Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

kyfdx

Great lease deals on the Tiguan, right now, if you are looking for a small SUV.

Michaell

@sandman_6472 - my daughter has a Countryman. I drove it yesterday to the car wash as it was filthy from the recent weather we've had.

While it's a fun car to drive, there is no way I could live with it every day. Rides too hard and is way too noisy. I'd suggest an extended test drive, but I really don't think it would be a good fit for you.

A small SUV (Tiguan, as @kyfdx mentioned) would be a good choice.

Michaell

I know I should know this, but ...

Given how few miles I'm putting on my Jetta (still less than 2000 after 4+ months), should I schedule my service appointments by time in service (12 months) or by mileage (10,000)? The latter is what is recommended in the manual.

kyfdx

Michaell said:

I know I should know this, but ...

Given how few miles I'm putting on my Jetta (still less than 2000 after 4+ months), should I schedule my service appointments by time in service (12 months) or by mileage (10,000)? The latter is what is recommended in the manual.

It's leased, right? Are the services included, or out of your pocket?

corvette

Unless something has changed, I think the service intervals are 10k or 12 months, whichever comes first. Did yours include any prepaid maintenance?

My GLI would actually tell you the number of days and number of miles until the next maintenance. 

Michaell

kyfdx said:

Michaell said:

I know I should know this, but ...

Given how few miles I'm putting on my Jetta (still less than 2000 after 4+ months), should I schedule my service appointments by time in service (12 months) or by mileage (10,000)? The latter is what is recommended in the manual.

It's leased, right? Are the services included, or out of your pocket?

corvette said:

Unless something has changed, I think the service intervals are 10k or 12 months, whichever comes first. Did yours include any prepaid maintenance?

My GLI would actually tell you the number of days and number of miles until the next maintenance. 

It's leased.

I'll pay for the services - I was offered a pre-paid maintenance program for $389, but I passed.

Guess it will be every 12 months, at which point it will probably have 6-8K on it at the rate I'm driving it.

I am taking it into the dealer tomorrow - the drivers window squeaks when going up. Gives me a chance to walk the VW, Audi and Volvo lots. @breld is meeting me, then we'll grab some lunch.

Wonder what car he's bringing?

kyfdx

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

Michaell said:

I know I should know this, but ...

Given how few miles I'm putting on my Jetta (still less than 2000 after 4+ months), should I schedule my service appointments by time in service (12 months) or by mileage (10,000)? The latter is what is recommended in the manual.

It's leased, right? Are the services included, or out of your pocket?

corvette said:

Unless something has changed, I think the service intervals are 10k or 12 months, whichever comes first. Did yours include any prepaid maintenance?

My GLI would actually tell you the number of days and number of miles until the next maintenance. 

It's leased.

I'll pay for the services - I was offered a pre-paid maintenance program for $389, but I passed.

Guess it will be every 12 months, at which point it will probably have 6-8K on it at the rate I'm driving it.

I am taking it into the dealer tomorrow - the drivers window squeaks when going up. Gives me a chance to walk the VW, Audi and Volvo lots. @breld is meeting me, then we'll grab some lunch.

Wonder what car he's bringing?

I wonder if he'll bring a car that he doesn't currently own, as of this moment in time?

Michaell

kyfdx said:

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

Michaell said:

I know I should know this, but ...

Given how few miles I'm putting on my Jetta (still less than 2000 after 4+ months), should I schedule my service appointments by time in service (12 months) or by mileage (10,000)? The latter is what is recommended in the manual.

It's leased, right? Are the services included, or out of your pocket?

corvette said:

Unless something has changed, I think the service intervals are 10k or 12 months, whichever comes first. Did yours include any prepaid maintenance?

My GLI would actually tell you the number of days and number of miles until the next maintenance. 

It's leased.

I'll pay for the services - I was offered a pre-paid maintenance program for $389, but I passed.

Guess it will be every 12 months, at which point it will probably have 6-8K on it at the rate I'm driving it.

