Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous (Archived)

suydam

Yes it’s free. Make sure your garage door opener can be linked to it. My opener has that logo on it. It’s a little cumbersome to pair, but once done it’s fabulous.

qbrozen

@tjc78 said:

@qbrozen said:

@suydam said:
Our touchpads keep failing even though the batteries are okay. I finally downloaded an app that pairs with the garage door mechanism. I think its called MyQ. Works great.

That’s what I use. Works with the aforementioned front door touchpad plus all 5 garage doors.

If by some crazy miraculous EM pulse happens and takes everything out, I’d just have to break in the old fashioned way.

All you need is a stiff piece of wire through the top of the garage door to pull the release handle. In the garage in 30 seconds

No windows on my garage doors so it would be an amazing feat to manage blind. Although, I suppose if you had a friend looking in through the side window…

Ya know, I’m not even sure where the release is on the doors on the attached garage. Now I’m curious. Should be hanging from the motor like my other garage (side-mount motors) but I’ve never noticed.

explorerx4

Most garage door openers are mounted in the middle of the door, so not too hard a task to figure out where to insert the wire.
I wrapped my release handles around the arm that is attached to the door.
Would only be using it from the inside, so not worried if I have to unwrap it to use the release.

ab348

My release is on the trolley that travels with the chain/belt that the GDO acts on. It is a handle on a short rope that hangs down to let you grab it.

qbrozen

Silly me! I was looking UNDER the Maserati for the fuel tank!

And what needs to come out to get to it:

sda

@qbrozen said:
Silly me! I was looking UNDER the Maserati for the fuel tank!

And what needs to come out to get to it:

Fuel pump replacement?

qbrozen

Replaced the evap canister and valve. Have a large evap leak causing CEL.

jmonroe1

qbrozen said:

Silly me! I was looking UNDER the Maserati for the fuel tank!

And what needs to come out to get to it:

————————————————
Just a suggestion, put it back where it belongs.

jmonroe

28firefighter

I found a lightly used set of Michelin Pilot AS4s for sale off another WRX for about 70% off retail. Assuming they’re in good shape I’ll take them. Makes the decision easy.

nyccarguy

@28firefighter said:
I found a lightly used set of Michelin Pilot AS4s for sale off another WRX for about 70% off retail. Assuming they’re in good shape I’ll take them. Makes the decision easy.

Just curious, what’s the residual value at the end of the lease?

explorerx4

@28firefighter,
Check the date codes just in case.

nyccarguy

Had an interesting car conversation with my best friend the other day who seems to have kicked his Chronic Car Buying habit. His fleet currently consists of a 2017 2 Door JK Wrangler Rubicon Hard Rock 6MT that he keeps up here in NY/CT (he travels here 2x a month for business), a 2017 Lexus LX570, a 2005 2 Door Wrangler LJ 5MT, his wife’s 2023 Genesis G70, & his son’s 2021 or 2022 Tacoma SR Access Cab 4cyl. Our topics always revert to cars somehow. I was telling him about the discounts out there on new Land Cruisers. He said he thinks they are cool, but after his smooth & powerful V8 Lexus he doesn’t think he could do a 4cyl turbo no matter how fast it is. Talking about V8s, is GM the only manufacturer that offers V8s in its full sized SUVs?

corvette

@qbrozen - that fuel tank placement is like an old Jag XJ.

28firefighter

@explorerx4 said:
@28firefighter,
Check the date codes just in case.

I’ll double check them but they’re 3023 coded all around.

tjc78

@nyccarguy said:
Had an interesting car conversation with my best friend the other day who seems to have kicked his Chronic Car Buying habit. His fleet currently consists of a 2017 2 Door JK Wrangler Rubicon Hard Rock 6MT that he keeps up here in NY/CT (he travels here 2x a month for business), a 2017 Lexus LX570, a 2005 2 Door Wrangler LJ 5MT, his wife’s 2023 Genesis G70, & his son’s 2021 or 2022 Tacoma SR Access Cab 4cyl. Our topics always revert to cars somehow. I was telling him about the discounts out there on new Land Cruisers. He said he thinks they are cool, but after his smooth & powerful V8 Lexus he doesn’t think he could do a 4cyl turbo no matter how fast it is. Talking about V8s, is GM the only manufacturer that offers V8s in its full sized SUVs?

