TOYOTA YARIS vs RIVALS

Toyota has taken its own sweet time entering the C-segment but now that it's here it would be a crime not to pit it against the established order

IHADN'T SEEN MY UNCLE THIS excited in quite some time. “Did you know? The Yaris is here!” he announced excitedly when he saw me at his Kolkata home. For a second I almost thought he had bought one and the car had been delivered. But no, he was only talking about the news of the Yaris being launched. Of course I knew, I told him. Would be a little strange if I didn't, considering how I earn a living. The rest of the evening was mostly random banter until after dinner he asked me what I thought of the Yaris. From his tone it was clear that his expectations of the Yaris were high. He made no bones about the fact that he thought this brand new sedan with the Toyota badge would be a great car that would give the others a run for their money.

But does it? After all, at `12.85 lakh, exshowroom Delhi for the top-of-the-line VX manual variant that you would want to have, the Yaris is the priciest C-segment sedan you can buy. Before you pooh-pooh our claim, digest this. The range-topping Honda City VX we have here carries a sticker of `11.84 lakh, the Volkswagen Vento 1.2L TSI with the excellent DSG gearbox goes for `12.54 lakh and the top-of-the-line Hyundai Verna 1.6L we have here is the most affordable at `11.42 lakh. So what's the story behind that premium pricing then? Is it a case of a lot more goodies than the rest? Is it automotive snobbery?

The long and short of things

The more I look at them the more I'm convinced that it is the Verna that stands out as the most stylish of this lot. The new age design suits the Korean rather well. It's as long as the City but wider and, after the Vento, the