I am taking it into the dealer tomorrow - the drivers window squeaks when going up. Gives me a chance to walk the VW, Audi and Volvo lots. @breld is meeting me, then we'll grab some lunch.

Wonder what car he's bringing?

I wonder if he'll bring a car that he doesn't currently own, as of this moment in time?

It's more like keeping him from making another punch while we're there...

FWIW, there are some amazing lease deals on the S60. Had a poster quote a $215/mo payment for an AWD T5 for 24 months, 10,000 miles per year. That's about what I'm paying on the Jetta.

Hmmm, wonder if I could trade out ....

henryn

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

Michaell said:

kyfdx said:

Michaell said:

I know I should know this, but ...

Given how few miles I'm putting on my Jetta (still less than 2000 after 4+ months), should I schedule my service appointments by time in service (12 months) or by mileage (10,000)? The latter is what is recommended in the manual.

It's leased, right? Are the services included, or out of your pocket?

corvette said:

Unless something has changed, I think the service intervals are 10k or 12 months, whichever comes first. Did yours include any prepaid maintenance?

My GLI would actually tell you the number of days and number of miles until the next maintenance. 

It's leased.

I'll pay for the services - I was offered a pre-paid maintenance program for $389, but I passed.

Guess it will be every 12 months, at which point it will probably have 6-8K on it at the rate I'm driving it.

I am taking it into the dealer tomorrow - the drivers window squeaks when going up. Gives me a chance to walk the VW, Audi and Volvo lots. @breld is meeting me, then we'll grab some lunch.

Wonder what car he's bringing?

I wonder if he'll bring a car that he doesn't currently own, as of this moment in time?

It's more like keeping him from making another punch while we're there...

FWIW, there are some amazing lease deals on the S60. Had a poster quote a $215/mo payment for an AWD T5 for 24 months, 10,000 miles per year. That's about what I'm paying on the Jetta.

Hmmm, wonder if I could trade out ....

You made me curious enough that I went and looked. That deal was with $2,000 up front, divide that by 24 months, that's another $83 per month, so $215 + $83 is $298 effective.

And the way it sounded, his numbers did not agree with your computed numbers, so there's probably something not quite right there.

Taking your number ($258) and adding in the $83, you get an effective payment of $341. Which is about what I would expect.

andres3

kyfdx said:

If you say you have a punch, you have a punch. I'm not checking with your Mom.

Are you sure you don't want to require everyone email you a copy of the Title to validate their punches?

stever

A photo of the new car with you flashing your forums ID will be sufficient.

Michaell

stever said:

A photo of the new car with you flashing your forums ID will be sufficient.

If I did that every time @breld got a car, I'd run out of storage on my phone...

stickguy

on the VW, it is 1 year or 10K. Interesting that they don't give the first one free. Both of our Jettas came with that (and the Sport dealer threw in years 2 and 3 without me even asking for it).

For the Mini Countryman, I hope the new one is nice. I loved the X1 I drove, and since it is the same platform, good chance it is a big improvement over the outgoing model.

andres3

Michaell said:

fintail said:

I think a lease purchase has more of a case for a punch than a refi. At the end of the least, you must make a move - either buy it, or move on to another car. A refi is voluntary.

I am still thinking I might buy my leased car at the end. The car has been faultless so far, and I enjoy driving it. I suspect negotiation might be a headache though, due to the inflated residual - it's higher than I can get 2 year old cars for right now, and prices will be that much lower when the car is 3 years old (and the prior body style) in another 2 years. I hope they don't use the residual as any kind of starting point, as it will not have real world relevance.

Hate to break the bad news to you - especially on Christmas - but it's unlikely that you'll get anything but the residual value as the buyout price. MBFS is insured if the market value is less than the contractual residual, so there is no incentive for them to discount the buyout price.