I can tell you that turbo 6 that’s in the Wagoneer will never make you miss a V8 in terms of power.

jmonroe1

tjc78 said:

@nyccarguy said:

Had an interesting car conversation with my best friend the other day who seems to have kicked his Chronic Car Buying habit. His fleet currently consists of a 2017 2 Door JK Wrangler Rubicon Hard Rock 6MT that he keeps up here in NY/CT (he travels here 2x a month for business), a 2017 Lexus LX570, a 2005 2 Door Wrangler LJ 5MT, his wife’s 2023 Genesis G70, & his son’s 2021 or 2022 Tacoma SR Access Cab 4cyl. Our topics always revert to cars somehow. I was telling him about the discounts out there on new Land Cruisers. He said he thinks they are cool, but after his smooth & powerful V8 Lexus he doesn’t think he could do a 4cyl turbo no matter how fast it is. Talking about V8s, is GM the only manufacturer that offers V8s in its full sized SUVs?

I can tell you that turbo 6 that’s in the Wagoneer will never make you miss a V8 in terms of power.

————————————————
There is more to it than just the number of cylinders and horsepower. Driving skill and how well you understand the car you’re driving means a lot. I’d venture a guess that if someone held a gun to the head of @roadburner and made him drive a Soul, and he left late, he’d still be on time for his dentist appointment.

jmonroe

roadburner

nyccarguy said:

Had an interesting car conversation with my best friend the other day who seems to have kicked his Chronic Car Buying habit. His fleet currently consists of a 2017 2 Door JK Wrangler Rubicon Hard Rock 6MT that he keeps up here in NY/CT (he travels here 2x a month for business), a 2017 Lexus LX570, a 2005 2 Door Wrangler LJ 5MT, his wife’s 2023 Genesis G70, & his son’s 2021 or 2022 Tacoma SR Access Cab 4cyl. Our topics always revert to cars somehow. I was telling him about the discounts out there on new Land Cruisers. He said he thinks they are cool, but after his smooth & powerful V8 Lexus he doesn’t think he could do a 4cyl turbo no matter how fast it is. Talking about V8s, is GM the only manufacturer that offers V8s in its full sized SUVs?

I think that the X7 has an optional V8.

roadburner

jmonroe1 said:

There is more to it than just the number of cylinders and horsepower. Driving skill and how well you understand the car you’re driving means a lot. I’d venture a guess that if someone held a gun to the head of @roadburner and made him drive a Soul, and he left late, he’d still be on time for his dentist appointment.

jmonroe

My Club Sport has just 150 hp but on the street I can cover ground every bit as quickly as I can in my C43- and its just as much fun...

stickguy

in this country (especially in the more populated areas on the coast) there is a limit to how fast you can actually go (safely if not legally) so there is such a thing as too much power!

jmonroe1

stickguy said:

in this country (especially in the more populated areas on the coast) there is a limit to how fast you can actually go (safely if not legally) so there is such a thing as too much power!

————————————————
Oh yeah, prove it.

jmonroe

ab348

I just saw a Genesis ad on TV that tempted to me to go the @abacomike route, if not for the lack of a dedicated dealer locally. I can’t see myself taking a car like that to a dealer typically handling Elantra customers.

Michaell

I don’t know about Canada, but in the US, Hyundai has asked dealer owners to create separate, stand alone Genesis dealers.

