{"id":27438,"date":"2021-06-03T15:17:02","date_gmt":"2021-06-03T19:17:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=27438"},"modified":"2021-06-03T15:17:02","modified_gmt":"2021-06-03T19:17:02","slug":"payne-starter-nissan-versa-is-roomy-techy-just-beware-the-gerbils","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2021\/06\/payne-starter-nissan-versa-is-roomy-techy-just-beware-the-gerbils","title":{"rendered":"Payne: Starter Nissan Versa is roomy, techy (just beware the gerbils)"},"content":{"rendered":"

If I were shopping for my first car today? My Neanderthal tastes haven\u2019t progressed much since I was a 22 year old exiting college in 1984. Back then, I wanted speed, speed, speed. And some hatchback utility.<\/p>\n

I bought a used VW Rabbit GTI. I\u2019d do the same today. Cost? About $18,000\u00a0with 75,000\u00a0miles as I surf the used car ads (the Rabbit is now a Golf).<\/p>\n

That said, it\u2019s comforting to see that there are new cars available for that price that don\u2019t stink. In fact, they are quite pleasant. Take the all-new\u00a02021 Nissan Versa I flogged across the Arizona desert recently.<\/p>\n

Sporting the snazzy, V-motion grille found on bigger siblings like Altima and sculpted body stampings across its hood and flanks, the Versa was a nice weekend date out of the Enterprise subcompact sedan rental pool.<\/p>\n

The pool has become a lot shallower of late.<\/p>\n

\"Stylin'.<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Detroit automakers have abandoned the segment save the Chevy Spark (a cutie that, alas, was given a coat of vanilla for its 2021 refresh. C\u2019mon, GM, these wee products need to stand out on the shelf!). Want Detroit iron? Hit the used lot. That leaves the new sedan menu to Asian morsels like the Hyundai Accent and Kia Rio appetizers.<\/p>\n

To attract first-time American buyers, Nissan goes big. We Yanks take up a lotta room, after all.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m a 6\u20195\u201d giraffe and was shocked that I could sit behind myself in an entry-level sedan. That size continues in the boot, where Mrs. Payne and I stuffed in two carry-ons, a tennis bag\u00a0and another large bag. That\u2019s more than a Kia Optima can swallow.<\/p>\n

Entry-level prices can be a little deceiving for subcompacts as the standard, $15,930 Versa comes equipped with a manual and no Apple CarPlay. The former suits me just fine (my first GTI was a manual), but the lack of smartphone capability in the early 21st century is unworkable. Gotta have your smartphone running navigation when wanderlust calls.<\/p>\n

So think of my SV-trim tester as the starter price at $18,130 \u2014 still well below what you can find in the SUV class. For that, you get the essential smartphone apps, blind-spot assist, cruise control (adaptive is available on the upper SR trim)\u00a0and auto high beams. That\u2019s a sweet suite of stuff \u2014 and on par with a used 2016 Golf GTI.<\/p>\n

What you don\u2019t get for your 18 grand is horsepower. The Versa is gerbil powered \u2014 122 of them.<\/p>\n

My interstate merges were done full throttle lest I be trampled by a herd of SUVs and semi-trucks. With a continuously variable rubber band \u2014 er, transmission \u2014 running the show, the Versa\u2019s four\u00a0cylinders make quite a racket.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Leave Tucson to the north and the table-flat desert gives way to the rolling foothills of the Santa Catalina Mountains. Twisties abound and the versatile Versa is fun to throw around \u2014 as long as you remember to get on the throttle early out of turns lest the gerbil wheel stalls mid-stroke.<\/p>\n

Despite my heavy right foot, I managed an impressive 38 miles to the gallon \u2014 better than the advertised 35 mpg EPA \u2014 over some 300 miles of driving. That\u2019s good news for the tight budgets of 20-somethings.<\/p>\n

While you won\u2019t confuse Versa\u2019s interior for its fancy Sentra big brother (a contender for last year\u2019s North American Car of the Year), it never discomfited my big frame.<\/p>\n

The cloth seats fit nicely, and the instrument display is split between an analog speedometer and digital display. I thumbed through digital pages that featured mpg, mph\u00a0and tire pressure data.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

Typical of Nissan, engineers have included thoughtful details throughout. Door-mounted mirrors, for example, make for better outward visibility. Unscrewing a Snapple bottle at a stoplight, I yearned for a little\u00a0door handle-mounted cubby to store the cap. There it was, right at my elbow.<\/p>\n

Still, having spent the week before my Versa date in $30K-plus compact SUVs, I was quickly reminded of how spoiled modern electronics have made me. In the sub-$20K\u00a0subcompact class, passive key entry is a luxury. I had to unlock the doors manually with the fob (\u201cThurston, is that a bead of sweat on your brow?\u201d) as well as the trunk. Safety features like auto-shift-into-park-when-the-door-opens and adaptive cruise control have expanded the safety cocoon around more expensive vehicles.<\/p>\n

That used 2016 Golf GTI will come similarly equipped, though it will be 75,000 miles worse for the wear. It will also have 220 horses under the hood, tempting Neanderthals like me.<\/p>\n

If you prefer zero miles on the odometer \u2014 and don\u2019t mind fuel-efficient gerbils \u2014 then the Nissan Versa is a fine choice.<\/p>\n

\"With<\/p>\n
<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

2021\u00a0Nissan Versa<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Vehicle type: Front engine, front-wheel-drive, five-passenger\u00a0subcompact sedan<\/p>\n

Price: $15,930, including $950 destination fee ($18,130 as tested)<\/p>\n

Powerplant: 1.6-liter 4 cylinder<\/p>\n

Power: 122 horsepower, 114 pound-feet torque<\/p>\n

Transmission: 5-speed or continuously variable transmission<\/p>\n

Performance: 0-60 mph, 9.0\u00a0seconds (Car and Driver est.); top speed, 115 mph<\/p>\n

Weight: 2,657 pounds (SV as tested)<\/p>\n

Fuel economy: EPA est. mpg 32 city\/40 highway\/35 combined (CVT)<\/p>\n

Report card<\/h3>\n

Highs: Roomy interior; pleasant to look at outside<\/p>\n

Lows: No standard smartphone connectivity; gerbil power<\/p>\n

Overall: 3\u00a0stars<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

If I were shopping for my first car today? My Neanderthal tastes haven\u2019t progressed much since I was a 22 year old exiting college in 1984. Back then, I wanted speed, speed, speed. And some hatchback utility. I bought a used VW Rabbit GTI. I\u2019d do the same today. Cost? About $18,000\u00a0with 75,000\u00a0miles as I […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,87],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27438"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=27438"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27438\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27439,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27438\/revisions\/27439"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27438"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27438"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27438"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}