This answers @fintail question regarding who would insure such a thing as inflated residuals. Well, a company looking to fail as grandly as possible so that they can be bailed out as lucratively as possible. Look at GM and GMAC (renamed into ALLY). Good chunk of the reason car companies and their financial arms were weak in 2008 was the inflated residuals.

fintail

I think maybe MB can subsidize it with the huge margins on 100K cars, and profits from all of the G-wagens sold to developing world oligarchies and their friends who have bought their way into the west coast I haven't read anything rumoring that MBFS is going to pull a Wall St and need tax money.

andres3 said:

This answers @fintail question regarding who would insure such a thing as inflated residuals. Well, a company looking to fail as grandly as possible so that they can be bailed out as lucratively as possible. Look at GM and GMAC (renamed into ALLY). Good chunk of the reason car companies and their financial arms were weak in 2008 was the inflated residuals.

Sandman6472

Getting a rental right now here in South Florida is pretty tough right now, ain't much out there. The weather has been on the warmish side so folks are vacationing in record numbers. They all need vehicles so we are pretty stretched right now. Had to pick up 4 smaller vehicles in Perrine today, South Miami, and they were already taken by a couple offices by the time we got back to our office. Needed to leave by noon today but was so busy that it wasn't until 1 that I clocked out. Ditto for tomorrow, supposed to go by noon but figuring on about 1 again. Already over my hours right now but the boss was happy that I am coming in tomorrow at least for those 4 hours. Come January 16th, will start my 4th year with Hertz so due for a slight raise, a pretty small one I suppose but, better than nothing!

The Sandman

nyccarguy

Looks like 2016 will be a punchless year for me. I saw the FORD dealer near my house has a "base" Fusion Sport on the lot. I figured out some imaginary numbers (invoice minus incentives) on a 36 month/19.5K mile per year lease. My (theoretical) payment worked out to less than what I'm paying for the loan on my Legacy. For a car with 325 hp, that's pretty good.

The second part of my thoughts are where things go south rather quickly. I owe about $14K on my Legacy. I figured if I could push for what I owe plus all lease money due at signing (1st month, bank fee, DMV fee) that I'd swap out. @qbrozen said I could get $11K on a trade, so there's no way I'm going to even attempt negotiations when I'm $4K under water.

Besides, I've got a basement to re-do! Cheer to you & I @stickguy.

Michaell

nyccarguy said:

Looks like 2016 will be a punchless year for me. I saw the FORD dealer near my house has a "base" Fusion Sport on the lot. I figured out some imaginary numbers (invoice minus incentives) on a 36 month/19.5K mile per year lease. My (theoretical) payment worked out to less than what I'm paying for the loan on my Legacy. For a car with 325 hp, that's pretty good.

The second part of my thoughts are where things go south rather quickly. I owe about $14K on my Legacy. I figured if I could push for what I owe plus all lease money due at signing (1st month, bank fee, DMV fee) that I'd swap out. @qbrozen said I could get $11K on a trade, so there's no way I'm going to even attempt negotiations when I'm $4K under water.

Besides, I've got a basement to re-do! Cheer to you & I @stickguy.

Sorry to hear about the Fusion.

I just committed to a five figure refacing of our kitchen cabinets today. Should be installed around the end of February. I'll try to get before and after pictures for y'all.

stickguy

I have had punchless years before. though I need to go back and figure out how often.

next year should have a punch. Though depending on how badly I want to save money, I could try and hold off until 2018. Though that requires living with one car, which I doubt will last long.

drove the RDX again travelling this weekend. We put a total of ~3,000 miles on it in 12 months (june 2015-june 2016). And I just drove it a total of 2,000 miles in the last 10 days! It is a nice car. Could be a bit bigger for when we are carrying a lot of crap, but I make it work. So, I assume now that next November, when I turn my Sonata in (lease end), we will keep the RDX for regular use, and if I get another car, it will be something cheap.

of course, entirely possible our needs/situation change by then which could upend the dynamics!

nyccarguy

stickguy said:

I have had punchless years before. though I need to go back and figure out how often.

next year should have a punch. Though depending on how badly I want to save money, I could try and hold off until 2018. Though that requires living with one car, which I doubt will last long.

drove the RDX again travelling this weekend. We put a total of ~3,000 miles on it in 12 months (june 2015-june 2016). And I just drove it a total of 2,000 miles in the last 10 days! It is a nice car. Could be a bit bigger for when we are carrying a lot of crap, but I make it work. So, I assume now that next November, when I turn my Sonata in (lease end), we will keep the RDX for regular use, and if I get another car, it will be something cheap.

of course, entirely possible our needs/situation change by then which could upend the dynamics!