The Hyundai dealer closest to me elected to pass, while another one built a new showroom for the Hyundai brand, and converted the Hyundai facility to be Genesis only (that’s where @breld leased the GV60 for his wife).

benjaminh

For our new Outback we took advantage of Subaru's 1.9% financing over 48 months. With a small downpayment our 33k loan gives us monthly payments of $725. That's a big monthly payment from my pov, although the Outback is a very comfortable awd station wagon loaded with features. Anyway, we've been playing a little game of saving in various areas to try to equal that, and actually one thing kind of covered it. Like many middle class people with kids we've had life insurance since we were around 30. Our last flat-rate policy we got from tiaa 15 years ago was surprisingly affordable for 600k each. But now that I'm 59 and about to turn 60, and my wife a year older, the rates were not surprisingly soaring. My first year starting at 60 for the same coverage was going to be $850 a month, and my spouse's rate was even higher. Plus it went up each year after that rather than being flat-rate. Our kids are now grown, and this just didn't make sense any more from our pov. Anyway, we let that go. Someday we'll just pass away and not expect to be paid for it lol.

Another change we made a couple of years ago was to switch our daily coffee from Starbucks and Pete's to Taster's Choice. The flavor isn't quite as good, but we always drink our coffee with lots of milk anyway, and so it's actually fine for us, and we've found that change saves us about $1500 a year. The large jars of TC from Costco are often on sale for $11, which means that before the milk a cup of coffee is about 5 cents. With a generous amount of milk it's maybe triple that, but still a nice price for what's for us a good enough cup of joe. Once in a while when I'm sipping my coffee I think, still tastes good to me—and it's helping to pay for the car.

oldfarmer50

jmonroe1 said:

tjc78 said:

@nyccarguy said:

Had an interesting car conversation with my best friend the other day who seems to have kicked his Chronic Car Buying habit. His fleet currently consists of a 2017 2 Door JK Wrangler Rubicon Hard Rock 6MT that he keeps up here in NY/CT (he travels here 2x a month for business), a 2017 Lexus LX570, a 2005 2 Door Wrangler LJ 5MT, his wife’s 2023 Genesis G70, & his son’s 2021 or 2022 Tacoma SR Access Cab 4cyl. Our topics always revert to cars somehow. I was telling him about the discounts out there on new Land Cruisers. He said he thinks they are cool, but after his smooth & powerful V8 Lexus he doesn’t think he could do a 4cyl turbo no matter how fast it is. Talking about V8s, is GM the only manufacturer that offers V8s in its full sized SUVs?

I can tell you that turbo 6 that’s in the Wagoneer will never make you miss a V8 in terms of power.

————————————————
There is more to it than just the number of cylinders and horsepower. Driving skill and how well you understand the car you’re driving means a lot. I’d venture a guess that if someone held a gun to the head of @roadburner and made him drive a Soul, and he left late, he’d still be on time for his dentist appointment.

jmonroe

Hey, the Soul does have sport mode you know.😢

benjaminh

Although we ended up getting a Subaru, the Mazda CX-50 is a great value. The base model is called the Select, and I liked it a lot when I did my test drive. Unlike the base model of the Outback, which is obviously a stripper, the base model Mazdas are quite nice, and have blind-spot monitoring, rain-sensing wipers, awd, and many other standard features. Plus the deals on some of the Mazdas are amazing. Here's one at my local dealer for $5k off the reasonable list price, meaning it's only $27.5k. To get an awd CR-V LX would be a lot more...

https://www.oxmoormazda.com/inventory/new-2024-mazda-cx-50-2-5-s-select-awd-awd-suv-7mmvabam3rn214318/

oldfarmer50

benjaminh said:

For our new Outback we took advantage of Subaru's 1.9% financing over 48 months. With a small downpayment our 33k loan gives us monthly payments of $725. That's a big monthly payment from my pov, although the Outback is a very comfortable awd station wagon loaded with features. Anyway, we've been playing a little game of saving in various areas to try to equal that, and actually one thing kind of covered it. Like many middle class people with kids we've had life insurance since we were around 30. Our last flat-rate policy we got from tiaa 15 years ago was surprisingly affordable for 600k each. But now that I'm 59 and about to turn 60, and my wife a year older, the rates were not surprisingly soaring. My first year starting at 60 for the same coverage was going to be $850 a month, and my spouse's rate was even higher. Plus it went up each year after that rather than being flat-rate. Our kids are now grown, and this just didn't make sense any more from our pov. Anyway, we let that go. Someday we'll just pass away and not expect to be paid for it lol.

