WEE, BUT WELL-VERSED.

Byline: BOB GRITZINGER

Nissan says its 2007 Versa subcompact has nearly the same cabin space as the company's high-end Infiniti Q45 sedan. But Nissan might want to keep that little ditty under its corporate hat, because interior room isn't the only thing this diminutive five-door hatch has over the Infiniti flagship.

If you're measuring on pure appointments, sure the Q45, with its voice-recognition interface, navigation system, leather interior and V8 power, trumps anything the wee Versa can offer. But if you're looking at affordability, fuel economy, practicality and functionality, Versa wins hands down. Put another way, for a savings of $40,000 or so, we'll be happy to use a folding map or stop to ask for directions-especially if gasoline heads for $3 a gallon or up.

The Versa is well-versed for short errands, people and grocery hauling, and it is nimble in commuter traffic. Kids and adults alike find scrambling in and out of the front and rear seats easy via the gaping wide door openings. Once inside, even with the driver and front passenger seats pushed most of the way back, our back-seat passengers never complained of lack of legroom. And we still had 16.9 cubic feet of space out back under the hatch for a reasonable load of cargo.

The car can get buzzy, but shifting quickly through ...