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I drive an older, 5-speed, manual transmission Honda. It has a low wheel base, and while the engine is not very powerful, I have as of yet to find a car that meets it in all categories: fuel efficiency, ease-of-handling on multiple road conditions, and durability. I will likely drive my car longer than I will last. I do not like automatic transmissions. If that makes me old-fashioned, then so be it.
I agree with you entirely, except my preference is the Mk4 Golf TDI. Two of them, in fact, both with manual transmissions, both with moderate upgrades, one for work and one for everything else.
When you have a Labrador Retriever having a car isn't very practical. Same goes for any large canine.
We have two dogs, both between 50-60lbs each, and have no trouble using any of our cars for anything with them. They just ride in the back seat together. There are plenty of SUV's in my family where I can borrow one whenever I want but have not needed to in the past 5 years.
Not a SUV but we were assigned a Toyota Sienna minivan by the rental company on a recent trip. I found it difficult to keep an awareness of where rear and adjacent lane lane traffic was. A lane change took extra care to make sure the way was clear. Drove that thing for 2 weeks. It's a very nice vehicle, and fast, but I never got comfortable with lane changes in traffic.
When I got home to my 2005 Chevy Malibu it was like I just instinctive knew my position in all the traffic around me. The car was so easy to drive.
American consumers have generally preferred the large and the solidly-planted, to the nimble and elfin. It’s true that our streets are wider, our parking-garages more voluminous, our gasoline cheaper and our personal girth more expansive – than in, say, pretty much anywhere else… so our “need” for larger vehicles is entirely understandable. But there’s a more visceral, emotional tinge here. American taste is for the tank, not for the go-cart. The go-cart feels insubstantial and downright irresponsible. The tank feels like proper and decent response of the stalwart individual to an unsettling world.
Being a zealot for extreme dissent, I find that even my Miata is too large and too lumbering. If I can’t push my vehicle up a decent slope, I feel awkward driving it. By my reckoning, there has to be an equitable relation between the vehicle, and the cargo. I’m just under 200 pounds. So why should I be driving a vehicle that weighs over 2000 pounds?
Subaru is by far the best compromise I've found. Great ground clearance, low center of gravity, and well above average handling and cornering. Nice cargo carrying capability and good fuel efficiency. No need to mention snow performance.
I like something low and lean. I'll never own a pickup, SUV, CUV, minivan, etc. as my only four-wheeler. I've owned 10 cars in my life and only one of them had more than two doors. The main thing, perhaps the only thing, that matters to me in a car is fun.
Oldtrader speaks the truth. I drive an older, 5-speed, manual transmission Honda. It has a low wheel base, and while the engine is not very powerful, I have as of yet to find a car that meets it in all categories: fuel efficiency, ease-of-handling on multiple road conditions, and durability. I will likely drive my car longer than I will last. I do not like automatic transmissions. If that makes me old-fashioned, then so be it.
Wheel base is long or short. It is a horizontal measurement, not a vertical one.
I mainly drive my SUV (X5 with sport suspension) but also drive my wife's sedan for around town when I feel like a quick trip zipping here and there. The traits the OP describes are usually true but not in every case. I love my SUV and the sedan doesn't compare, except when it comes to saving gas and being lighter. In short, there are nicer SUVs that handle well out there. I would never take the sedan on trips which are pretty frequent these days - not enjoyable whatsoever in comparison.
Location: The Land Mass Between NOLA and Mobile, AL
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AlaskaErik
Wheel base is long or short. It is a horizontal measurement, not a vertical one.
I meant the distance between the axle and the ground. There would be absolutely no use in putting on bigger rims than the tires themselves would accommodate. *That* is what I meant. And I do not like driving automatic transmissions. I will if I need to rent a car, but I prefer a manual transmission, and that is merely because I learned how to drive a manual.
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