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Buying a new car

Sirkickyass said:
Test drove a ton of cars today. Eliminated most of the cheaper options and was able to talk myself into buying a car in the $30k range. Some of my most expensive options (like the A4) I test-drove and determined the luxury delta wasn't so large that I could mentally justify paying an extra $10k for it.

The favorites are presently the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and the Mazda MX-5 Miata. Two totally different kinds of cars I know.

Still in contention are the Buick Regal and the Chevy Camaro, both of which I haven't had a chance to test drive. I suspect the TSX would be here as well but I was told (by the dealer) that they're largely unavailable presently because of the Japanese Tsunami/Earthquake and I'd have to wait 4-5 months.

I'm also going to give the Jetta Turbo Diesel another shot because the salesman was hilarious. He had a full demonstration of trying to show how well built the car was by opening the driver side door and putting his full weight on the door. He pulled out a copy of the Guinness Book of World Records to show me it was more fuel efficient than any hybrid. And he took me to an abandoned parking lot and had me do donuts in the parking lot as fast as I could to demonstrate the stability control features. A good enough time that it deserves continued consideration.
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Very nice. I would have thought you would be one of the guys in this commercial.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3snyXTNmFm8

JK, I wouldn't want to throw down 80 G's for the A8 even if I was a well off lawyer. Anyway, I hope you find something that fits your needs.
 
I have a buddy that bought the VW and absolutely loves it. He mentioned a lot of the things that your salesman brought up. His comments about it were more geared towards how steady, solid, and safe the car felt as opposed to his previous vehicles (Sonata and Fusion). With the increased fuel efficiency I think it's something I would certainly consider next time I am shopping. The major drawback is just the price of diesel these days. $4.05 a gallon in Utah, and I am sure more in the Bay Area.
 
Has anyone drove the Nissan Juke? That looks like a fun car to drive and looks sick.

2010-Nissan-Juke-014.jpg


nissan-juke-custom.jpg
 
I bought a 2011 Hyundai Sonata five months ago after comparing a lot of others. Best car I've ever driven and most bang for the buck. Can't speak for the hybrid model or the Genesis, but the Sonata won a few car of the year awards. I know, I know...COY is really unimportant. What matters is how many championships has it won;-) Anyway, I'm getting 30 mpg driving mostly freeway miles. I didn't really see the necessity of shelling out extra for a hybrid. Hyundai's are still priced a bit lower than Toyotas and Hondas so you could upgrade to leather seats & sunroof for the same price as a more basic Accord, for example.
 
GlassEater said:
I bought a 2011 Hyundai Sonata five months ago after comparing a lot of others. Best car I've ever driven and most bang for the buck. Can't speak for the hybrid model or the Genesis, but the Sonata won a few car of the year awards. I know, I know...COY is really unimportant. What matters is how many championships has it won;-) Anyway, I'm getting 30 mpg driving mostly freeway miles. I didn't really see the necessity of shelling out extra for a hybrid. Hyundai's are still priced a bit lower than Toyotas and Hondas so you could upgrade to leather seats & sunroof for the same price as a more basic Accord, for example.
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This.

And Archie, that car is all too fitting for you.
 
Archie Moses said:
My take on it is it would be really cool or really dumb.
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I have seen a couple of these and they can be tricked out pretty nicely. I have been thinking about an AWD one myself. I drove one and it was a little tight for a taller gent (not to mention full-figured) but it was a fun zippy little car. Backseat is for 2 moderately reasonable-sized adults (much over 5'10" and you will have your knees in your nose). I could probably get my 3 youngest kids in there (16, 14, and 9 years old). But for me going back and forth to work and such I think it would be a lot of fun.
 
LogGrad98 said:
I have seen a couple of these and they can be tricked out pretty nicely. I have been thinking about an AWD one myself. I drove one and it was a little tight for a taller gent (not to mention full-figured) but it was a fun zippy little car. Backseat is for 2 moderately reasonable-sized adults (much over 5'10" and you will have your knees in your nose). I could probably get my 3 youngest kids in there (16, 14, and 9 years old). But for me going back and forth to work and such I think it would be a lot of fun.
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So, being 6'5", I'd wouldn't fit comfortably in the front seat with it all the way back, do you think? I don't care about having people in the back. I have no kids, friends, and my dog doesn't like ridding in cars.
 
Sirkickyass said:
Test drove a ton of cars today. Eliminated most of the cheaper options and was able to talk myself into buying a car in the $30k range. Some of my most expensive options (like the A4) I test-drove and determined the luxury delta wasn't so large that I could mentally justify paying an extra $10k for it.

The favorites are presently the Hyundai Sonata Hybrid and the Mazda MX-5 Miata. Two totally different kinds of cars I know.

Still in contention are the Buick Regal and the Chevy Camaro, both of which I haven't had a chance to test drive. I suspect the TSX would be here as well but I was told (by the dealer) that they're largely unavailable presently because of the Japanese Tsunami/Earthquake and I'd have to wait 4-5 months.

