The Cube is a few inches narrower than its boxy competitors, but it has plenty of headroom. Proving again that dimensions don't tell the whole story, the Cube's front seat could use a little more legroom for tall drivers, despite a slight advantage by the numbers alone. On the flipside, the backseat specs show a 2- to 3-inch legroom deficit, but sliding the seat back on its track gave me enough legroom, and the 60/40-split backrests have a generous amount of recline.

No matter where you sit, the tall windows and narrow pillars make for an open feeling and good visibility. The Krom's standard backup camera is a big plus.

In terms of cargo-carrying, the Cube has pros and cons. The pros include a maximum cargo volume of 58.1 cubic feet — which is larger than the Soul's (53.4 cubic feet) but smaller than the xB's (69.9 cubic feet). One of the cons is that its cargo volume behind the backseat is roughly half that of the other two models, at 11.4 cubic feet. A backseat that slides fore and aft definitely lends versatility, though. The final shortfall is a rear swing gate in lieu of a conventional liftgate. It requires more clearance behind the vehicle, so backing too close to a wall or a parked car can pose a problem.

For what it's worth, things could be worse. Historically, Japanese imports with swing gates have typically opened toward the curb, forcing you to load cargo from the street. The Cube's opens toward the street.