This past weekend we made our first steps onto the dealerships.
It was pretty much what was expected. For one, it was pouring down rain intermittently. I can only imagine that people at dealerships in the rain are serious about buying a car.
The Toyotas we saw didn't excite us.
We haven't made it to a Honda one yet.
At Brother Yam's suggestion we test drove a Versa. It was pretty nice. The S model was missing an arm rest. Which threw me off. I like to rest my elbow on an armrest while driving. The 1.8V4 was quiet and sitting idling eerily quiet. Entering 35 though I had to stomp on the gas to get up to 75mph, but the tach never past 5000. rpm at speed was between 2500-3000 which is what we were used to in the van, keep in mind the van had a 3.4v6. The 5 speed automatic seemed to run pretty much in the 2000s even on side roads.
Something that impressed me was the turning radius: 8 parking spaces. roughly a circle twenty some feet on the outside. I think it was Volvo that introduced the idea in a concept car during the late 90s but they put triangular windows in the A column. Which the Versa had at the base of the A column. not a lot of added visibility but something a little different.
We also test drove a used Versa. Still had the 1.8 liter engine, but a different transmission. The CVT was weird because it just kept going. No hesitation as the gears changed because there wasn't a gear to change. Pickup was much better in the used SL than the brand spanking new S. I liked the feel of the leather steering wheel, the armrest in the front and back seat. The leg room in the back seat was comparable to AirMalta. The ride in the back seat was pretty nice overall. The salesman didn't know if the glass was UV or not, but since it wasn't mentioned on the DOT label in the corner: I don't think it was. What I didn't like, and this is a big issue for me was the lack of key for the SL. Instead it is a prox card. So by approaching the car and touching the handle the doors unlock.
If you watch Top Gear perhaps you remember when Jeremy bought the Ford GT. It had a similar system of keyless operation. And was plagued with bugs.
Now imagine a car for less than 10% the cost of his car with a key fob that will not let you lock the doors and walk away if a key fob is still in the car. Say we are going some place and want to leave Shannon's purse in the car. ah Ah AHH. Car unlocks itself. And since a key fob it in the car, all a thief has to do is turn a knob on the dash.
The SL is not for us. Maybe they have an S with an armrest somewhere.
Today we storm the Fords on Robert.
