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This week we had the opportunity to get into the world of the sub-compact sedan and drive a vehicle with a genealogical line almost as long as ours. The newly dubbed Yaris iA was badged last year under the Scion brand as simply the iA before Toyota pulled the plug on the brand leaving the poor iA without a hometown.

Being a great option for a small sedan and with Toyota actually lacking a sedan in this category, as the regular Yaris comes as only a hatchback, the powers that be dubbed figured they could put a Toyota badge on the Scion and call it the Yaris iA. But this is not the end of the saga for the iA as it is not actually made by Toyota.

In all reality the iA is a joint venture between Mazda and Toyota, so in actuality it finds its roots in the Mazda 2 (which is no longer available in the U.S.). So like the deal that Fiat and Mazda have to make the new Fiat Spider that inside is all a MX-5 Miata, the iA has a Toyota badge to an even larger extent mostly Mazda parts inside and out.

It’s made in Mexico at the Mazda plant where the Mazda 2 is made and if it were not for the very large nose on the small sedan, we would have really mistaken it for a Mazda. This is all a good thing in our opinion as it shares it’s underpinnings with the very youthful and versatile Mazda 3!

So with a genealogy that’s hard to understand and cloudy on a clear day, it ended up that we were very taken with the iA, and after a week with it in real life situations, we came to agree with most that this is one of the best values for a sub-compact sedan.

When looking at the new Yaris iA the folks at Toyota have not included many options for the buyer to choose from. The biggest choice to make would be to add an automatic transmission or not, it is the only option to choose and adds $1,100 to the bottom line. Our test ride was what we would consider the base model and came with a manual transmission, something we have not enjoyed in a sedan for a very long time.

Over the week with the iA that included a trip to Salt Lake and our normal everyday driving we put just under 500 miles on the odometer and most important, we averaged just over 38 mpg. So not only does this sub-compact have a great sticker price it also is economical to drive.

The iA comes with a 1.5 liter 4 cylinder power plant that achieves 105 horsepower, it will propel the small car to 60 in just under 9 seconds. Okay, it is not going to achieve any land speed records, but surprisingly enough it was very engaging to drive and with the manual transmission felt faster than it really was. This would be a trait that Mazda is known for as the Miata is not really a fast 2-door coupe, but seems to drive as if it’s very fast.

This driver engagement is accomplished by having a good weighted steering system that is combined with suspension that keeps the vehicle grounded with good acceleration accompanied by an interior that suggests there is more to the vehicle than meet the eye.

In fact the seats inside the Yaris had more of a Recaro seat look that what we would have expected, sporting a two tone fabric that give them a very sporty appearance, with a blue interior that is wrapped on the outside by a deep black fabric.

The interior continued to impress us with other great features, one of which was the 7 inch screen that was controlled by the very familiar Mazda twist and click rotary knob located in the center console between the seats. It is very easy to use to get through the menus that come with the iA used to hook up smartphones and other radio functions. This system is really more reminiscent of what we would expect from BMW or Mercedes.

It also comes with HD radio and Bluetooth audio from streaming from a phone, along with a very good voice control system. Navigation is the only thing lacking from the iA but can be added at the dealership if one is inclined. However, when punching navigation longitude, latitude and elevation to come up on the screen which did captures our attention for a time as we would watch to see what the elevations were in different cities!

Keyless entry and a push button start are also standard on the new iA, cool additions of course, the designers have also added and additional USB port up front so both passenger and driver can charge devices at the same time. Both of course will stream audio to the 6 speaker sound system as well.

On the safety side there is even the inclusion of low speed collision avoidance with automatic braking, and a backup camera is standard. The iA has also received a top safety pick from the IIHS receiving a good mark in all crash tests.

Whatever the genealogy, Toyota has a winner in the new generation Yaris iA, there is technology enough to please any driver and the ride is engaging enough to keep the drive exciting. For these reasons we understand why it is one of the best-selling sub-compact vhielces in this class, it’s also one of the most affordable in its class.

For a vehicle that is priced right around $17,000 the Yaris iA deserves the attention it is getting, see one today at Brent Brown Toyota, 1400 Sandhill Road in Orem, 801-224-1320.

Base Price: $17,050

Price as Driven: $17,865