Don't let saving money drive your vehicle purchase. You deserve to get something you want.

stickguy

only if I can pay for it!

sometimes the question is, get nothing or get something you don't want because it is in budget.

stickguy

so, browsing around (of course). This looks like a pretty nice car for the money. I assume the price makes sense, but I tend to be wrong about that a lot!

http://www.eimports4less.com/detail-2014-mercedes~benz-c~class-certified_c300_4matic_sport_awd_sedan_camera__navi-used-15579344.html

tifighter

Ugh, I have to walk away from craigslist. I find cars I don't know anything about and look at them just for the sake of variety.

Example- haven't been a Mustang guy, but doesn't this seem suspiciously cheap? Other ones have less miles, but are a lot more expensive. And does the passenger door sorta look like a different color than the rest of the body or is it just me?

Michaell

stickguy said:

so, browsing around (of course). This looks like a pretty nice car for the money. I assume the price makes sense, but I tend to be wrong about that a lot!

http://www.eimports4less.com/detail-2014-mercedes~benz-c~class-certified_c300_4matic_sport_awd_sedan_camera__navi-used-15579344.html

Almost seems too good to be true.

ab348

tifighter said:

Example- haven't been a Mustang guy, but doesn't this seem suspiciously cheap? Other ones have less miles, but are a lot more expensive. And does the passenger door sorta look like a different color than the rest of the body or is it just me?

Looks to me like the passenger rear quarter panel has been resprayed.

qbrozen

tifighter said:

Ugh, I have to walk away from craigslist. I find cars I don't know anything about and look at them just for the sake of variety. Example- haven't been a Mustang guy, but doesn't this seem suspiciously cheap? Other ones have less miles, but are a lot more expensive. And does the passenger door sorta look like a different color than the rest of the body or is it just me?

So much misinformation in that ad

sda

Michaell said:

nyccarguy said:

Looks like 2016 will be a punchless year for me. I saw the FORD dealer near my house has a "base" Fusion Sport on the lot. I figured out some imaginary numbers (invoice minus incentives) on a 36 month/19.5K mile per year lease. My (theoretical) payment worked out to less than what I'm paying for the loan on my Legacy. For a car with 325 hp, that's pretty good.

The second part of my thoughts are where things go south rather quickly. I owe about $14K on my Legacy. I figured if I could push for what I owe plus all lease money due at signing (1st month, bank fee, DMV fee) that I'd swap out. @qbrozen said I could get $11K on a trade, so there's no way I'm going to even attempt negotiations when I'm $4K under water.

Besides, I've got a basement to re-do! Cheer to you & I @stickguy.

Sorry to hear about the Fusion.

I just committed to a five figure refacing of our kitchen cabinets today. Should be installed around the end of February. I'll try to get before and after pictures for y'all.

My wife would like to do that as well. Based on your comment, do they take all the cabinets at once and leave you with an unworkable kitchen? That sounds like a challenge. Before and after pics, please.

Looks like I will not have a punch for a while. It is fun to look, however. Hoping to find a new CR-V to go over soon, but dealers are selling them as fast as they come in.

Of interest, and looks tempting, though not doable for me at this time: a local dealer has a few (ex-rentals) '16 CTS 3.6 with pano-roof, less than 20k mi for $28k. That's cheaper than the price of a loaded Cruze!

Michaell

sda said:

Michaell said:

nyccarguy said:

Looks like 2016 will be a punchless year for me. I saw the FORD dealer near my house has a "base" Fusion Sport on the lot. I figured out some imaginary numbers (invoice minus incentives) on a 36 month/19.5K mile per year lease. My (theoretical) payment worked out to less than what I'm paying for the loan on my Legacy. For a car with 325 hp, that's pretty good.

