Can't smell anything but new car right now.
I test drove cars today. A lot of cars. I landed at Baskin Robbins at the end of it and could still feel the world rumbling around me while I waited for my celebratory strawberry shake. Mmm...
I didn't even drive as many as were on my list, but that was sort of deliberate; I wasn't sure what size I wanted until I got in a compact model, and then I was able to eliminate all of the larger cars, plus some that were on the list in case I wasn't feeling any of the others.
The runners-up:
Volkswagen GTI: The power was fun, but I liked the Jetta more. Also, plaid. x_x
Nissan Versa: Ugh, I did not like this car at all. It was my first of the day, and I knew as soon as I sat down that it was a no. It seats really high, which is actually good but feels weird. It's uber-cheap for a reason; absolutley no frills included, down to any radio system at all. If I had a smaller budget, I would consider it, but you can get a lot more for not much more money. On the other hand, it was encouraging to be able to eliminate early.
Mazda 3: Kind of a fun and sporty car. The drive and handling were good, but not stand-out. The blue was preeeeeeeeeeeeeetty, and it has the largest glove compartment known to man, but the dashboard layout is kind of weird.
The finalists:
Hyundai Elantra: Very highly rated by Consumer Guide, great mileage, pretty good ride. The wheel felt loose, but so did it on the other finalist and pretty much everything I drove. They have an amazing warranty, all the "expected" features are included (like I kept telling my sales guys, my current car doesn't have cupholders, so I am not exactly demanding on that front), and there's a bunch of crazy deals now on pre-owned models; the Elantra didn't change much from 2008-2009, so I'm better off buying used. Both dealerships I went to were pimping pre-owned on me, one with annoying pushiness. Plus, they have the blue I want.
Honda Civic: Also very highly rated, with a smidge better mileage and a smoother ride. I thought there was some brake stickiness on the first one I drove, but the second one didn't have it. The first one was a hybrid, which was SO COOL AND GADGETY but probably not enough of a value upgrade over the standard to be worth the price tag, and my twenty year old car won't let me wait for the next generation of hybrids to come out. I liked the interface better than the Elantra. Seats and trunk space were comparable. Mega-crazy resale value. Overall, probably a "better" car, but more expensive and with less personality. I'm leaning towards the coupe to make it at least a little more fun.
The heartbreaker:
Volkswagen Jetta: Sigh. Sigh. I love this car. It was easily the most fun I had driving all day, with the most enthusiastic, non-pushy salesman who took time to go into all the features. Sitting in the car felt great, I enjoyed all of the tricks of engineering, and god dammit, it looks good and I've wanted one since high school. All I had to criticize was some braking funkiness, and the gas mileage as compared to its competitors, although the tank is larger. And they have a special "California Edition" now that gets you extras for cheap.
So why is this not on the top of my list? Because every other dealer's salesperson I spoke to about what other cars I was driving warned me to STAY AWAY from the VW, unless I was looking for a short-term lease (and the VW guy did hit that option hard). HEART VS HEAD OH THE DRAMA.
Sales tax in my broke-ass state goes up at the end of the month, so I need to make a decision soon and get this thing done. Now that I have it more narrowed down, I can look into the details that were unmanageable before. I will be very glad when it's all over.
I didn't even drive as many as were on my list, but that was sort of deliberate; I wasn't sure what size I wanted until I got in a compact model, and then I was able to eliminate all of the larger cars, plus some that were on the list in case I wasn't feeling any of the others.
The runners-up:
Volkswagen GTI: The power was fun, but I liked the Jetta more. Also, plaid. x_x
Nissan Versa: Ugh, I did not like this car at all. It was my first of the day, and I knew as soon as I sat down that it was a no. It seats really high, which is actually good but feels weird. It's uber-cheap for a reason; absolutley no frills included, down to any radio system at all. If I had a smaller budget, I would consider it, but you can get a lot more for not much more money. On the other hand, it was encouraging to be able to eliminate early.
Mazda 3: Kind of a fun and sporty car. The drive and handling were good, but not stand-out. The blue was preeeeeeeeeeeeeetty, and it has the largest glove compartment known to man, but the dashboard layout is kind of weird.
The finalists:
Hyundai Elantra: Very highly rated by Consumer Guide, great mileage, pretty good ride. The wheel felt loose, but so did it on the other finalist and pretty much everything I drove. They have an amazing warranty, all the "expected" features are included (like I kept telling my sales guys, my current car doesn't have cupholders, so I am not exactly demanding on that front), and there's a bunch of crazy deals now on pre-owned models; the Elantra didn't change much from 2008-2009, so I'm better off buying used. Both dealerships I went to were pimping pre-owned on me, one with annoying pushiness. Plus, they have the blue I want.
Honda Civic: Also very highly rated, with a smidge better mileage and a smoother ride. I thought there was some brake stickiness on the first one I drove, but the second one didn't have it. The first one was a hybrid, which was SO COOL AND GADGETY but probably not enough of a value upgrade over the standard to be worth the price tag, and my twenty year old car won't let me wait for the next generation of hybrids to come out. I liked the interface better than the Elantra. Seats and trunk space were comparable. Mega-crazy resale value. Overall, probably a "better" car, but more expensive and with less personality. I'm leaning towards the coupe to make it at least a little more fun.
The heartbreaker:
Volkswagen Jetta: Sigh. Sigh. I love this car. It was easily the most fun I had driving all day, with the most enthusiastic, non-pushy salesman who took time to go into all the features. Sitting in the car felt great, I enjoyed all of the tricks of engineering, and god dammit, it looks good and I've wanted one since high school. All I had to criticize was some braking funkiness, and the gas mileage as compared to its competitors, although the tank is larger. And they have a special "California Edition" now that gets you extras for cheap.
So why is this not on the top of my list? Because every other dealer's salesperson I spoke to about what other cars I was driving warned me to STAY AWAY from the VW, unless I was looking for a short-term lease (and the VW guy did hit that option hard). HEART VS HEAD OH THE DRAMA.
Sales tax in my broke-ass state goes up at the end of the month, so I need to make a decision soon and get this thing done. Now that I have it more narrowed down, I can look into the details that were unmanageable before. I will be very glad when it's all over.