The brakes are excellent. We really stood on them a few times, and they didn't allow the car to dart or weave while they sharply brought down the speed.
The five-speed manual gearbox worked well. Out on the freeway, 80 miles per hour doesn't feel like 80, always a good sign, especially for a compact car. The tachometer shows 3500 rpm at that speed, and it's not in the least bit buzzy. It feels long-legged for such a small car.
There's plenty of oomph in the four-cylinder engine, which makes 138 horsepower, nearly matching the Sentra. Our test model had the five-speed, and the engine revved right up to the redline of 6500 rpm, and liked it. It also accelerates away at low rpm in a higher gear, with 136 pound-feet of torque. As with many vehicles nowadays, the throttle is overly sensitive at tip-in; with the manual transmission, it requires a deft touch with the throttle to pull out from a standstill without giving it more gas than it needs.
Fuel economy using the new 2008 EPA standards is 24/33 mpg City/Highway with the manual gearbox, 25/33 mpg with the automatic. Next Page