The second part of my thoughts are where things go south rather quickly. I owe about $14K on my Legacy. I figured if I could push for what I owe plus all lease money due at signing (1st month, bank fee, DMV fee) that I'd swap out. @qbrozen said I could get $11K on a trade, so there's no way I'm going to even attempt negotiations when I'm $4K under water.

Besides, I've got a basement to re-do! Cheer to you & I @stickguy.

Sorry to hear about the Fusion.

I just committed to a five figure refacing of our kitchen cabinets today. Should be installed around the end of February. I'll try to get before and after pictures for y'all.

My wife would like to do that as well. Based on your comment, do they take all the cabinets at once and leave you with an unworkable kitchen? That sounds like a challenge. Before and after pics, please.

Looks like I will not have a punch for a while. It is fun to look, however. Hoping to find a new CR-V to go over soon, but dealers are selling them as fast as they come in.

Of interest, and looks tempting, though not doable for me at this time: a local dealer has a few (ex-rentals) '16 CTS 3.6 with pano-roof, less than 20k mi for $28k. That's cheaper than the price of a loaded Cruze!

The way it was explained to us, the process will take 2-5 days and we can continue to use the kitchen, even though we are required to empty the cabinets. The workday is roughly 9-10AM to 4PM. The cabinets are not dismantled, but the doors are removed.

Decided to go with a two tone look - white on the upper cabinets, grey on the lower. Also adding some extra sliding shelves for the lower cabinets.

stickguy

Michaell said:

stickguy said:

so, browsing around (of course). This looks like a pretty nice car for the money. I assume the price makes sense, but I tend to be wrong about that a lot!

http://www.eimports4less.com/detail-2014-mercedes~benz-c~class-certified_c300_4matic_sport_awd_sedan_camera__navi-used-15579344.html

Almost seems too good to be true.

actually, I checked my other local guy (that specializes in MB) and price seems to be in line. Have to sort through a lot of detail to figure out option loads, but this guy has a bunch of 2014s, most with lower miles, for within a few grand $$ (asking). Lot of car for the money. I also like these because still have at least 6-12 months of BtoB warranty, plus the 2 years of powertrain.

http://www.aviautosales.com/inventory.aspx?md=C-Class&cursort=asc&mk=Mercedes-Benz

ab348

Michaell said:

Decided to go with a two tone look - white on the upper cabinets, grey on the lower. Also adding some extra sliding shelves for the lower cabinets.

Heh - I was watching a home renovation show a few weeks ago, the one with Monica Potter and her sisters redoing her parents old house. The new kitchen she spec'ed was exactly like this. When the cabinets arrived, she decided the look didn't work, so she had the gray bottom cabinets repainted to make them all white. I didn't think it looked bad as delivered but have to admit the all-white look did look good in the end. Hope yours works out.

If you are getting new doors, why do the cabinets need emptying? I had this dome to my kitchen 15 years ago and was able to keep the boxes pretty much full. Just needed access to the hinges.

fintail

As was said, that C price is good, but not too good to be true. Essentially a 3 year old car now, old style (not a bad thing, W204 has aged extremely well), moderate options, not particularly low miles, and there are probably a glut of lease returns right now from the blowout when the platform ended. One could do worse for the money.

Michaell

ab348 said:

Decided to go with a two tone look - white on the upper cabinets, grey on the lower. Also adding some extra sliding shelves for the lower cabinets.

Heh - I was watching a home renovation show a few weeks ago, the one with Monica Potter and her sisters redoing her parents old house. The new kitchen she spec'ed was exactly like this. When the cabinets arrived, she decided the look didn't work, so she had the gray bottom cabinets repainted to make them all white. I didn't think it looked bad as delivered but have to admit the all-white look did look good in the end. Hope yours works out. If you are getting new doors, why do the cabinets need emptying? I had this dome to my kitchen 15 years ago and was able to keep the boxes pretty much full. Just needed access to the hinges.

