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Hi,
I think you are mostly correct: the low gearing is frustrating, and the small hatch storage is limiting. They could have put the structural floor of the hatch about 6-8 inches lower -- which would have about doubled the volume of the storage (because the bottom would be a lot wider than the top is), and this would have helped the aerodynamics under the back of the car, too.
I'm 6'-4" and I love the upright seating -- I get all the legroom I need in the front and the back. And my headroom is fine, as well. I think there is plenty of power -- it is not as much as my 2002 Focus ZX-5 (2.0L 5-speed manual), but I only got 26-32mpg in that car; which is pretty poor, I think. The Cd of the Focus hatchback is 0.36 (IIRC) vs the 0.31 of the xA.
I had horrible problems with the Focus ZX-5: a tie-rod end failed at ~32K, I had to replace the steering box because it leaked fluid (no replaceable seals, apparently?) -- this cost $750! Then there were the 7 locations all over the body where the paint was flaking off exposing the bare metal! And the clutch master cylinder was leaking fluid -- all of this with 50K miles on the car...
If I was looking at cars right now, I would get a Honda Fit, or wait little while and get the Scion iQ, or the new Honda Insight. And if I'm rich enough, I'd get the new Prius...
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