2009 Nissan Versa is your answer

By JENNY WHITE

Telegram Car Reviewer

With everyone today trying to find a way to scale back on expenses, carbon footprints and all types of unneeded extras, the appearance of a Nissan Versa in the Telegram parking lot seemed a little fortuitous.

As I and my Telegram colleagues search for ways to save money and do more with less expense, at home and at work, a Mercedes or Land Rover being delivered for a test drive can be a little annoying to some.

But the Versa seems to fit into our current theme of doing what we need to get done, with less.

A friend of mine once told me she and her husband justified the amount of money they spent on their option-laden Tahoe by rationalizing they could live in it if they needed to.

Now, there’s nothing wrong with an option-laden Tahoe that’s almost or all paid for.

But for my friends, their car payment/second mortgage became a bit much. After re-evaluating things, they sold the Tahoe and got a more economical vehicle that they just use for driving, versus sleeping in it.

Like my friends, many drivers this year will find they can be satisfied with less, when buying a new car.

The Versa will fit the bill for many buyers.

Obviously, the Versa has less room than sedans, crossovers and SUVs.

For those not familiar with it, the Versa is what we call a hatchback.

The model I test drove was a four-door model with the fifth “door” in back, opening up to the cargo area.

There was not a lot of wiggle room, but there was adequate space for my 6’3” husband to get comfortable and we were able to squeeze a full-size cooler and large cumbersome stroller into the rear compartment.

Our two kids fit into the back seat. Granted they’re both under the age of 10, but car seats actually take up a lot of room and we still could have squeezed in another small child back there if we had to.

The back seat had a 60/40 split, which attracts buyers looking for a little versatility in interior room.

I was impressed with the cargo area and didn’t come upon anything I needed that I couldn’t fit back there.

Another thing you might notice there’s less of, is power.

All Versas come with a 1.8-liter engine offering 122 horsepower. Compared to other compacts, 122 hp isn’t anything to sneeze at.

The Fit only coughs up 117 hp with its inline 4 engine, and Toyota Yaris and Hyundai Accent also have less horsepower.

I felt the Versa was ably powered and felt capable to keep up with traffic on Interstate 95 just fine.

It may be a little noisy at high speeds, but the 122 horsepower was plenty for normal everyday driving needs.

You’ll need less gas in a Versa.

The Versa is rated to get 24/32 mpg, which is a little less than the Versa’s competitors. The Versa does have a pretty big gas tank, holding 13.2 gallons of gas.

In the Versa, there’s less stuff to distract you from driving.

You don’t need to fiddle with MP3 jacks, navigation system stuff, rear entertainment buttons or moonroof controls. These are all extras that aren’t really necessary for your transportation needs.

The Versa costs less than the majority of car choices on the market today.

The base price for the 1.8 S hatchback I test drove was $13,990.

This is a little bit more than the base price for a Yaris and less than the Honda Fit.

I did enjoy the few options that were added on, like cruise control and the power package (locks, windows and key fob remote) which upped the price tag to a still affordable $15,880.