I'm also going to give the Jetta Turbo Diesel another shot because the salesman was hilarious. He had a full demonstration of trying to show how well built the car was by opening the driver side door and putting his full weight on the door. He pulled out a copy of the Guinness Book of World Records to show me it was more fuel efficient than any hybrid. And he took me to an abandoned parking lot and had me do donuts in the parking lot as fast as I could to demonstrate the stability control features. A good enough time that it deserves continued consideration.
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Why not be like Hayward and check out the Accord?

And remember, the salesman is a snake and NOT your friend. I did all my negotiating online and got the best price within 500 miles of where I live. I didn't have to deal with those snakes in person, but next time I'd like to try because I'd had a folder with all this stuff in it where I could have proved those snakes wrong with every garbage lie they told.

I went to one dealer and they tried to charge me a $218 prep fee....to take the plastic covers off and wash the car? LOL It's my fault for not asking, because I saw the car online and called up the salesman, and I knew I should have called him back and asked about any bogus charges, luckily another dealer in that area (I was out of state) had one without that bogus fee fee, so I walked away from that crap.
 
Archie Moses said:
So, being 6'5", I'd wouldn't fit comfortably in the front seat with it all the way back, do you think? I don't care about having people in the back. I have no kids, friends, and my dog doesn't like ridding in cars.
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You are about 2 inches taller than me, so it would be a pretty tight fit. The seat does seem to go back farther than I expected but you would be squeezed in there pretty good. It has a little more leg room than my Prius I thought. For me though the width is the bigger issue. 6'3" and 275 lbs is a pretty big package for that car.
 
Kicky,

This is totally out of the box. I just visited my Dad who for some odd reason bought a Toyota Sienna van. He claimed his girlfriend has too many shoes that they haul back and forth to Florida.

Anyways, we went on about a 20 minute drive to a restaurant. I sat in the back in my own seat, pearlette in the other back seat. Goodness gracious, I was asleep at mile marker 3. The seat fully reclines and there is a enough leg room for a shooting guard. I was almost completely horizontal with my personal cooling system blasting air on my face. It was like riding in a lear jet.

Pearlette observed that you could put a camping toilet in the back if you removed the third seat. You could literally live in this thing. To top it off it was white. Perhaps the most uncool vehicle in modern history, but easily the most functional piece of machinery I have ever been in.

I am thinking this would totally blow everybody's mind if you rolled up at work in one of these babies.
 
The Pearl said:
Kicky,

This is totally out of the box. I just visited my Dad who for some odd reason bought a Toyota Sienna van. He claimed his girlfriend has too many shoes that they haul back and forth to Florida.

Anyways, we went on about a 20 minute drive to a restaurant. I sat in the back in my own seat, pearlette in the other back seat. Goodness gracious, I was asleep at mile marker 3. The seat fully reclines and there is a enough leg room for a shooting guard. I was almost completely horizontal with my personal cooling system blasting air on my face. It was like riding in a lear jet.

Pearlette observed that you could put a camping toilet in the back if you removed the third seat. You could literally live in this thing. To top it off it was white. Perhaps the most uncool vehicle in modern history, but easily the most functional piece of machinery I have ever been in.

I am thinking this would totally blow everybody's mind if you rolled up at work in one of these babies.
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What else would you expect from a sweater vest wearing investment banker?
 
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I love my Honda. My only complaint is the excessive road noise and that the A/C isn't as cool as it used to be before I tore up my radiator and my A/C lines when I ran over a deer...but that can be prevented by avoiding deer, presumably. Also, maybe the Accords are better with road noise than Civics...I dunno.
 
honz said:
I love my Honda. My only complaint is the excessive road noise and that the A/C isn't as cool as it used to be before I tore up my radiator and my A/C lines when I ran over a deer...but that can be prevented by avoiding deer, presumably. Also, maybe the Accords are better with road noise than Civics...I dunno.
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I owned an Accord before my Camry and the difference in noise and AC is the difference between Boozer and Taj Gibson.

My Accord didn't block any noise (had noisier belts), the AC wasn't nearly as cool, and it didn't turn as well as the Camry. Camry is so quiet, is way cool (cannot stand the AC on full blast for more than 3 mins even in the middle of July), and so much better than the Accord it isn't even funny.

I know of plenty of people who are happy with Honda. I'm not a big fan.

I do like toyota's and Acuras. If Toyota's quality went down the crapper (like the Jazz's season), then I'd shift my focus to Hyundai or maybe Ford (heard they're coming out with some good vehicles).
 
Dude, Prius. That is all. I just rolled 128k and I still haven't had a single problem.

Secondly, my F-150 pretty much dominates also. So, in short, buy an economical P.O.S. car that will make you look even more like a bitch than you already do, use the money that you saved buying said P.O.S. and buy a big truck. You've got the money, so don't give me any of that $$$ crap. You'll thank me.

Now pos rep me, bitte.
 
Thanks for the helpful advice and comments everyone. In case anyone was curious how this turned out, I purchased the Mazda MX-5 this weekend. I suspect I'm going to get a lot of Pacific Coast Highway driving time done with it.

mazda-mx-5-20th-ann-3.jpg
 
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