Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Location: San Ramon, Seattle, Anchorage, Reykjavik
2,254 posts, read 2,739,837 times
Reputation: 3203
Advertisements
Quote:
Originally Posted by TexasTony
any big city highway commute requires atleast v6 to keep up with moving traffic.
Are you kidding me Mr. Texas? Big cities like LA, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Chicago, Phoenix, Boston, etc? Look around. You'll see most of the cars around you are 4 cylinder cars as they are small and easy to park. Even in the Big D.
My son bought a 2016 Altima new last year for just under $20K. You can't touch anything else for that much. It's "full size", plenty of power and don't fall for CVT "issues." It's just fine.
Sure you can. I rent boring "F" class cars at Hertz for long work drives. Altima. Camry. Passat. Legacy. Sonata. Accord. 200. Malibu. Mazda6. Optima. At the base trim level, they're all $20K-ish out-the-door cars that get pretty good fuel economy and have adequate power. It's not like anyone on the planet pays sticker price. You can load them up with fancy trim levels and options to drive the price up to $30K+ but the basic transportation version of those cars comes in around $20K.
The Ford transmissions are more of a problem than I thought as I have a neighbor who is from the Detroit Metro and had a father who was a Ford executive. She is in her 60s and has had two transmission failures on a Focus, under warranty. She wanted a compact premium hatchback, since she does not want a large car, but her husband, also from Detroit, gave up and bought a Genesis as a daily driver after owning a succession of Ford/Lincoln products. I still would not trust the dual clutch transmissions in them, especially for a car that you want to keep long-term.
Another car that came to mind is the Buick Encore. It sits higher as a small crossover, has decent mileage and power, and is nicely equipped. It's cousin is a Chevrolet Trax, but the Buick seems to be a bit more comfortable from the two in which I have ridden. I was surprised that the small crossover would handle as well and be as comfortable as the Encore. New, prices are going to be around $20k starting, slightly less for the Chevrolet, so it's slightly above budget in that respect, but you may be able to negotiate or find a CPO since reliability is good. The Honda HR-V is a similar concept, based upon the Fit, but tends to have a higher residual value, but CPO would likely be around $20k.
If you can live with the Civic's styling, it's been a very good car for many generations. $17k is not a bad price on a new model, at all. So, in that respect, it could be hard to beat, but you would pay more for a hatch. However, if you want premium features, you could likely find a CPO Acura ILX, which is based upon a Civic for the same price or less, slightly less of a basic car in feel. An ILX also has optional front crash protection from 2016 onward, which made a safe car an IIHS Top Safety Pick + as opposed to just a Top Safety Pick. Seats are similar to the Civic, whereas the Fit sits a little higher as does the Soul and Encore.
__________________
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
I bought a Kia Forte Koup back in 2010 and I love that car.
__________________ ____________________________________________
My posts as a Mod will always be in red.
Be sure to review Terms of Service: TOS
And check this out: FAQ
Moderator: Relationships Forum / Hawaii Forum / Dogs / Pets / Current Events
There isn't a single new car out there that is underpowered for freeway driving.
This isn't true. Just off the top of my head, I can tell you a Prius is underpowered for freeway driving. Step on (floor, rather) the gas and not much happens.
If OP wants a car to feel comfortable merging with, a Prius would be a nightmare.
Are you kidding me Mr. Texas? Big cities like LA, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Chicago, Phoenix, Boston, etc? Look around. You'll see most of the cars around you are 4 cylinder cars as they are small and easy to park. Even in the Big D.
I mentioned V6 because the OP didn't want under powered economy boxes. Go read his comment before pointing the obvious. We all know 4 cylinders are economical and small and easy to park. Thanks for the great information no body knew about...
This isn't true. Just off the top of my head, I can tell you a Prius is underpowered for freeway driving. Step on (floor, rather) the gas and not much happens.
If OP wants a car to feel comfortable merging with, a Prius would be a nightmare.
(I'm not a Prius hater, btw.)
Yes imagine overtaking an 18 wheeler on a highway in Leaf, Yaris, Scion IQ, Chevy Spark or the Smart ForTwo. All these are 100 hp more or less. I once rented one of these cars and while driving next to the big rigs, the car wanted to get sucked under the trailers for some reason.. not fun at all
yeah its a real concern. plus the smaller guys don't feel as planted to the road. i haven't driven a fit but i believe from what i am reading its in the same class.
not sure why but i keep coming back to the civic and the mazda 3. im annoyed with the base civics radio system and some other features.
i have tried to haggle with the locals and it seems through the best deals i can find with factory 0 and .9% financing, the civic sedan is about $500 cheaper than the mazda overall with loan. the mazdas hatchback would probably cost me about $700 less than the civics hatch.
mazda has a better warranty. mileage numbers are a few less on city and highway although no clue what real numbers are like when it comes to all these ratings and me going so fast on the freeway runs. my mom will probably granny it
i like what the mazda is about from everything i have read, but for some reason my gut says to go with the honda for quality and resale value?
honestly i doubt a test drive would put me at ease between these cars but perhaps its time.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
