible looking - like a small car with minivan front and end. It was last Sunday, so we couldn't test drive it.

We test drove the xD the next night and it seemed OK - a bit of delay from when I hit the gas to when the car responded, but not bad. The steering wheel felt small and its angle didn't feel right to me (even after adjusting the "tilt".) But man did it look good (in Magnetic Grey)!

I got to thinking, "Maybe the Versa looks better in another color, we should really test drive it to be fair", and so my wife and I took a 2007 SL CVT model for a spin. I was impressed! The interior was really nice! Intelligent key... whoa - you mean I never need to take the key out of my pocket again! Very cool. Bluetooth, that's handy. But the pickup seemed sluggish.

So we test drove the xD again at a different dealer. I dodn't know why, but that one was peppier. Maybe we were just more used to it... My wife was pretty excited that it felt like our rental car from Europe - very snappy and fun to drive. It did a good job of going up a decent hill with 3 of us in it. But the steering wheel still felt small, and the interior was now less impressive, having driven the Versa. The engine seemed noisy, which is fun if you like to hear the engine, but could get annoying on a longer harder drive.

We thought that test would have helped, but it just made it harder...

So we drove the Versa again, this time a 2008 - an SL with CVT. Maybe the 2008's are peppier but we had more fun this time around. The car felt responsive, looked great in black, and the interior was obviously much better quality than the xD. But noone had a model with ABS and the intellikey package, and if they did, the price was getting out of our range (17440 MSRP).

Then I remembered - I can negotiate on a Versa...

The answer became clear: for about $700 more, I felt like I was getting a lot more car for the money, and a car that would suit me for more than just a few years. Of course, this all came down to personal preference, if I were a few years younger (just turned 30) maybe the xD would have appealed to me more. But driving the Versa, I got that yeah-this-is-my-new-car feeling. In the xD I thought, "This is fun", but I didn't get that feeling of pride.

Ultimately, I agree with some other posters here that the xD is about $1k too much for what you get. I know that Toyota wanted to slow its growth, or maybe they didn't want to cannibalize as many Yaris sales, but I think they maybe have gotten too greedy with the xD. I thought it was all about making a profit on the accessories. Maybe they just wanted to keep the Scion image younger...

The bottom line is that after eagerly awaiting an xD for six months, I bought a Versa instead. It doesn't have turn signals on the mirrors, it doesn't have a trip computer, it doesn't have an iPod connector. But it has the Intellikey, Bluetooth, 5-spoke alloy wheels, bigger and nicer seats, more room - especially in the back and trunk, a 6-cd changer that plays mp3s, and plenty of power: we drove it up into the mountains here in Colorado with four people in it - no problems whatsoever. And even better, I have no buyer's remorse.

I still think the xD is cool. If money were no object, I'd buy one of them too. But those of you who are thinking about an xD should definitely give the Versa a try too.(And any car you test-drive, drive it twice - that made all the difference for me.)

Thanks to everyone here on ScionLife - this is a great forum! But I don't think you'll see much of me anymore...

Jon

 

Good story... even if you didn't buy the Scion. You got what you wanted at least.

IMO, the Versa is ugly in any color. Though, this one time I saw a hot redhead get out of a red one and I think that would have settled just fine with my taste at that moment...

 

Its cool as long as you got what you wanted..I was looking at the xA, xD, Yaris, Honda Fit, and Nissan Versa..I chose the xD...Its what I really wanted and If im going to be making car payments for 3 yrs (even though ill pay it off sooner than that) A $1000 price difference = nothing..its like $30 more a month..And making the payments on a car Im not in love with will make me resent it..But hey have fun with your car, still a pretty good car.


PS: I never test drove any of them..I test drove a Ford Focus and the new 2008 xB..The xD I looked at one from the outside and told my dad to go get it..HAHA..crazy of me but the car is AWESOME..better than I thought it would be..And I get so many compliments from it from friends and complete strangers..HAHA even more guys have been trying to hit on me.. Losers

 

I just couldn't get over the look of the Versa, even in black. "Better interior" is subjective - coworker drives a Versa - I don't remember being particularly impressed by it. 6-speed manual was pretty nice, but other than that the baby minivan look did not appeal.

Also after trying to mod the Z I realized that Scion is a much easier car to work on. I can't call haggling my favorite activity, either - it took me less than 3 minutes to buy the xD - walked in the door, signed 3 piece of paper, wrote a check, walked out with the keys. How long did it take to buy a Versa?

But again, if you can live with the look - you got yourself a decent grocery getter. With 6-disc changer

 

Glad you liked the story! Kept you guessing, eh?

I'm sorry you don't like the Versa. To each his own - I love mine!

But I'm glad you like redheads. I knew one once (not in the biblical sense) that had two different colored eyes...

