Five gas-sipper choices for your commute … and these ones aren’t EVs
Some affordable options for running errands and making trips into the city
Do you know people who fled to the “Zoom-burbs” during the pandemic? Are you one of them? What sort of vehicle do you need to make this lifestyle work?
A couple of factors have pushed people out of Toronto. The coronavirus barely had a name when pundits began forecasting the demise of cities out of fear that urban density was fuelling the spread of COVID -19. With robust internet bandwidth readily available, working remotely from outside the city seemed easy enough.
But the exodus, in fact, had more to do with the cost of living, according to the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University. First-time buyers have been settling in smaller communities, such as Guelph and Peterborough, where a modest bungalow or townhouse was a relative bargain.
But there are trade-offs. If you live outside the city, you need a car to make trips into the big smoke for obligatory days in the office and, also, just to get around.
What to drive on a shoestring budget?
Here are five gas-sipping commuter specials. All are automatics. Prices include delivery and mandatory fees, but not taxes.
Nissan Versa, $22,903 The subcompact Nissan Versa seats up to five people reasonably well, in a cabin that’s attractively trimmed and spacey enough for such a small sedan. There’s ample room to stretch out up front, and the rear bench is decent enough. The trunk is unusually generous at almost 15 cubic feet (416 litres) and the rear seatbacks fold down to extend cargo capacity.
The Versa is nudged — “powered” might be overstated — by a 1.6-L four-cylinder engine, making 122 horsepower and 114 pounds-feet of torque, dispatched to the front wheels.
A continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) is standard, along with air-conditioning and a slew of advanced safety tech, including lane-departure warning and automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection.
With so few horses on tap, the Versa feels sleepy — 0 to 97 km/h comes up in 10.4 seconds — but fuel economy is exceptional: 7.4 litres/100 km in the city and 5.9 on the highway (almost 50 mpg).
The wee Versa rides smoothly, although it can get bouncy over rough roads. Wind noise may be prevalent, but it’s reasonably hushed otherwise. This little-known buy makes for a sustainable commuter companion.
Hyundai Venue, $23,581 Subcompact cars are an endangered species, as North American tastes lean toward anything SUV-like. And that’s how we’d describe the Hyundai Venue, which is based on the bones of a subcompact car. (This explains why it’s strictly front-wheel drive.) By adopting a boxy SUV profile, the Venue provides a large hatchback and excellent utility; you can strap bikes and kayaks to the roof without using a stepladder.
The 1.6-litre four-cylinder engine makes 121 horsepower, and, while that might be enough around town, you’ll need every horse to get up to speed on the highway. Fortunately, its CVT automatic transmission makes the most of the meagre output, and the Venue attains a most SUV-unlike fuel economy of 7.9 litres/100 km in the city and 6.9 on the highway.
The Venue is softly sprung for a comfortable ride, not a sporty one. Simplicity reigns inside. Controls are logical and dials a breeze to read.
It’s easy to see all around thanks to expansive glass, and the cabin is pretty roomy, given its diminutive footprint. The infotainment system is intuitive to use, and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are standard.
Kia Forte, $23,683 Residing in a class one up from subcompact, the Kia Forte has grown in size and sophistication, something that’s evident when you slide behind the wheel. This sedan is more comfortable than many in the segment, with nicely contoured seats for long-distance comfort and a noticeably quiet ride at highway speeds.
A mix of decent materials makes the Forte’s cabin feel grown-up and refined. The seating position and steering wheel offer a wide range of adjustability. Rear-seat knee room falls short, and the hard plastic seatbacks don’t help, but headroom is an issue only for those over six feet. The big trunk boasts a wide, flat floor.
The base model uses a two-litre, four-cylinder engine that churns out 147 horsepower and 132 lbs.-ft. of torque working through a CVT automatic transmission which drives the front wheels. Zero to 97 km/h comes up in a class-average 8.7 seconds. The Forte uses just 5.9 litres/100 km in the country and 7.9 litres in town. This car delivers most of what the vaunted Honda Civic does, but for thousands less. Chevrolet Trax, $24,530 Nobody saw this one coming. The all-new Chevrolet Trax retains little of the stubby old ute and cuts a posh profile that looks a million bucks better than its entry price suggests. It’s the product of GM Korea, formerly Daewoo.
The long wheelbase on the Trax provides for more passenger space and an enormous cargo area. The seat height and doors that open wide make entry and exit easy for all, and the vehicle is lower to the ground compared to the old model. And there’s a bonus: active noise cancellation, which uses inaudible sound waves emitted by the stereo’s speakers to cancel out nuisance sounds.
A turbocharged, 1.2-litre, threecylinder engine brings 137 hp and 162 lbs.-ft. of torque, and is mated with a six-speed automatic transmission that spins the front tires. (All-wheel drive is not available.) The tiny engine provides passable power and sweet savings at the gas pump: 8.3 L/100 km in the city and 7.4 L in the country.
Mitsubishi RVR, $24,798 There are few updates to the front-wheeldrive Mitsubishi RVR after 13 years on the market. It persists with its lumpy two-litre engine, and it doesn’t offer all the high-tech features of its competitors. But what it does have is a low price and a fiveyear factory warranty — and the distinction of being Canada’s cheapest all-wheel-drive SUV if you chip in another $2,000 for power to all four wheels.
There’s a decidedly bargain-basement feel inside the cabin, although Mitsubishi does include heated front seats, automatic climate control and an eight-inch audio display with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. The RVR can’t match the rear-seat room of its rivals as legroom and headroom aren’t generous, but the split-folding back seats drop down to create a helpful flat cargo floor.
On the road, the RVR’s CVT auto transmission is slow to respond, and the suspension tuning is old school. The vehicle feels harsh over bumps, yet it’s floaty over smoother undulations. The 148-hp engine feels underpowered and emits a raucous drone while accelerating. Fuel economy is less than stellar, at 9.7 litres/100 km in the city and 7.8 litres on the highway.