Faults:

It's still new. If something is already wrong, I'll give Toyota a 0 score. Anything hot off the oven shouldn't be inedible because of defects.

My first servicing was about 2 weeks ago.

There shouldn't be anything wrong with it right now. Anyway I'm still monitoring...

Ultimately, I do not harbour high expectations on the car. It's supposed to be my workhorse, and also my entertainment.

General Comments:

Interior is sufficiently spacious, with plenty of pockets, nooks and crannies to keep little things here and there.

Noise insulation is good. Handles well. Good acceleration. Good cornering characteristics. Like the slightly higher driver sitting position. So that i can peer through the SUV in front of me for traffic conditions far ahead.

Initially, thought its weird to have a center-mounted instrument panel. But now I believe it to be most cool :-)

My model is a basic one with no frills and manual transmission. No modifications to tyres, body kits, or something like that. They add to rolling resistance and aerodynamic drag.

Believe it or not, it managed to get 15.5km/l for the first tank of gas. After the first servicing, it returned an average of 18.5km/l, with about 60% use on highway and 40% in other roads. If I find that after 5000kms my return on gas is still similar or better, I'd not think twice in having a second Vios (or equivalent) for my next car. Anyway, with air-con on 50% of the time.

Manual transmission is still the best. Raw power from the engine is transmitted to the road, without an auto-box trying to predict my driving pattern and road conditions. I don't lose that "in control" feeling. The fun begins when it enters a traffic jam...

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong so far.

General Comments:

I am beginning to like the VIOS. The first choice was to get the Honda Civic or even a Mitsubishi Strada. So why did I change my mind? Well, having a baby makes you be more prudent about purchasing a car just for daily commute since we have other cars that can handle a larger load.

The VIOS is small, the leg room is kinda cramped for a 5'10" person. Push the seat back and it will be a difficult stretch to reach the steering wheel not to mention anyone who attempts to ride at the back. There's something wrong with the seat and the way it tilts and adjusts, I just can't find a comfortable position. The dashboard feels cheap and the big round white dials are too imposing, I wish they came up with the normal black dial with white numbers. The back seat does not fold down to expand the trunk space. My wife feels that Toyota should burn because they didn't provide a vanity mirror at the passenger side (I guess it was MADE for girls to drive). Oh, and it has a small "beep beep" sounding horn that really says "look! I am small!"

Other than that, the transmission feels solid. Even the way the door and trunk closes feels like you have a solid car. The pick up is not bad for a 1.3 engine. Infact it feels like a 1.6cc engine if I am driving alone, but don't put your hopes up when you start adding passengers.

The steering is sharp and light to the feel. The whole car feels light. Cornering at moderate speeds is slightly jittery as the car feels unstable at times. Brakes feels sharp and night driving visibility is very good. Did I mention it goes "beep beep"?

The car has enough creature comforts. The air conditioning is very good although the vents seem to blow upwards when it follows the contours of the dash board. Controls are well placed. The 1.3E comes with alarm, power locks, power windows and power steering. The side view mirrors are manually adjusted.

The car has many little spaces to put things in. There is a center console box that hides a rear cup holder between the seats, a center console with cup holder at the front of the stick shift, a small glove box and another storage space for small things on the passenger side dashboard. Under the passenger seat is a pull out tray that really delighted me... finally a pleasant surprise!