The interior is well put together, with smooth sloping curved surfaces and a nice center-pillar control array for AC and heat. The stereo that I got was compatible with MP3 cd's and had a pretty good sound out of the stock speakers (4). The stick had a gated shift to it (automatic) and gives the illusion of a carbon-fiber inlay. Those inlays continue onto the door handles, which are smooth and big enough for a pack of cigs and a lighter. The hadles are plastic, as are the window handles (I had no power options), but the contruction is firm and I am a pretty clumsy oaf. If they were going to break, they would have by now.
The engine is punchy, and yet gets about 29 actual miles per gallon with some hard-core commuting (not just highway speeds). The stock ABS stops the car confidently and easily even on the wettest pavements, and the steering is stiff and slightly heavy for such a small car.
I am 6ft 1.5 inches tall and fit comfortably inside this car, granted with the seat at its furthest back position. My knees have a few inches clearance to the underside of the dash and the adjustable steering wheel fits my arm angle pretty well. The '05 did not have an armrest for your right arm, but somebody must have complained becaues the '06 do have them, though they are rather short and do not look like they should be part of the chair. It really looks like someone screwed them into the old style chairs. The fabric in the fleet models of the Aveo are kinda tacky, unless you are a European, as they have a sort of 1990 feel and color to them. The package I purchased had a much nicer fabric in light grey with a very subtle pattern, though. So you do not have to get a tacky car if you have a few grand more or can haggle the dealer down that much.
The seams of the body pannels are really thin, a good way to judge the construction of a vehicle. A Nissan Sentra would have almost invisible seams, but they also cost a lot more. Compared to the other cars, the Chevrolet (Daewoo) had the best overall build and fit.
The Focus did have more horses (133) than the other two cars and it did move pretty quick (after you ignore the 1 second delay). But having more power in a poorly built car is not a very pleasing thing. The car seemed to have very loose steering, slipping slightly before engaging and requiring only the slightest feather touch to move. This makes such small vehicles feel flimsy and out of control on the road.
I did fit fine in the car and the seats were a bit more comfortable than the Aveo. But the stereo sucked. Its sound was obviously cheap, and the CD only worked with normal disks. That's not a big deal, really, but the Chevy was cheaper and did sound better.
The headlights are obnoxiously large and angular on an otherwise uninventive body shape. They look like they should be on a Toyota Celica, not a Ford. You cannot accent a boring car with crazy headlights. At least the Aveo's headlights are appropriate to the size and shape of the vehicle's body. Ford also has a bulging edge design thing going that works ok on the sedan but looks ridiculous on the hatchback. Smoother lines would have worked better, but kudos to Ford for at least TRYING to be different, even if their design team could not pull off a cohesive look.
The seams are larger than on the Aveo, but are not that bad that you really notice. The colors kind of sucked, as they were all primaries and seemed really thin. The level of gloss was horrible, but it could just be that they do not wax them at the dealer. That seems really dumb. The Aveo had really thin paint on the inside pannels, like on the inside of the hatch door, but otherwise had a really deep gloss and nice color variety, including some pretty interesing hues like a copper metallic and a teal. Take an 8-color crayon box. Thats the colors for Ford. Boring and certainly not inovative.
Of course, that is my general impression of the Focus too. Boring and certainly not inovative. Costing more than the Aveo for certainly less quality is never a good deal, even with more horses.
This car is a bit more confusing to compare as it has MORE horses but LESS torque than the Aveo. The difference is only 3 in each case, but either way, you would think both numbers should be higher. Then again, they are putting out these numbers with a SMALLER engine, though it is only this by .1 Liters. Otherwise, the powerplants are very similar between this and the Aveo. Both DOHC, and both 16 valve. Power is even and zippy, much like the Aveo. But the electric power steering is a strange sensation to get used to. The difference is subtle but noticeable. The car weighs slightly less, so its ballance is about the same with the slightly smaller engine.
The body pannel seams are huge on this thing. You can easily slide a magic marker through the seams. If you stare at them from arms length you can see the subframe! This is like a small t-shirt on a fat man. Disgusting. This is like a gaping wound with bone visible... gross.
Also the headlights are freaking HUGE. They look like they should be on a Tacoma or a Camry. They do not look at all nice. Very odd. Very alien. The short 18" hood is ridiculous. Most of the motor is behind the windshield, which is narrower than the Aveo's. The rear hatch opens wider, however, but the car is shorter - dramatically shorter. You loose an inch pretty much in every interrior measurment compared to the Aveo: leg room, head-room, wheel base... all an inch or so shorter. The car looks so ridiculous that I am glad to own an Aveo - my car is pretty damn sporty and pleasant looking compared to the Yaris. Even the mirrors are smaller.
If you happen to perversely LIKE driving in a car that looks like an egg, then: Na-nu, na-nu! Enjoy! At least it isn't boring. It is just really freaking odd. The front fascia is so huge and bulgy it makes me hate the very concept of replacing a headlight. Of course, in an Aveo you have to remove 5 screws, the grill, and three bolts and the entire headlamp assembly to replace a bulb. But at least its simple to get to. On a Yaris, your bulbs are packed behind a whole mess of engine components.
The wheels are larger than the Aveo's, which does help the looks of the Yaris somewhat. But it would take more than bigger tires to improve the car to being something I could be proud to drive. In fact, I would be ashamed to be seen looking at a Yaris, let alone trying to climb in or out of one.
With the seat all of the way back, my knees still bump the underside of the dash. And the instrument cluster is off to the right, high up on the dash instead of behind the wheel. In addition, some idiot put different color lights in it, giving it a cheap and poorly designed look.
The dash and controls in general are typical of Toyota, though: perfection in ergonomics and style; sweeping curves and perfect seams make the dash seem to outclass the body. There is not much for ammenities, though, and the seats are hard and stiff and adjusting the seats feels like a lawn chair mechanically (though without the clicking noise).
All in all, a Toyota is a great car. This one is much like the Focus as far as design goes - the implements work better on the sedan, not the hatchback. The egg shape could have been broken up like the Itallian-designed Aveo, with a few lines and cuts on the side to give it a more sleek appearance, but Toyota was not going for looks here, that I can tell. For the money, the Aveo is still a better deal.