They will be adding a veneer to the exterior of the cabinets, and removing all the beveled edges as well. Make everything smooth and even - including the underside of the cabinets. 

nyccarguy

Snow Shoes ordered for the Legacy. $130 each for Yokohama Ice Guard. 225/55/R17. Bought them through my dealer who will install them next Friday. I'll also have the oil changed. They'll give me a loaner car to use for the day.

I spoke to the parts guy. Very knowledgeable. He uses these on his 2014 RWD Mustang and waits they are fantastic.

Mr_Shiftright

tifighter said:

Ugh, I have to walk away from craigslist. I find cars I don't know anything about and look at them just for the sake of variety.

Example- haven't been a Mustang guy, but doesn't this seem suspiciously cheap? Other ones have less miles, but are a lot more expensive. And does the passenger door sorta look like a different color than the rest of the body or is it just me?

Hard to say without driving it. It has a lot of boy-racer mods and might ride like a truck. If it were clean and totally stock it might be worth more, yes. Sometimes this type of car has led a hard life.

Sandman6472

Nice selection at that MB store, the one near me has almost nothing I'd even consider when I walked the lot last week. That red/beige Tiguan is still at the VW store calling out to me. Truthfully, if the wife would give me the o k, think I'd do the swap but staying the course is the logical/prudent thing to do right now. In a year, or two, from now, different selection but maybe more to choose from. Just wish the mileage figures were closer to my Golf to make the swap a better deal but the 21/26 figures are pretty dismal though it is a 2.0 turbo engine.

The Sandman

laurasdada

Dating Punch?

The Ladyfriend, sans your truly, car shopped and bought yesterday. She drove an Acura TLX and quickly decided no. Then a BMW 328xi, and as I always knew, the 3 was for thee (everything I showed her came in second in a field of one). So, she spent 6 hours!!! at the dealer negotiating and F&I-ing. She bought a CPO 2016 with (IIRC) less than ~7k miles, msrp of a bit over $46, she paid ~$36.4k. The dickering was over her '09 Accord with 115k miles, she wanted $6k, they offered $4500, settled at $5500. 0% financing, too; for 72 months. She is quite happy, I look forward to seeing the gray over beige beauty.

I kibitzed with her by text, suggested she jog down to CarMax a couple of miles down the road for a 7 day buy price. But, she wasn't leaving the BMW store. She's fairly upset at the old school F&I guy, he tried to sneak a couple of protection packages by her that would have added ~$15/month to her payment. She caught him and they were removed. "But, everybody buys these!," he noted, upset that she was scrutinizing every line of the purchase agreement. She's a Paralegal...

She's picking the car up today, wants to talk to the GSM about F&I tactics, but I told her the GSM will pretend to be sympathetic and then congratulate F&I on doing his job, even though no sale. She said 3 or 4 sales types were involved in the sale, I texted her that they were just playing games to make you tired and cave in. You told them what you needed for a deal, time to walk out... I advised her to tell the GSM that if she is sent a survey, it would be difficult to give overall high marks because of Mr. F&I. Let's see if that gets her anything... Maybe a screamin' deal on an i8 for me to atone?

I, too, for the third year in a row, will be punchless. The XF is just such a great car, nothing within reasonable price range intrigues me now. I no longer need such a big car, nor four doors, but I just enjoy it so.

stickguy

Speaking of the XF, I saw my BILs new one over the weekend. It is the super hot rod model, whatever that is. Pretty loaded. Only looked at it in the garage. Black, which IMO is not the best color for it. Interior (2 tone seats) was nice enough. But it came with flat black painted wheels. That I did not like. Just not my style, but he seems to have grown fond of them.

laurasdada

Date Punch Update:

LF emailed GSM, outlining her issues with the whole purchase process. She said they are now being very nice, two years of free Sirius and a set of Winter mats. Possibly more to come... i8 for Laurasdada??? It's possible...

