Pittsburghers, What Car Do You Drive? (insurance, to buy, live in)

[BarqCider]

ill be a pgh'er in two days, so:

a) 2011 toyota venza AWD v6.

b) my 2008 accord was totaled two years ago the day after july 4th on my way to pay my dentist. i was ticketed for failing to pay fulltime and attention, however i tried to argue the kid was flying down the road way too fast. the kits old chevy pick up bounced off my car, took out a street light and ended at the end of the block. Luckily no civilian nor ourselves were hurt. I didnt know what happened until i saw the airbag dust lol. i was sad since i loved that car.

c) i think it can work in PGH. its not an suv, but its higher off than a car, has tons of room in the back especially if you have friends who are 6ft+. you dont need the v6 or awd, however i went with it because the price for it was hard to pass up on.

d) its a toyota. the engine found in the v6 has been around toyota trucks for a very long time. the 4 cylinder is a newer one so i dont know how well itll last. the car is based off the lexus RX, so imagine driving a lexus, bit less fancy but nicer in many ways.

[greg42]

a) 2000 Acura Integra LS 2-door
b) I replaced a 1989 version of same. Bought this one new in 2000. Was thinking about Civic at time but I like hatchbacks.
c) It's fine if you don't count the 5-speed stick. I've never gotten stuck in snow in this or any of the similar small front-drive cars I've had in 20 years of Pittsburgh driving. They've all been 5-speeds too. Hey, my original clutch lasted 164,000 miles so I guess for me it's not a big deal.
d) It's been a solid car for 13 years and 218,000 miles. Problem is, if you're buying a used one, it's pretty common for them to be modified, so, that's the main downside. Plus, the last model year is 2001, although a similar body style continued until 2006 or so as the RSX.

Japanese car made in Japan. Apparently that can still make a difference sometimes.

[Stijl Council]

a.) 10-year-old Mazda Protege5.

b.) My previous car was definitely on its last legs. We knew we wanted to get a reliable four-door hatchback we could pay cash for, so that pretty much meant a late-model (at the time) Protege or an older Toyota Matrix or Subaru Outback. We found a one-year-old "certified preowned" Mazda for an excellent price, so that's what we got. We didn't know we'd be moving at the time we bought the car, but we ended up here within the year.

c.) It's been a great car for us -- very, very reliable, decent cargo but small enough to parallel park easily -- but I don't think it's ideally suited for Pittsburgh. Our gas mileage is pretty lousy in the city and that's 95% of the driving we do. It takes an odd-sized tire that the better manufacturers don't make, and they're prone to sidewall bubbles with the potholes, so we've had to buy at least two tires almost every year despite the fact that our yearly miles driven is way below average. And it's not great in snow.

d.) They stopped making my car ten years ago, so at this point if you could find a Protege5 it'd probably have 100K miles. I expect to drive ours another eight or ten years, though, since it's in good shape with unusually low mileage for its age. If we were looking again, the car that replaced it (the Mazda 3) would be near the top of my list to look at.

[gg]

Originally Posted by trackstar13

Notice red pickup and SUV in picture lol

[sparrowmint]

a) 2006 Scion XB
b) Small yet still fits a lot of stuff in it. Good gas mileage.
c) Works fine. Bought it in Portland, so wasn't expecting to ever use it in snowy weather, but it works fine here. Pittsburgh winters are exaggerated. Gas mileage has taken a hit with the increase in traffic and style of roads around here, compared to where we bought it. Still better than a lot of vehicles though.
d) No, because they don't make them the same way anymore. They're overpriced gas hogs now. Maybe if you can get one with the old style that's still low miles. Ours hasn't needed a single repair yet, just new tires and the usual required maintenance.

[SlurmsMcKenzie]

A. 2002 Subaru Impreza Outback Sport
B. Small yet has plenty of cargo room and handles well.
C. Handles great in all weather, I made it up our unplowed back alley many times when no other vehicles could.
D. Yes, but I'm not sure how newer out backs fare. I'm unfortunately looking to upgrade to a newer forester due to family needs. But I will miss my outback.

[Goinback2011]

2012 Subaru Impreza - AWD - great in any kind of weather. Good gas mileage. Hatchback with nice cargo space (back seats fold down). It also has the worst car radio of all time.

[jea6321]

a. 99 integra / 05 nissan frontier

b. its a honda, cheap and easy to fix, great mpg / work truck. that is all

c. never had a problem with a fwd and snow tires, even living in the laurel highlands. / 4wd, ground clearance

d. either is a great vehicle. but dont expect great mpg on the frontier.

[I_Like_Spam]

I drive a 2008 Buick Lucerne with the V6, and have no complaints since I bought it in 2010. I find it has sufficient power and maneuverability for ordinary city driving around here, although it really hasn't been tested in the snow. It certainly provides a sufficiently soft ride since I got new tires.

I like Buicks, I like the way they look, and I liked the salesman Joe Bianco over at Crivelli's- who has unfortunately passed into his decedency since I made the purchase.

It was a step down from the 1995 Buick Roadmaster I owned for 10 years before that. At 4000 lbs. with a 350 V-8, it was the ideal vehicle for city driving.

[tabinekotaro]

a) 2012 VW Golf TDI (turbo diesel), black, manual transmission. I got it in August 2012 from Imports by Day in Monroeville.

b) I've been driving VW diesels for 13 years now. Fuel efficient (I average mid 40s on the highway, mid to upper 30s in the city, even with all the hills of PGH and WV), powerful (yay diesel torque!), sporty handling. The best combination of fun, power and efficiency I could find--it eats up hills and has awesome acceleration. I like small hatchbacks, and was replacing a New Beetle TDI, which was cute, but not so functional. I put a lot of miles on it (21K at 1 year), so I needed something that would run forever. It has lots of cargo room with the seats folded down, 4 doors for getting our 90-lb dog in and out, and the most grown up feeling interior of all its small car competitors. Fueling up with the trucks always generates interesting conversations with truckers. Oh, and if I look at it from the front I can kinda fool myself into thinking I drive a Scirocco.

c) It seems to. As I said, hills and quick acceleration (for the crazy highway merges) are no problem. Ever since I moved to hilly territory (first WV, now PGH), I have a set of snow tires I put on each winter. I'd still be leery of the most treacherous and steepest of hills, but for the most part it's fine in snow for a non-AWD car. There's also an automatic "hill hold" feature that keeps you from rolling backwards while doing the clutch-brake-gas dance while starting on a hill.

d) Yes--IF you're kind of geeky about your car and very proactive with maintenance. I wasn't always, and I learned the hard way that TDIs need attention and don't hold up well under neglect. Each generation also has its quirks, strengths, and pitfalls. TDI owners tend to be dorkily passionate, with several online communities devoted to the cars. So if you're into the whole diesel experience, can keep up with the maintenance schedule (though with 10,000 mile oil change intervals, it's a breeze, in the beginning anyway), and don't mind doing some research on your car's unique maintenance tendencies, then, yes, absolutely! You'll be rewarded with a car that you can drive like an autobahn burner and still get 40 MPG. But if you just want an appliance-type car you don't have to think about, then, maybe it's not the best choice. And there's nothing wrong with that!