 

I'm trying to get my parents to buy an xD at the moment. My mom needs a new car. Her Chrysler Concorde just keeps breaking down. First it was the Alternator, then it was the Compressor, and now it was the AC. All with-in a year of each other. I also think they're something wrong with the pulleys cuz if you push down on the gas pedal hard it just starts screeching like a pig and won't go above 4K RPM, they're New Belts too since the broken Compressor broke the old ones..... I'm pretty sure we spent more money on the car then its worth.

Anyway we took it for a test drive and both my mom and I were rather impressed with it. That little 1.8L 120 hp 4 Cyl packs quite a punch when you step on it, It was an auto non the less. I also liked how you could move the rear seats forewords and backwards. Nice little car.

 

I currently own a 01 focus zx3, happy with the power, reliability sucks and mileage sucks(like 23mpg mostly highway)...

Honda fit- looks ok, but my wife doesnt fit in the fit...(passenger seat at least)

Nissan Versa(Made in Mexico=crap...focus was made in Mexico...reliability ratings for the Versa arent very good either)

Yaris- 4drs isnt bad but the price how i want it gets a bit high, and not too roomy.

Civic- nice but too expensive( I can get a new prius for 20k geez)

Xd- good power, toyota reliaibility, good mileage...good options for price..

Corolla is a possibility too but I like the NEWness of Xd

 

As far as reliability goes, I couldn't find anything online that said the Versa had problems. Do you have a source?

My hope is that the "Mexico=crap" belief is outdated (Weren't Japanese cars in the 80's considered crap?)

 

Heh. There is a slight chance that Mexican-built cars will be better in 20 years. Japanese work ethic has been historically very different from Mexican, though.

 

I liked the Tiida more than the Versa. Nissan totally gyped the US market. D:

 

Although I don't own a xD, or a Versa, I did test drive my tC twice before I bought it.

You're right in saying, "to each his own." I wouldn't trade in my tC for anything, I'm not a 4-door compact kinda person.

Have fun with the Versa !

 

I was also torn between the new xB, xD, Fit & Versa and couldn't decide...

xB= Don't like the redesign at all.
xD= Not a fan of the interior & not enough car for $16K.
Fit= Not much power & manual transmission models are scarce.
Versa= Bland interior & shrunken minivan looks.

That's why I'll be trading the classic xB in for an '08 tC!

 

http://www.truedelta.com/results0307.php?session_code=

one of the sites..this one i post my wife's 07 crv stuff.

 

Ahh yes yes..Not trying to be 'funny' or rude but hey..this IS a Scion forum..

And as whisperingshadow stated :

"Honda fit- looks ok ...

Nissan Versa(Made in Mexico=crap...focus was made in Mexico...reliability ratings for the Versa arent very good either)

Yaris- 4drs isnt bad but the price how i want it gets a bit high, and not too roomy.

Civic- nice but too expensive( I can get a new prius for 20k geez)

Xd- good power, toyota reliaibility, good mileage...good options for price..

Corolla is a possibility too but I like the NEWness of Xd"


I love the newness too, other than that I would have gotten the xB

 

I thought the xD was $15,170? Unless you cant drive a stick.

 

I was reading somewhere and they did a comparison with the Versa and the concept vehicle (that later became the toned down Versa.) Think is, they don't know why Nissan toned the sported looking concept to a bland and outdated Versa. Interior stayed the same from the concept car but the exterior was modify to meet our regulation, I believe.

ok i remember the name. It was the comparison of the Versa and the Sport Concept but I can't find the link.
http://paultan.org/archives/2005/09/...-nissan-versa/
http://www.automobilemag.com/auto_sh...sport_concept/

I would of bough this over an xd any day if Nissan kept this styling over the Versa.

 

I have an xB and a Versa. The Versa is quieter, has more power, and has nice suede like seats, PLUS side curtain air bags front and rear.

My xB is "roomier", easier to enter/exit the front seats, has ABS, VSC, gets better fuel mileage, has a standard jack for my iPod, and looks wayyy cooler.

I like my wifes Versa, I LOVE my xB.

I paid $16005 out the door for my xB, wife paid $13,150 out the door for the Versa.

 

Nice!

If I were in the sub-compact market, I'd consider a Versa as well. I actually like the bodystyle in certain colors.

-THE DON

 

That's just it! We didn't like it in white, but we loved it in black! (Has a slimming effect?)

 

Nope. They were considered sluggish and small, but extremely high milage and bullet proof reliability.

Consumer Reports, April auto issue, Nissan ranks below:

- Hyudai
- Mitsu
- Mercury
- Audi
- Lincoln
- GMC
- Volvo
- Ford
- kia
- Chrysler
and several more. But I'm sure the Versa will be just fine.