28firefighter

I took Thursday and Friday off this week to take care of some baby-prep things around the house and because I was going to lose them at the end of the year if I didn't take them. So, here I am with some free time.

In the spirit of trying to get the Escape-replacement selection process out of the way before the baby comes, I decided to compile a list of potential suitors and then start driving them. My criteria was as follows:
(1) Top Safety Pick or Top Safety Pick+ from IIHS
(2) 27+ cubic feet of cargo space with the second row of seats up
(3) Available options include all the safety nannies - lane departure, active cruise, BLIS, etc.
(4) <$400/month inclusive of tax, zero down (though I would do security deposits) on a lease.
(5) Decent power, similar to the escape.
(6) Higher off the ground

My list is as follows:
(1) 2016.5 Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring
(2) 2017 Subaru Forester XT Touring
(3) 2016 BMW X1

I drove 1 and 2 today. Right off the bat, I've knocked #1 off the list.

I excluded the RAV4, CR-V, and Rogue because they're too slow and/or do not lease well. I excluded the RDX because it was too expensive to lease. I excluded the Benz GLA, Infiniti Q30, and Audi Q3 because they're too small in the cargo area. I also excluded the Volvo V60 Cross Country due to cost and the Subaru Outback due to the fact that it won't fit in our garage.

Cars I'm missing?

thebean

Buick Enclave?

nyccarguy

@laurasdada - you are going on a 3rd year without a punch, yes. You seem very happy with your car though. Keep us updated on your girlfriend's punch & whAt you think of it.

nyccarguy

@28firefighter - too bad the Outback won't fit in your garage. A 3.6R Limited hits every one of your needs. They lease well too. High residuals & low money factors.

suydam

The Acadia is smaller than the Enclave and might be a better fit for the Garage. How about the Subaru Crosstrek?

nyccarguy

@suydam - The Crosstrek is nice, good sized, leases well, but doesn't have "decent power."

28firefighter

thebean said:

Buick Enclave?

Also too long unfortunately. We need it to be 185" or shorter in length.

28firefighter

nyccarguy said:

@28firefighter - too bad the Outback won't fit in your garage. A 3.6R Limited hits every one of your needs. They lease well too. High residuals & low money factors.

The Forester is leasing similarly well, which is why it grabbed my attention - shorter, excellent cargo space, and a great powertrain.

28firefighter

suydam said:

The Acadia is smaller than the Enclave and might be a better fit for the Garage. How about the Subaru Crosstrek?

Acadia is still too big for us. I like the Crosstrek, but it is not really great with power and not enough cargo space really either. I think on the Subaru side the Forester would be the way to go.

28firefighter

OK so test drive #1...

2016.5 Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring AWD
I really wanted to like this car. I love the way they look, the interior is very nicely put together, and generally I've always enjoyed how Mazdas handle.

From a features perspective, the car I drove was a loaded boat. It had the Grand Touring Tech Package (LED Headlights, rain sensing wipers, and a couple other things) and the iActive Sense Package which added adaptive cruise control, BLIS, and lane departure warning. Total MSRP was $33,425. A couple strikes right off the bat were that it did not have any sort of park distance control nor did it have a power hatch. Neither are deal breakers, but the others we are looking at both do.

The interior is really nicely done. It has lots of leather and soft-touch plastic, no faux wood anywhere, and generally was very ergonomic from the driver's perspective. To me, it feels like a more expensive car than it is. I especially enjoyed the color scheme - this car was a dark gray over parchment/black trimmed interior. The entertainment system is both touch screen and knob driven, like the euro competitors out there. It was easy to learn and use on the fly, which is good for my wife.

The driving dynamics of the car in terms of handling are excellent. Steering is tight and responsive, cornering is very good for something of its heft. But the engine - sweet jeebus is this thing underpowered. Accelerating onto I-5 from a slightly inclined on-ramp, my foot was nearly to the floor and it was not enjoying the run to 60 mph. It felt dangerously slow and even if it were handling it OK, the noise on the interior through even moderate acceleration was loud. I was not able to hold a conversation with my friend who came with until after we were at speed.

