B-segment sedans are still the choice of many when it comes to family cars. And in Malaysia, the choices for B-segment sedans are Honda City, Proton Persona, Toyota Vios, or Nissan Almera.

Among these choices, which is the best option, you might wonder? A criterion for some of us is downright fuel efficiency or cost of purchase. But what about practicality? What about interior space?

Well, in this article we will talking about that and only that – Which of the B-segment saloons is the most spacious? Did you get the most bang for your buck? Or should you trade in your car for a more spacious one?

Headroom – Vios and Persona have the best headroom

Let’s begin with head room. There’s not much of a difference here between the B-segment saloons, but if you’re really curious, the Toyota Vios offers the most headroom in the first-row at 980 mm (measured from the seat base to the roof).

The seat has also been adjusted to its lowest position when measured.

What about the second-row? Well, the Proton Persona snatches first place here with a 930 mm headroom (measured from seat base to roof).

The Honda City and Nissan Almera aren’t exactly lacking behind in this department. The difference is in mere centimetres only.

Legroom – A tie between Nissan Almera and Toyota Vios 

Now, let’s move to legroom. Who wins here? How do we even judge this? Well, one way to look at this is by measuring the maximum legroom offered in both the first and second row of each car.

This means the maximum legroom for the first row is measured when the seats are pushed furthest back, and the maximum legroom for the second row is measured when the first-row seats are pushed furthest forward.

Which car has the maximum legroom for the first row? Well, it’s the Toyota Vios with a 380 mm maximum leg room in the first row.

What about the maximum legroom in the second row? The Honda City shines here with a maximum legroom of 500 mm. Very spacious.

But you might be thinking, maximum legroom isn’t the best way to compare these cars. We aren’t exactly sliding our front seats to the upmost front or furthest back in normal daily use.

And you’re right. But we wanted to see how much space flexibility was offered in these cars (should you want to conduct other activities in the car besides driving).

To simulate “normal use” we set a legroom of 250 mm in the front and measure the legroom in the second row. We call this the "normal legroom".

The results? It’s a tie between the Nissan Almera and Toyota Vios at 300 mm (measured from the seat edge to the back of the front seat), or in our very own Wapcar unit of measurement, 2 tennis balls.

Boot space – Honda City has the biggest trunk

We’re only going with the listed boot space for these cars, and the Honda City easily leads the segment with a 519-litre boot space, followed by the Proton Persona with 510 litres.

The Toyota Vios records 506 litres which really isn’t that much different than the Proton Persona. The Nissan Almera on the other hand, has the smallest boot space of 482 litres only.

All rear seats are foldable and offer good practicality. If there’s any points that we’ll have to knock off, it’s the rather high boot opening of the Proton Persona that will require you to lift your items higher.

The Proton Persona and Nissan Almera offer the deepest boots (1,050 mm and 1,060 mm respectively).

Conclusion

So, there you have it. If it’s headroom you’re looking for, the Toyota Vios and Proton Persona are the best for that. If it’s legroom, it’s a tie between the Nissan Almera and Toyota Vios.

And if you just want a massive boot space, the Honda City is your best bet. To be frank, the cabin space difference is not that much and is only noticeable if you pay attention. There are still other factors to decide which car is best for you like the fuel consumption and the purchase and servicing cost.

This post is made in partnership with Carsome.my.

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Ratings: 2021 Toyota Vios 1.5L G - The best value for money B-segment sedan?

Ratings: 2020 Honda City 1.5 L V - No AEB, but fuel efficient and practical

Ratings: 2019 Proton Persona 1.6L Premium - Excellent score in purchase and cost