Don’t look at that Toyota badge at the Yaris iA’s front because the car was not a real Toyota; it was a three-box sedan version for the Mazda 2.
Toyota didn’t want to lose the small-sedan segment on the North American market and, since its brand awareness was much bigger than Mazda’s, the two Japanese carmakers cut a deal. Mazda produced the vehicles in its factories from Mexico, and Toyota sold them as Toyota and Scions on the American market. Mazda didn’t want to make its 2 as a sedan.

The Yaris iA took as many body panels as it could from its step-sister, the 2. But the over-sized front bumper with a huge grille at the front was specific for a Toyota model. It resembled the Sequoia, without the horizontal slats. Its door panels were carried over from the 2 hatchback. In the rear, there was an added trunk connected behind the sloped rear window.

Inside, the Yaris iA took the dashboard from a 2 with round air vents and a small screen for the infotainment system stuck on top of the panel. The instrument cluster was divided into three parts, with the speedometer that took the center stage flanked by two LCDs for the on-board computer and the tachometer.

Under the hood, Mazda installed its 1.5-liter gasoline engine and paired it as standard to a 6-speed manual, while a 6-speed automatic was on the options list.