Pricing wise, they are doing some pretty competitive deals right now. I didn't ask for lease pricing since I wasn't prepared to buy it, but they offered it anyway. First month, tags, and doc fee at signing (basically $600 total) would put me at $299/month including tax. I imagine with some push I could get it down toward $275/month or so. A great price for all that you get, for sure.

However, it is off our list because of the powertrain. I offered to my wife to let her drive it and her response was that if it felt noticeably slower than her Escape, she isn't interested. Fair enough.

More to come later...

cdnpinhead

Anxiously awaiting your detailed review of the Forester.

28firefighter

OK - test drive #2

2017 Subaru Forester 2.0XT Touring
Admittedly, I am not a big Subaru fan. Here in the PNW, they are a dime a dozen - every time I open my eyes, I feel like I am setting eyes on the latest iteration of Forester or Outback. However, consider my mind changed after this most recent test drive.

Features wise, the Forester I drove was also a loaded boat - it was the XT Touring with Navigation and EyeSight packages. This also gets you the 240 HP (argh argh argh) Turbo 4-cylinder engine that I have heard so much about but rarely seen in the wild. With all of these packages you get the Harmon Karon stereo, Xenons, rear park assist, BLIS, the EyeSight package which includes active cruise, lane departure, rear cross-traffic alert and some other safety features that I'm sure I am not thinking of. It also includes a power hatch. Total MSRP on this particular car with the Protection Group #2 accessories was $37,375, so considerably more expensive than the CX-5.

The car I drove was a Venetian Red with Black interior. Not my favorite color combination - we would probably get the Gray over Saddle Brown color combination, since in all likelihood we would need to order it anyway. The exterior aesthetics aren't particularly grabbing since I see one so frequently in my day-to-day. That said, the Touring gets you a more aggressive front fascia and bigger, more aggressive wheels which set it apart and I really liked that. Size wise, it is a perfect fit for us - it is taller and wider than it is long, which is great for our short, yet, wide garage. The power hatch seems gimmicky, but it is going to mean a lot to my wife.

Inside, I really like what Subaru has done since I last rode in one. Lots of soft touch plastics and leather wrapped surfaces, no faux wood anywhere. The entertainment system is very simple to use, if not maybe a bit too basic, but it has all of the important features - Nav, HD radio etc. and also has a separate heads up display to show climate control, trip information and other tasks not handled by the infotainment system. My only complaint is that the screen was on the smaller side, compared to others that I have seen. It is also a fairly basic system and does not offer a lot of the advanced gadgetry that you get on the Euro makes. That said, the price is also not $50k+.

The driving dynamics are where this car really shines. For something as oddly shaped and heavy as it is, it should not perform as well as it does. I took it on a 30 minute test drive and came away smiling. It isn't my GTI and I had no expectation it would be, but it really was fun. Even in standard mode (not Sport or Sport #), the acceleration is excellent, power is always available and it never felt like it was struggling. I HATE CVT transmissions with a fiery passion, and I actually quite liked it in this application. It was quiet, kept the power available, and otherwise made itself scarce. The car does have "paddle shifting", but I am not silly enough to use it - it is just the computer faking shift points to make the driver feel more engaged. It cornered well with minimal body roll. My only complaint is that the steering was quite a bit more loosey goosey than I would have liked - but it is in-line with the Escape and others in its class - this is probably the only area where the CX-5 outclassed it. Interior noise was also quite improved since the last time I rode in one, which was welcome especially after the CX-5.

In case it wasn't clear, I liked this car a lot. Again, I did not get into pricing, but was offered it anyway. Sale price was right around $33,500 before any negotiating and without application of any coupons (I am working on getting a $500 Subaru ambassador coupon). With any more discount and without the coupon, a zero down lease with first month, tags, and doc fee at signing would be $350/month inclusive of tax. My target would be right around $320/month inclusive of tax.

Next step is to let the wife take a look at it, and then also to get behind the wheel of an X1 to put through its paces.