Another change we made a couple of years ago was to switch our daily coffee from Starbucks and Pete's to Taster's Choice. The flavor isn't quite as good, but we always drink our coffee with lots of milk anyway, and so it's actually fine for us, and we've found that change saves us about $1500 a year. The large jars of TC from Costco are often on sale for $11, which means that before the milk a cup of coffee is about 5 cents. With a generous amount of milk it's maybe triple that, but still a nice price for what's for us a good enough cup of joe. Once in a while when I'm sipping my coffee I think, still tastes good to me—and it's helping to pay for the car.

$600k to drop dead sounds good but $850 a month would make me want to take advantage of the policy prematurely. We were too poor to afford luxuries like life insurance but since we never had a mortgage we figured that the value of our land would serve as a substitute.

I certainly could never afford $1500 for coffee. A big bucket of Sam’s Club Maxwell House made hundreds of cups at home. At work it’s whatever they have at the Quicky Mart. Paying big bucks for Starbucks never appealed to me on general principle and the one time I did have some of their coffee it was way too strong or bitter for me.

I certainly approve of any cost saving measures which allow for more car buying.😃

kyfdx

I make a pot of coffee at home, every morning. It's about 5 cups, which yields three big mugs. I get my coffee from a craft coffee roaster, that's just a couple miles from me. I'm lazy, so I have them grind the beans. A $15/bag lasts about three weeks.

5 cups X 21 days = 105 cups for $15. Add in $1 for 21 filters, and and I'm paying $0.15 per cup for the best coffee you ever tasted.. You couldn't pay me to drink Taster's Choice.

ab348

Hey @benjaminh , your two posts hit home with me. On the life insurance, I had the same sort of policy in a group plan attached to my university. It was dirt-cheap when I first got it but once I turned 60 it started getting very expensive, unsurprisingly. With no dependents other than my cat these days I decided to let it go and save some money.

On the coffee front, I am constantly amazed by how much younger folks spend on takeaway coffee. I used to think it was bad enough when coworkers would give the coffee machine in the office a pass and go to a place where they would spend a dollar or more on a cup of the stuff. Now those giant cups of Starbucks or whatever are $5-6 and lots of people do multiples every day. I buy decent quality ground coffee (I used to buy beans and grind them myself but no longer do because the difference is minuscule) and like @kyfdx make a pot each morning that gives me 3 large mugs if I want that much - usually 2 is plenty though.

On the Mazda CX-50: I like the styling of it very much. I like it so much better than the turtle-like CX-5 which I guess is finally getting a new design soon. But in following some Mazda forums I get hesitant. First, the brand as a whole seems to have almost as strong a cult-like following as some others which will remain nameless. If you read comments in those places Mazda can do no wrong and they are the bestest vehicle ever. But then you see the issues discussed in other places and wonder how they can possibly aspire to being a premium brand as they have stated. On the 50, the seats look good but there is a quality problem with the upholstery failing very early and apparently they are also rock-hard and uncomfortable. Even the cultish members admit that Mazda paint quality is consistently poor and there are often pics of relatively new cars needing attention due to poor factory paint. Despite making only 1 engine (the 2.5) and one transmission (the ancient 6-speed autobox they have used forever) those still have problems, especially the turbo version of that engine. Their infotainment system is unique to them and quite clunky. Then there is the whole CX-90/70 debacle where that model was rolled out to market badly underdeveloped and left early adopters with a host of issues leading to many buybacks and dumping them for other makes. I want to like their products, but the company just seems bizarre.

oldfarmer50

I wish Mazda still made their 3.7L V6. Ford did well with their version of that shared engine design and I bet Mazda could tweak it even better.

au1994

I’ve been Dunkin for years. Also in the camp that thinks Starbucks is hot garbage.

tjc78

Not sure if you remember but my Mom ended up in a CX-50 earlier in the year. No problems yet. She said she preferred her Murano… but not sure that is a fair comparison as the Murano is a much larger SUV.

I find it to be smallish for me but it does drive nicely and quality seems on par to me with the other mainstream brands.

