The other models are a conventional four-door sedan and a two-door hatchback.

In auto-industry parlance, the hatch is a door, so a four-door hatchback is called a "five-door" and a
two-door hatch is a "three-door."

The new five-door is a welcome addition to the Yaris line, if for no other reason than it's a hatchback that actually
has reasonable access to the tiny car's back seat.

The five-door brings another development — lots of standard features, at least judged by the yardstick for subcompacts:
Anti-lock brakes, air conditioning, automatic transmission and other uptown items are baked into this model.

Perhaps not surprising, then, the price seems a tad stiff for such a small guy: about US$14,000 to start.
The test car was a well-furnished "S" model, and its sticker was US$17,515. That'd about buy you a nice version
of the Focus SES coupe.

Of course, the very different Focus and Yaris are unlikely to compete — to be "cross-shopped," as the car guys say.
The point is that if you objectively look around at what seventeen-five gets, you see more appealing alternatives than
a tricked-out Yaris S five-door. Top of mind:
A Nissan Versa offers a substantially bigger interior and nicer handling.
The Focus SES coupe, to flog that horse, is roomier, sweet to drive and has a more upmarket feel. Ford says a version
of the Focus four-door sedan as sporty and lively as the coupe is coming for 2010.

But back to the Toyota. What's good about the Yaris five-door:

• Room. Quite a lot for a subcompact that's only a few inches longer than a Mini Cooper. The rear seat, despite
specifications that would take it off many shopping lists, easily fit adults.

The test car had an options package that included a rear seat different from the standard one-piece folding bench.
It was split 60/40, and each side could slide fore-aft, recline and fold flat separately. That helps tailor the car for your
mix of people and cargo. Good thing, because there's not much room for cargo behind the back seat.

• Stowage. Handy spots under the rear cargo floor, on the console and alongside the panel that drops from the lower
edge of the dashboard to the upper edge of the console. A wide covered bin straight ahead of the driver on the
instrument panel is useful for something, surely.

• Fuel economy. It's rated 34 miles per imperial gallon in combined city/highway use, among the best in the subcompact field
— and you should be able to at least match that in real life.

• Bump handling. It soaked up those deep drainage channels at intersections with nonchalance.
Some very pricey automobiles do worse.

• Maneuverability. A remarkably tight turning circle made lots of everyday moves a breeze. Many shoppers who'd
never consider driving fast around a tight corner still demand what they think of as "good handling" — by which they mean
Yaris-style steering and parking agility.

But you might dislike:

• Oddball interior. Gauges are in a pod atop the center of the dashboard. Arguably, that lets the driver shift focus only
a little to glance from the road to the speedometer and others. But your eye nevertheless craves them in front of you.
The empty space between you and the windshield is disconcerting (though it allows that big storage bin).

• Sounds. The four-cylinder engine rasped and roared. The right side of the instrument panel creaked intermittently.

• Slop. That same suspension that soaks up bumps evoked second thoughts about entering an "S" curve at the same
speed you've done in similar cars. Yaris didn't skid or slide all over the place. It stayed put and remained properly pointed.
It just took more driver effort, and the result was less graceful than in other cars.
Very moderate drivers might not notice. Sporting types will.

• Ambiance. Some of the plastic trim had a brittle, cheap look and feel. Climate-control knobs had a low-class feel.
Some trim items were better, but a car's level of luxe is never higher than its worst piece of trim.

The five-door is a big improvement to the Yaris lineup, but despite additional day-to-day usefulness, it lacks the inviting
interior and crisp feel you can find in other small cars, often at a lower price.

ABOUT THE 2009 5-DOOR YARIS

• Why? Five-doors are popular overseas; maybe they'll catch on in the U.S. Toyota's banking on it, predicting the
five-door will be one-third of Yaris sales this year.

• How much? Five-door starts at US$14,025, including US$720 shipping. Five-door S starts at US$15,845.
Well-equipped test car: US$17,515.

• How powerful? 1.5-liter four-cylinder engine is rated 106 horsepower at 6,000 rpm, 103 pounds-feet of torque
at 4,200 rpm. Four-speed automatic transmission is standard.

• How lavish? Front, side and head-curtain air bags and anti-lock brakes are standard, exceptional for an inexpensive
small car. Also unexpectedly standard: air conditioning, adjustable steering column, cargo cover and net, reclining rear seats,
three-across head restraints in the back seat. (Many automakers skip the middle one to save pennies and pounds.)

• How big? Only 6 inches longer than a Mini Cooper. In inches, the Yaris five-door is 150.6 long, 66.7 wide, 60.2 tall
on a 96.9 wheelbase. Weight is 2,340 pounds.

Passenger space is 84.1 cubic feet; cargo, 9.3 (9.5 with split-folding rear seat). Maximum cargo space with back
seat folded: 25.7 cu. ft.

Turning diameter is a remarkably tight 30.8 feet.

• How thirsty?
Rated 29 miles per USgallon in town, 35 highway, 31 combined.

Test car registered 31 mpg in tame suburban driving.

Uses regular. Holds 11.1 gallons.

• Overall:  Handy, but vaguely unpleasant.