The era of basic transportation is coming to a close, with the 2025 Nissan Versa standing alone as the market’s sole subcompact sedan. Its chief rival, the Mitsubishi Mirage, has bowed out after 2024, leaving Nissan’s smallest four-door as the only sub-$20,000 car currently on sale. The Versa most recently received major updates for 2023 and carries over into 2025 with minor tweaks. The closest competitors to a new Nissan Versa are certified preowned used cars as well as base-model Nissan Sentra or Toyota Corolla sedans.
What’s New
- Standard LED headlights
- Standard Nissan Maintenance Care coverage with three oil changes for two years or 24,000 miles
What We Think
Very few new cars today have the 2025 Nissan Versa’s simplicity and honest feel. With the discontinuation of the Mitsubishi Mirage, this is the only subcompact sedan left. Fortunately, it’s a decent car with good fuel economy and a large trunk.
As an economy car, the Versa suffers from road and powertrain harshness. Sluggish acceleration is yet another weak point. Thankfully, the CVT assists with smooth power delivery. Nissan adds standard LED headlights for 2025, but CarPlay and Android Auto continue to be reserved for higher trim levels. Thankfully, it doesn’t cost much to upgrade to one of the Versa’s higher trims. Still, we don’t blame you for choosing the humble Versa S, which both starts under $20,000 and comes equipped with a five-speed manual transmission.
Performance and MPGs
Every 2025 Nissan Versa comes with a naturally aspirated 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine developing 122 hp and 114 lb-ft of torque. A five-speed manual transmission is standard for the Versa S, while a CVT automatic is available as an upgrade to that base trim. The higher-level Versa SV and SR come standard with the CVT. In the pre-refresh 2020 Versa SR, we managed a 0–60-mph sprint in just 9.7 seconds. After the Versa’s 2023 model year updates, the best acceleration we could muster in the SR model was 10.0 seconds.
Fuel economy for the manual 2025 Nissan Versa is rated at 27/35 mpg city/highway. Driving range totals 324 miles. Models with the CVT are a lot more efficient at 32/40 mpg with 378 miles of range. Those Versa CVT numbers are just OK compared to quicker compacts like the Corolla and Civic, but those models are more expensive.
Safety Ratings and Features
IIHS hasn’t done its full battery of tests on the Nissan Versa, but for 2024 the subcompact sedan received Good scores for the original moderate front overlap test and original side crash test. NHTSA awarded five stars overall with four stars for frontal crash, five stars for side crash, and four stars for rollover.
Standard safety features include lane departure warning, automatic high-beams, and automatic emergency braking. Base models also receive rear automatic emergency braking. Stepping up to the Versa SV adds blind-spot and rear cross-traffic monitoring and a driver focus monitor. Adaptive cruise control is standard on the SR top trim level. For 2025, LED headlights are standard on all Versa sedans.
Cargo Space and Interior Room
Without other subcompact sedans for comparison, the Nissan Versa instead serves as a smaller alternative to the range of compact cars currently available. Rear-seat legroom isn’t a strong point, but cargo space compares favorably to the Toyota and Mazda 3.
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