Not sure about paint problems. Her pearl white is gorgeous.

oldfarmer50

I just spent some fun time crawling under my truck spraying Fluid Film and WD-40 into the fenders, bed rails and anywhere else my arthritis would allow. I now smell like a wet sheep but hopefully it will keep some of the rust demons at bay. Hard to believe I’m preparing for winter when it’s going to be near 80 this week.

Now I’m trying to decide on what snow tires to put on the rear, regular or studded. Anybody know how much it costs to add studs?

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe1 said:

tjc78 said:

@nyccarguy said:

Had an interesting car conversation with my best friend the other day who seems to have kicked his Chronic Car Buying habit. His fleet currently consists of a 2017 2 Door JK Wrangler Rubicon Hard Rock 6MT that he keeps up here in NY/CT (he travels here 2x a month for business), a 2017 Lexus LX570, a 2005 2 Door Wrangler LJ 5MT, his wife’s 2023 Genesis G70, & his son’s 2021 or 2022 Tacoma SR Access Cab 4cyl. Our topics always revert to cars somehow. I was telling him about the discounts out there on new Land Cruisers. He said he thinks they are cool, but after his smooth & powerful V8 Lexus he doesn’t think he could do a 4cyl turbo no matter how fast it is. Talking about V8s, is GM the only manufacturer that offers V8s in its full sized SUVs?

I can tell you that turbo 6 that’s in the Wagoneer will never make you miss a V8 in terms of power.

————————————————
There is more to it than just the number of cylinders and horsepower. Driving skill and how well you understand the car you’re driving means a lot. I’d venture a guess that if someone held a gun to the head of @roadburner and made him drive a Soul, and he left late, he’d still be on time for his dentist appointment.

jmonroe

Hey, the Soul does have sport mode you know.😢
————————————————
No, I didn’t know that. Sounds like a play on words to me.

jmonroe

roadburner

@benjaminh said:
Although we ended up getting a Subaru, the Mazda CX-50 is a great value. The base model is called the Select, and I liked it a lot when I did my test drive. Unlike the base model of the Outback, which is obviously a stripper, the base model Mazdas are quite nice, and have blind-spot monitoring, rain-sensing wipers, awd, and many other standard features. Plus the deals on some of the Mazdas are amazing. Here's one at my local dealer for $5k off the reasonable list price, meaning it's only $27.5k. To get an awd CR-V LX would be a lot more...

https://www.oxmoormazda.com/inventory/new-2024-mazda-cx-50-2-5-s-select-awd-awd-suv-7mmvabam3rn214318/

My son is looking to trade his F30 328i; I suggested a CX-50 but he wants to stay with BMW. So I suggested an X2 M35i; he decided that’s for him- now we just need to find a CPO.

xwesx

oldfarmer50 said:

I just spent some fun time crawling under my truck spraying Fluid Film and WD-40 into the fenders, bed rails and anywhere else my arthritis would allow. I now smell like a wet sheep but hopefully it will keep some of the rust demons at bay. Hard to believe I’m preparing for winter when it’s going to be near 80 this week.

Now I’m trying to decide on what snow tires to put on the rear, regular or studded. Anybody know how much it costs to add studs?

I haven't done studs or even had the option come up in a long time, but I want to say it used to be somewhere around $60 to add them (to a set of four), so I'd guess somewhere on the order of $100 nowadays. Studs give great traction for a short time, but usually they just end up getting worn down on dry roads, and then you end up with mediocre traction on tires that are terrible in the winter (if it weren't for the presence of the studs). I like the consistency and longevity of studless winter tires.

On your truck, I'd recommend Yokohama IG-53. They are an excellent balance of traction, cost, and longevity.

pensfan83

There's two coffee roasters that supply the household and one is located near my office and the other is in a part of town, the Strip District, we frequent a couple times per month for odds and ends like spices and other things that aren't stocked or of the same quality as the local grocery store.

qbrozen

Eh. I definitely can get my kid to baseball practice quicker in the Maserati than the Sprinter. I mean, when you have a few stop signs, the more powerful car is going to get you back up to speed quicker. Even if the handling were equal, that extra 2 secs times 4 stops is an eternity. ;b

kyfdx

oldfarmer50 said:

I just spent some fun time crawling under my truck spraying Fluid Film and WD-40 into the fenders, bed rails and anywhere else my arthritis would allow. I now smell like a wet sheep but hopefully it will keep some of the rust demons at bay. Hard to believe I’m preparing for winter when it’s going to be near 80 this week.

