11th Jan 2014, 02:41
Your stats are slightly misleading. Horsepower doesn't matter so much as torque. Yes, the car only has 106 HP, but it only produces 103 lb-ft of torque at 4,200 RPM. This dearth in torque is why the car can't pull up hills too well with multiple people in it, and why it'll have problems maintaining high speeds on the highway.
15th Oct 2011, 16:55
I aspire to the cliche of 'it's more fun to drive a slow car fast than a fast car slow.' Having said that, 0 - 6 in 9 seconds isn't bad for an economy car, especially considering the engine is almost the same as the one introduced in the 2000 Echo. Even the brand new Nissan Versa sedan with 109 hp takes 11.0 seconds to go from 0 - 60.
The 2012 Yaris SE can still keep up with its rivals, but Toyota needs to wake up and realize they are no longer the only player in the subcompact game. I've seen the new Yaris, and the interior and exterior are huge improvements, but it still has the same engine and transmissions introduced in 2006.