Car search - Criteria
I'm in the market for a new car right now. This seemed like as good a place as any to record my thoughts on the process...especially about cars I test drive.
I'm pretty open right now as far as what I'm looking for in a car. I can only think of five major criteria that the car must have:
(1) Midsize or wagon. Possibly a crossover, but it would have to be a crossover that looked a lot more like a wagon and a lot less like an SUV than the majority of crossovers I've seen out there. Traveling at holidays with the dog has been tight in my little Neon, and I can't imagine trying to use that car if we ever decide to add a kid to the family. It's time for more space. But it doesn't have to be huge...no way will it be an SUV or a minivan. Our thought is that if and when do go on a long trip with a family and need more space, we can rent a van. That makes a lot more sense to us than buying one, paying tons extra for the vehicle (plus the insurance and the gas), and then not needing it 99% of the time.
(1b) Has to be four door, but I'm not really counting this as a major criterion because all midsize cars and wagons are four door (or five).
(2) Must get as good or better gas mileage than my current car. This is turning out to be much easier than I thought it would be. Cars in the last couple of years have gotten so much more efficient!
(3) Due to the amount of driving I have to do, it needs to be late model and low mileage. So far, the late model used cars are nearly as expensive as the new cars. If that continues to be the case, we'll go with a new one, especially since loan terms and dealer incentives are better on a new car.
(4) It has to have a turn signal that can be used all the time. Wonder what I mean by that? Well, I'll tell ya. :) Keith's truck's one big flaw is that when you're on a road that is turning slightly in one direction, and you need to make an actual turn towards the other direction, your turn signal will not work. This is a major problem for me because I have to do this at least twice every day (once turning into my work parking lot, and once turning onto my street to get home). I've never driven a single other car that had this issue, so I'm hoping it's an isolated Ford Ranger thing. Or that if it was common in 2003, the manufacturers have realized how stupid it was and fixed it. But anyway, it is a really annoying problem (not to mention a safety issue!), and it is a deal breaker for me.
(5) I need to be able to sit close enough to reach the petals but far enough away that my arms aren't cramped up by the steering wheel. Being a short person with even shorter legs than one would expect for my height, this is something I have to look out for that doesn't affect most other people as much. It was a problem with some of the vehicles I test drove last time I bought a car.
Sounds simple enough. We'll see. So far the challenge has been just figuring out how to get to the dealerships when they're actually open to go test drive stuff. They certainly do not keep hours that make sense! Most of them close at 7 on weeknights and aren't open on Sundays. STUPID!
I'm pretty open right now as far as what I'm looking for in a car. I can only think of five major criteria that the car must have:
(1) Midsize or wagon. Possibly a crossover, but it would have to be a crossover that looked a lot more like a wagon and a lot less like an SUV than the majority of crossovers I've seen out there. Traveling at holidays with the dog has been tight in my little Neon, and I can't imagine trying to use that car if we ever decide to add a kid to the family. It's time for more space. But it doesn't have to be huge...no way will it be an SUV or a minivan. Our thought is that if and when do go on a long trip with a family and need more space, we can rent a van. That makes a lot more sense to us than buying one, paying tons extra for the vehicle (plus the insurance and the gas), and then not needing it 99% of the time.
(1b) Has to be four door, but I'm not really counting this as a major criterion because all midsize cars and wagons are four door (or five).
(2) Must get as good or better gas mileage than my current car. This is turning out to be much easier than I thought it would be. Cars in the last couple of years have gotten so much more efficient!
(3) Due to the amount of driving I have to do, it needs to be late model and low mileage. So far, the late model used cars are nearly as expensive as the new cars. If that continues to be the case, we'll go with a new one, especially since loan terms and dealer incentives are better on a new car.
(4) It has to have a turn signal that can be used all the time. Wonder what I mean by that? Well, I'll tell ya. :) Keith's truck's one big flaw is that when you're on a road that is turning slightly in one direction, and you need to make an actual turn towards the other direction, your turn signal will not work. This is a major problem for me because I have to do this at least twice every day (once turning into my work parking lot, and once turning onto my street to get home). I've never driven a single other car that had this issue, so I'm hoping it's an isolated Ford Ranger thing. Or that if it was common in 2003, the manufacturers have realized how stupid it was and fixed it. But anyway, it is a really annoying problem (not to mention a safety issue!), and it is a deal breaker for me.
(5) I need to be able to sit close enough to reach the petals but far enough away that my arms aren't cramped up by the steering wheel. Being a short person with even shorter legs than one would expect for my height, this is something I have to look out for that doesn't affect most other people as much. It was a problem with some of the vehicles I test drove last time I bought a car.
Sounds simple enough. We'll see. So far the challenge has been just figuring out how to get to the dealerships when they're actually open to go test drive stuff. They certainly do not keep hours that make sense! Most of them close at 7 on weeknights and aren't open on Sundays. STUPID!