Now I’m trying to decide on what snow tires to put on the rear, regular or studded. Anybody know how much it costs to add studs?

No way I would drive on studded tires, if you plan on being on pavement. Might as well have metal wheel roller skates.

28firefighter

Picked up those tires. Just need to get them swapped on now. I love Facebook marketplace.

roadburner

I parked behind a new CLE53 today. My lovely bride gave it a thumbs-up. In person it doesn’t look much bigger than the C43. Definitely a possibility in a few years.

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

I just spent some fun time crawling under my truck spraying Fluid Film and WD-40 into the fenders, bed rails and anywhere else my arthritis would allow. I now smell like a wet sheep but hopefully it will keep some of the rust demons at bay. Hard to believe I’m preparing for winter when it’s going to be near 80 this week.

Now I’m trying to decide on what snow tires to put on the rear, regular or studded. Anybody know how much it costs to add studs?

————————————————
Strange what some folks do for fun.

jmonroe

jmonroe1

roadburner said:

I parked behind a new CLE53 today. My lovely bride gave it a thumbs-up. In person it doesn’t look much bigger than the C43. Definitely a possibility in a few years.

————————————————
Do the CCBA bylaws permit waiting “a few years”?

jmonroe

oldfarmer50

jmonroe1 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

I just spent some fun time crawling under my truck spraying Fluid Film and WD-40 into the fenders, bed rails and anywhere else my arthritis would allow. I now smell like a wet sheep but hopefully it will keep some of the rust demons at bay. Hard to believe I’m preparing for winter when it’s going to be near 80 this week.

Now I’m trying to decide on what snow tires to put on the rear, regular or studded. Anybody know how much it costs to add studs?

————————————————
Strange what some folks do for fun.

jmonroe

It’s better than stumbling around a ravine cutting brush and trees which is what I did yesterday.

jmonroe1

oldfarmer50 said:

jmonroe1 said:

oldfarmer50 said:

I just spent some fun time crawling under my truck spraying Fluid Film and WD-40 into the fenders, bed rails and anywhere else my arthritis would allow. I now smell like a wet sheep but hopefully it will keep some of the rust demons at bay. Hard to believe I’m preparing for winter when it’s going to be near 80 this week.

Now I’m trying to decide on what snow tires to put on the rear, regular or studded. Anybody know how much it costs to add studs?

————————————————
Strange what some folks do for fun.

jmonroe

It’s better than stumbling around a ravine cutting brush and trees which is what I did yesterday.

————————————————-
I’d say that’s a toss-up.

jmonroe

stickguy

I spent more time in the woods clearing brush and making a path for the fence guys. Can't say it is fun. But at least I work cheap.

Did buy new work boots yesterday though!

tjc78

@roadburner said:
I parked behind a new CLE53 today. My lovely bride gave it a thumbs-up. In person it doesn’t look much bigger than the C43. Definitely a possibility in a few years.

Want

jmonroe1

tjc78 said:

@roadburner said:

I parked behind a new CLE53 today. My lovely bride gave it a thumbs-up. In person it doesn’t look much bigger than the C43. Definitely a possibility in a few years.

Want

————————————————
For which residence? The 2 in Jersey or the vacation place in Turks and Caicos?

jmonroe

qbrozen

@roadburner said:
I parked behind a new CLE53 today. My lovely bride gave it a thumbs-up. In person it doesn’t look much bigger than the C43. Definitely a possibility in a few years.

