Yeah I own a new Ascent Hatch Manual, and I think its great. Its actually my First car but I have driven many cars as well. First thing is it is pretty fast for a N/A 1.8L 4 cyl, I always give 6 cyl older model commodores and N/A Lancer's a run for there money :D, It is very comfortable inside. Stock audio is pretty good for stock. Gearbox is smooth and strong. Only thing you would have to get used to is the clutch start thingy. You have to put the clutch all the way to the floor to start the car even in Neutral. Only bad thing I've found with this car is the lack of RCE outputs on stock headunit and some times my indicator sticks but thats about it. If I ever have a problem or Query, Toyota are happy to answer it ASAP, and there $120 for each Service for 3 years or 120,000k's is great. Sweet car, cheap service's :D P.S dont get the Toyota floor mats, the back ones are orsm, but the front ones look cool, but love to hold every drop of water that comes off your shoes in the rainy weather.