Side curtain airbags not available?

[arothman]

My fiancee and I were just about to go get her a Yaris with Power Package. I read on the Consumer Reports site that the side curtain airbags were a significant improvement to the Yaris' otherwise poor side impact safety. Basically the difference between "you'll crack a rib" and "you'll be toast".

So we asked the dealer about pricing for a Yaris sedan with the airbags, and he said "there aren't any". That was about it... apparently there aren't any Yaris sedans in the entire USA with the side airbags. Is this totally crazy or is it really possible that Toyota advertises a safety feature that they don't actually manufacture and sell?

I don't think either of us would feel all that safe driving a car that's only rated 3 out of 5 on side crash, but if it's not an option I'm not sure what the next step is in the search for a new car... we really like the Yaris.

Any thoughts?

Drew
:iono:

[TOOL]

Go to Toyotas website and go to Yaris specs, i know it said Side Curtain airbags are availble for the sedans but not the LB's.

But if you have no luck finding a Yaris with them, the Fit has them standard and the Honda Fit is very similar to the Yaris.

[tacsnier]

yea thats definately a con for the Yaris

[churp]

They are an option, unles they cahnged it in the last month or so. Dealer should be able to order one equiped, but may take several months!!!!

[arothman]

Yeah, the website says the Yaris has them as an available option, but the guy at the dealership did a network search and said they simply don't have any made. Seems weird that they wouldn't make enough cars with the airbags that there aren't any at all in the whole country. Her current car isn't going to pass an e-check or possibly even last until her birthday next month, so we can't really wait around for the Yaris with the goods.

Now we're looking into a Civic Sedan. She doesn't really like the Fit as much as the Yaris - and she's not all that gung ho about getting a Civic, since I already have the Civic Coupe. :) But rear safety is a concern because there will probably be kids in the car at some point... so I suppose safety trumps really liking the car best.

[petesimac]

It's odd; my lb came with the side airbags and curtain airbags -- it was a prerequisite for my purchase; it's eventually going to be one of my kids' car, and I wanted it to be as safe as possible. It's probably a regional thing like cruise for the LB only in the southeast and no LBs with power package in Chicago/new england. Think about a Versa if you can't get the Yaris with curtain airbags; they're standard.

[PetersRedYaris]

My wife has an 06' Civic... I love my Yaris ,but, the Civic is a far superior car in every way, even mileage.

[RogueYaris]

No side curtain airbags for the LB? Um, what's this $600+ option on my window sticker for then?

[arothman]

Yeah, the dealer said the side airbags aren't an option for our region (!) but they apparently aren't available right now in the regions where they should be an option either. It's amazing that they're having such trouble keeping up with demand.

[RodimusPrime]

That's rediculous. Why wouldn't there be a hand full in each region of the country. Would make sense wouldn't it? Atleast then you can have one moved to your dealer of choice. Still thougn, I wouldn't buy a Yaris without side airbags, especialy with the "skill" of drivers in my area.

[arothman]

As I'm poking around in this forum, it appears to be a common issue I guess. Toyota's chosen certain options to only be available in certain regions. Apparently Southern Californians don't need fog lights, and Clevelanders don't need to survive a side impact. :)

[RodimusPrime]

lol.

Wouldn't it be a better strategy to have a couple of every level of the yaris? I mean, If you can offer the ability to test drive a base to a fully equiped LB I'm sure you'll end up selling more "expensive" models to those in the market for a Yaris. Unless of course you have a specific level of interest.

I don't know why they just didn't make them standard equipment.

[adamschneider]

For the record, I think I had the option to get one with the side airbags here in the Pacific NW.

[501]

For the record, I think I had the option to get one with the side airbags here in the Pacific NW.


yes in the NW side airbags are an option on both LB and sedan, but require the power package

[static808]

if you really like the yaris, place an order and wait for one. the side airbags arent on option here in SoCal, but we knew of two dealerships that had the authority to place orders directly to toyota japan and have our car made to our specifications. but you must make sure that the dealership has this ordering authority, and isnt simply just "preferencing" your car, meaning if one happens to come by your region with MOST of the options you like, they'll get it for you. i remember some sales managers asking me about a second color choice, and i was like, "why? arent they gonna build my car with the color of my choice??" that when we left that dealership and went to the ones who knew what they were doing. from the day we ordered, we recieved updates about build completion, shipping dates, and arrival times. it took 14 weeks overall, but we got exactly what we wanted. was it worth it for us?? HELLS YEAH! a custom car made for us, probably one of a handful of yarii in SoCal with the side airbags. but then again, everyones situation is different, and some people dont have the luxury of waiting 3-4 months for their car. hope this helps a bit...

--B

[arothman]

Sadly we don't have the luxury of waiting, otherwise we would. Her birthday's coming up and she has to get an e-check. The car she's got now won't pass it, and isn't worth the price of fixing... in fact, it may even die before then anyway. So we have to get a new car asap, and waiting for them to custom build a safe one just isn't in the cards. Oh well!

Hopefully we can get her something safe for under $300/mo somewhere...

[ItalianYaris]

this is interesting cause the Yaris here has 9 airbags!

[Astroman]

yes in the NW side airbags are an option on both LB and sedan, but require the power package

Not true. I don't have the power package and I have side airbags. :smile:

[static808]

Sadly we don't have the luxury of waiting, otherwise we would. Her birthday's coming up and she has to get an e-check. The car she's got now won't pass it, and isn't worth the price of fixing... in fact, it may even die before then anyway. So we have to get a new car asap, and waiting for them to custom build a safe one just isn't in the cards. Oh well!

Hopefully we can get her something safe for under $300/mo somewhere...

have you considered a fit?? all safety stuff standard. just make sure you get stick, cuz their 5-spd auto wasnt designed well and gets only 27 mpg. good luck shopping!

--B