Part of what's annoying me, is I thought I had a few more years in my old car to decide whether I wanted to be all practical or whether I wanted the fun car that I've dreamed of for years and years. Now I have to make the decision in a few days, and I'm a little grumpy about it. However, conversations with Darren, the state of the auto industry and bank interests rates actually make this a pretty good time to be buying a car, so at least something is in my favour. Although, knowing my luck, I will do a bunch of research, fall in love with a new car and find out that the insurance company wants to repair my vehicle. It's not too likely - I mean who would want to make this level of repair on a 12 year old car? Probably no one - at any rate, the adjustor told me to start shopping. so off we go.
So what are the contenders? What are my criteria?
Well, I want something more fuel efficient than my Camry - not that fuel efficiency is a huge deal given I drive 5km to work, however I still would prefer to avoid a gas guzzler.
I don't want something big - I'm not a fan of SUVs, minivans, or super large sedans. Plus I don't think we could afford one anyway. I don't like sitting so high up, I tend to get car sick even driving these things and I hate how unwieldy they feel and how hard they are to maneuver. They work well for many people, which is terrific, but they are not a good fit for me.
I'd like a hatchback, one thing I have always hated about my Camry is that there is this teeny pass through spot in the back from the truck to the main part of the car. It means you can fit a Billy Bookcase from IKEA in the back - maybe two, but that's about it. I'd like a car where when the seats are folded down I can actually use the space. It's super annoying to have a massive trunk that you can't fit anything into.
So the contenders are:
1. Mini Cooper - it's small, it's adorable, it's good on gas, it's a hatchback. did I mention it was adorable? I've wanted one of these for years and have never managed to make it work. The cons? It probably has a small trunk space and it's a 2-door car. Which could really suck with Lochlan. Or it might now. I just don't know. Then again the coolness and the cuteness and the joy might supercede all that. However I've never driven one. So I have a test drive scheduled for tonight, so we'll check it out and see. if I hate the drive, that answers that question.
2. Toyota Hybrid - Prius or Camry Hybrid. The pros? REALLY fuel efficient, and perfect for the daily driving I do. They both have decent trunk sizes and the Prius is a hatchback, this might rule out the Camry. Plus the Camry doesn't come in any really nice colours. They're all very understated and beige. Not really a lot of fun. These cars would have the space I need, the fuel efficiency I want and would likely be fine for those big trips. They have 4 doors. etc etc. So very practical. The Cons? It's not a Mini Cooper. Again, I really need to do some test drives and see how things shake out.
3. Toyota Matrix - these are almost as cute as the Mini's, a bit cheaper, but not as fuel efficient. They also have four doors, hatchback and are a little bigger so the storage room is dealt with. The pros? Not that great fuel efficiency and it's not a Mini Cooper.
Hmmm. are we sensing a theme here?
So the plan is to test drive the Mini tonight, then test drive a Prius, Camry Hybrid and a Matrix and see which one I like the best.
Then the insurance company will call and tell me they're going to fix my old car :P
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Oh, I would love a Mini! But I can't imagine dealing with a car seat in a two door car! I have a (2005) Prius, which I like a lot. It's not exciting, but it has been reliable and, obviosly, fuel efficient. Like any car, I've got some complaints about it. Adam and I both hate the traction control system which cuts power to the wheels if it thinks it's slipping and refuses to let them try spinning at all. We've had several incidents on snowy-- but not too terrible-- roads where it simply refused to try to move. It has also done this on gravel and it will sometimes kick in and make the car hesitate as I pull out into traffic. This is a big problem! It's better with snow tires on, but not gone. (Here's a link to othrs complaining about it:http://priuschat.com/forums/prius-modifications/12261-thinking-about-disconnecting-traction-control.html) Also, the backseat is small and Finn's feet hit the back of my seat in his carseat. And, finally, I don't like having a hatchback! I don't like having all of the contents of my trunk visible and I really worry about stuff flying around in the car if we had an accident. But, yeah, there is more cargo room.
Anyway, maybe those thoughts are useful. Happy car hunting!
Posted by: Meredith | April 17, 2009 at 04:03 AM
No problem-- I'm always happy to butt in with opinions! (And, just to be clear, it's not that I object to traction control in general, just that the Prius' seems to work very poorly, which is a problem in cold climates like ours. Oh, and you don't get great gas mileage when it's below about 40 degrees too- it drops by about 10-15 mpg because the battery doesn't work as efficiently.)
No progress on the plane decision. Adam hasn't called the father and I haven't said yes or no. I think that they're planning to fly over our house (right by the airport) and then up the lake to the playground. I'm more scared of take off and landing-- how high they go doesn't matter so much to me (in fact, higher seems safer to a point since you have more time to recover from problems...but what do I know?) I told Adam that I was going to call my mom and ask her-- she's well known for always being right. He just rolled his eyes.
Posted by: Meredith | April 17, 2009 at 11:50 AM