I would have guessed a Mustang rear ended a Kia. Huh.

benjaminh

ab348 said:

....On the Mazda CX-50: I like the styling of it very much. I like it so much better than the turtle-like CX-5 which I guess is finally getting a new design soon. But in following some Mazda forums I get hesitant. First, the brand as a whole seems to have almost as strong a cult-like following as some others which will remain nameless. If you read comments in those places Mazda can do no wrong and they are the bestest vehicle ever. But then you see the issues discussed in other places and wonder how they can possibly aspire to being a premium brand as they have stated. On the 50, the seats look good but there is a quality problem with the upholstery failing very early and apparently they are also rock-hard and uncomfortable. Even the cultish members admit that Mazda paint quality is consistently poor and there are often pics of relatively new cars needing attention due to poor factory paint. Despite making only 1 engine (the 2.5) and one transmission (the ancient 6-speed autobox they have used forever) those still have problems, especially the turbo version of that engine. Their infotainment system is unique to them and quite clunky. Then there is the whole CX-90/70 debacle where that model was rolled out to market badly underdeveloped and left early adopters with a host of issues leading to many buybacks and dumping them for other makes. I want to like their products, but the company just seems bizarre.

Given that you currently own a high-end Cadillac iirc, I'm a little surprised you'd consider a Mazda. How many miles do you have on your car?

For some reason I convinced my parents to get the all-new Mazda B2000 back in 1986, and that vehicle served them pretty well for about 15 years, and my sister owned a 323 that was also a good car for about the same number of years. We owned a 2010 or so Mazda5, which was a weird mini-minivan, although it could seat 6. Got it at a good price with a 5-speed manual, and it was actually kinda fun to drive. But then weak crash results came out from the IIHS on the Mazda5 a few years after we got it, and so we decided to trade it in.

When I test drove the CX-50 I had a very mixed impressions of it. Some things seemed upscale even on the entry-level model, like the interior, and shocks for lifting the hood, etc. Had wireless CarPlay/AA, but the center console dial for using it would clearly take a while to learn. On the test drive I could tell that the car had a torsion beam rear suspension, as it felt unsettled over rough pavement. The non-turbo engine and transmission were also sluggish. I think the Outback is a bit more responsive and fun to drive even with the non-turbo engine and CVT, and the Outback's suspension is a lot better. The interior of the CX-50 seemed a bit cramped in the back seat and in the cargo area compared to the Outback. The styling of the CX-50 also seemed to me and my spouse like it was trying too much to be trendy, and we preferred the more functional design of the Outback.

By the time you put a turbo in the CX-50 it's getting close to the price of the CX-90, which is a much more luxurious, powerful, and roomy vehicle. It's on the large side, but the base CX-90 seems like a good value.

Anyway, yeah, Mazda does seem to have made some weird choices over the years.

Subaru also has some unusual choices, but Subaru's choices seem to make more sense from my pov. The boxer engine still seems strange to me, but it has a lower center of gravity, and makes possible the symmetrical awd.

Speaking of Subaru's awd, there are some videos that seem to make that case that it's a little better than some other awd systems, such as Toyota's. First five minutes of this video tries to show that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0GpR5Ga8XXE&t=324s

suydam

On our road trip to Connecticut to help out with grandbaby #2, due any day now. Decided to take the Kia. Good choice. As I remembered from the last time there are huge swaths of desert in Eastern California where there aren’t even gas stations, let alone charging stations. We could plug in the Kia in Flagstaff, but here at the hotel in Albuquerque the chargers are for Tesla only even though advertised differently. So It’s still very hit or miss. Given the other challenges of this trip I would not have wanted to deal with those hassles. I think in another 2 years it won’t be a big deal at all. Adding fast chargers to all the Love travel centers would basically make range anxiety a non issue. Kia is terrific — holds all our gear, is very comfortable, and I have to work at keeping it under 90 mph on US 40 — 80 is the baseline on that road. You are probably all used to this, but I am also loving adaptive windshield wipers. Haven’t had a chance to use them yet in Southern California. Adaptive cruise is great too. Love the upgrades these 2 cars have from what we had before. Nav on the Kia is definitely not as good as in the Blazer, there have been a couple of times I had to use my iPhones nav instead.
Currently at our hotel, watching my Dodgers and getting ready for the trip to Amarillo tomorrow. We planned one long day and two shorter ones, really glad we did that. Nice to be able to relax a little after a day of driving!