Hey! I just noticed this thread .. I have a small car!
I have a 2006 Yaris hatch, 3 door.
In answer to your questions..
- It's very fuel efficient. I get upwards of 600km from a 42l tank, driving to Canberra I got highway economy of 4.2L/100km and I usually get around 5.8-6.4L/100km .. That being said I do a mix of stop/start and highway driving and I thrash it just a tad, so if I drove more sensibly the fuel economy would be better still.
- Features wise .. It has like 3 glove boxes/storage compartments in the dash, a bazillion cup holders and little storage things everywhere! It's got CD/MP3 player, air con, powersteering, ABS, full size spare tyre, digital speedo and the other stuff that most new cars have. Ohh, and the rear seats fold totally flat so you have heaps of boot space! This let me fit 50+ blown up balloons in the back of my car for my friends 18th lol!
- It costs nothing to run! Mine's a year old today and I've had no problems with it! I've only had to pay for servicing and that's it!
If you're looking for a small car, a Yaris or Echo would be totally worth it! Plus they have 3/5 door varieties so you can get them to suit your needs.