2012 Nissan Versa in Bradenton

The 2012 Nissan Versa delivers excellent roominess and decent performance in an affordable, fuel-efficient package. The sedan is all new for 2012 and gets significantly better fuel economy than the hatch. By compact standards, Versa excels in terms of headroom and its cabin is roomy enough to seat four in relative comfort. The 2012 Versa sedan comes in three trim levels: S, SV and SL. Both Versa body styles offer spacious interiors with decent head- and legroom, making them a good choice for larger drivers. Back-seat passengers will find rear-seat leg room as good as that in larger cars and SUVs, making Versa a usable four-passenger car. The cabin is comfortable and offers a good number of conveniences. In short, the Nissan Versa is a roomy, practical small car.

Powering the 2012 Versa

The Versa four-door sedan rides on a new platform, dubbed V for versatile, which makes the 2012 Versa sedan 150 pounds lighter than the first-generation sedan. This second-generation Versa sedan uses a slightly smaller engine than before, a 1.6-liter four-cylinder good for a modest but effective 109 horsepower and 107 pound-feet of torque. A 5-speed manual transmission is standard on the 2012 Versa sedan, while a continuously variable automatic transmission (CVT) is included on higher trim levels. The 2012 Versa sedan also gets revised steering and suspension, which makes for more responsive handling. The 2012 Versa hatchback, unlike the sedan, carries over unchanged from 2011. The hatchback is essentially the same body style as the first-generation version that launched as a 2008 model. It rides on the previous-generation platform. The hatchback uses a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 122 hp and 127 lb-ft of torque. On the base Versa S hatch, a 6-speed manual transmission comes standard, with an optional 4-speed automatic.

2012 Nissan Versa Design

The Nissan Versa looks bigger than a subcompact car. The new sedan is slightly more than six inches longer than the old hatchback. The old hatch is nearly an inch taller than the new sedan. The Versa is slightly larger than many of the subcompacts, such as the Ford Fiesta and Chevrolet Sonic, but it's smaller than the compact-class cars such as the Ford Focus and Chevrolet Cruze. The all-new 2012 Versa sedan is a friendly, approachable little car, without the aggressive, angry lines that many car companies are hooked on these days. The sedan's styling is clean, fluid and well proportioned.  The sedan employs clever design tactics that are not only aesthetic, but also practical. For example, the indented line in the middle of the roofline helps to reduce roof panel vibrations. In back, the shape of the trunk lid offers improved aerodynamics over the previous model, which decreases drag and helps to improve performance and fuel economy.  While the interiors of the Versa sedan and hatchback differ in design, their basic virtues are similar. The Versa models have remarkably roomy cabins, with a generous amount of headroom along with enough legroom for 6-footers to sit in back. Versa's fabric-covered front seats are manually adjustable but lack lumbar support, making them comfortable enough during for moderate commutes, but support fades over long drives. The controls are easy to use and well placed, while features like navigation, Bluetooth and an USB port are welcome touches in this price range.

New Versa Trim Levels

Versa S features include air conditioning, manually adjustable driver's seat, a trip computer and a two-speaker sound system with a CD player and auxiliary audio jack. </p> <p>Versa SV sedan comes standard with the CVT and the Cruise Control package plus keyless entry, full power accessories, upgraded cloth upholstery and upgraded gauges.
Versa SL sedan gets everything that comes with the SV Convenience package plus a 60/40-split-folding rear seat, fog lights and 15-inch alloy wheels. 
 The Versa hatchback is available in two trim levels. Versa S comes standard with a 6-speed manual or an optional 4-speed automatic . Features include air conditioning, full power accessories, a 60/40-split-folding rear seat, a four-speaker audio system with a CD player and auxiliary audio jack, plus 15-inch steel wheels. </p> <p>Versa SL hatchback comes standard with a Continuously Variable Transmission (CVT) and includes all the S model's optional equipment plus keyless ignition/entry, better cloth upholstery, front and rear center armrests, an auto-dimming rearview mirror and a six-speaker audio system.

Conclusions 

 Safety features on all Versa models include front airbags, supplemental front seat-mounted front side airbags, roof-mounted side curtain airbags, antilock brakes (ABS), traction control, stability control, Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD) and brake assist. For more on this model, visit the official Nissan Versa website.