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2018 VW Passat SE w/tech, 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus w/tech, 2006 Acura TL w/nav
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive
It's still possible to lease a 2019 Acura TLX base for less than a 2018 Accord EXL (which is the equivalent model). Here's the national special on a new 2019 TLX lease:
2019 TLX 8 Speed Dual-Clutch Featured Special Lease
$299 per month for 36 months. $2,799 Total due at signing.
In contrast, the price to lease a 2018 Accord EXL at my local dealer with the same amount due at signing is about $350 a month—and that's with a discount of $2500 off of the msrp.
The Accord has more room in the back seat than the TLX, and it gets somewhat better mpg on regular gas, but for those considering a midsize car you might consider test driving the TLX. Imho the TLX is a nicer car with better handling (the 4-wheel steering that's standard on the TLX is really fun).
* Ride with the 18" wheels was kinda firm, but not too harsh, and pretty quiet.
* Front seats (leather) were comfortable even driving 6 hours a day with only one break. Seat heaters were welcome. I hated the way the driver's seat moved back whenever I turned off the engine. I bet there's a way to deactivate that feature, but I didn't have time to dig into all the displays to figure it out.
* Speaking of displays, I thought there were very complicated, with two LCD screens flanking the speedo plus the large center screen. I much prefer simpler displays and controls, such as rotary HVAC controls, but that's what I'm used to.
* Fuel economy was 27.5 MPG over the course of the week, with mostly highway driving. I estimate I would have gotten close to 40 MPG on my Forte5, but that's a much lighter car with less powerful engine and FWD. One of the reasons I rented a car vs. driving my wife's CX-7 was for better fuel economy, as that would have done no better than ~30 MPG. However, the seat heaters made up for the poor fuel economy. Funny thing is, the guy at the Hertz counter told me it was a hybrid (didn't say anything about AWD). I'd rented a Fusion Hybrid before and it got very good FE, so I was glad about that--until I found it it wasn't a hybrid. (Hertz also forgot to put a snow brush in the car, in Minnesota in late November. I let them have it about that when I returned the car.)
* I found out that when the headlights are in manual mode (which I had to use a lot as the automatic mode didn't turn the lights on many times when they should be on), they don't shut off by themselves when you shut off the engine and lock the car--they just beep at you. I thought it was odd for such an otherwise fancy car to not include an automatic shutoff. Even my cheapo 2001 Elantra had that.
* I was reminded why it's a good idea to rent a car for awhile before buying it. It snowed one might while the car was parked outside. It was ice on the bottom and snow on top. It took me 45 minutes to clear off the Fusion, because it has all kinds of nooks and crannies for ice/snow to collect in. The worst was the trough where the wipers park--terrible design for people who live where it snows. Then there was the brake light mounted on top of the outside of the rear window (another terrible design) and the rear spoiler.
Camry 24,545 -29.9%
Accord 23,367 +1.6%
Fusion 16,652 +11.8%
Altima 12,077 -36.7%
Sonata 8,173
Optima 6,669
Legacy 2,903 -10.5%
Passat 2,156 -31%
Mazda 6 1984 +20%
An AWD Fusion is rated @28 mpg highway, so the average isn't bad considering the cold weather.
There is no CX-7 rated anywhere near 30 MPG highway.
As far as the hidden wipers go, that design has been around since the 70's.
You could have just started the car, put on max defrost, let it warm up for a few minutes, and most of your ice problem would have been gone.
A comparison of 2019 Fusion and Malibu.
https://cars.usnews.com/cars-trucks/head-to-head-ford-fusion-vs-chevrolet-malibu
Kind of reminds me, I never see any new Accords and only occasionally a new gen Camry.
Hmm....
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Camry 29,093 -32.9%; 343,439 -11.6%
Accord 38,627 +29.4%; 291,071 -10.1%
Altima 17,064 -6.2%; 209,146 -18%
Fusion 16,052 -8%; 173,600 -17.2%
Malibu ???; 144,542 -22.2%
Sonata 8,705; 105,118
Optima 7,809; 101,603
Legacy 3,374 -26.5%; 40,109 -19.5%
Passat 3,116 +3.3%; 41,401 -32%
6 2,357 +32.7%; 30,938 -7.4%
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Rogue 42,523 +5.9%; 412,110 +2.1%
CR-V 42,079 +13.8%; 379,013 0%
Rav4 38,669 +18.8%; 427,170 +4.5%
Equinox ???; 332,618 +14.5%
Cherokee 20,800 +7%; 224,908 -7%
Escape 29m147 -23.3%; 272,228 -11.7%
Forester 17,642 +1.2%; 171,613 -3.4%
CX-5 13,741 -2.5%; 150,622 +18.1%
Compass 12,745 +46%; 171,167 +106%
SantaFe 11,347; 117,038
Terrain ???; 114,314 +33.8%
Tiguan 8,353 +45%; 89,476 +326%
2018 VW Passat SE w/tech, 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus w/tech, 2006 Acura TL w/nav
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Corolla 25,439 +27.4%; 303,732 -8%
Sentra 17,567 +4.4%; 213,046 -18%
Elantra 15,076; 200,415
Cruze ???; 142,617 -22.8%
Jetta 10,261 +42%; 90,734 -22%
Forte 7,709; 101,890
Impreza 5,880 -26.8%; 76,400 -11.2%
3, 5277 -6.9%; 64,638 -13.8%
Focus 3,661 -67.4%; 113,345 -28.4%
Golf 281 -64%; 6,642 -51%
C-Class 6,799 +4.6%; 60,409 -22%
ES 5,385 +6.7%; 48,484 -6%
Q50 3,690 -33.9%; 34,763 -14.7%
3series 3,184 -42.7%; 44,578 -25%
TLX 2,831 -8.7%; 30,468 -12.8%
IS 2,193 -21%; 22,927 -13.7%
A4 1,881 -56%; 34,566 -8%
MKZ 1,874 -18.3%; 19,852 -27.5%
LaCrosse ???; 15,527 -23%
Giulia 873 -14%; 11,519 +29%
ATS ???; 10,859 -17.1%
And now the Jetta outsells the dying Focus by 3 to 1.
2018 VW Passat SE w/tech, 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus w/tech, 2006 Acura TL w/nav
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
I do have one niece that never learned to drive (she is about 30 now), but she also has lived in Boston since college (in the city part, various places) so fits the bill of not being able to have a car anyway. That, and she did try to learn a couple of times, and IIRC it just was not something that worked for her.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Moving out to the suburbs, well, I can't imagine doing that without owning a car. Certainly not having kids.
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive
Owning a car in many cities is cost prohibitive, not just to younger people.
That being said, outside of those huge metropolis areas, kids still want to own a car or truck.
I have 2 kids, one will only drive a CUV/SUV. The other bought a sedan as their first new car.
I called Hertz a day before pickup and asked specifically for a Sonata, Optima, Altima, or Camry, as they have all of those in their fleet. They said they'd get one for me. Then I get an email that my Jeep Compass is ready! I called them and they said they thought they'd "upgrade" me. Sorry, a Compass is NOT an upgrade. I told them I rented a full-sized car for a reason (actually multiple reasons). They said they'd see what they could do. Fortunately the Altima had just come in and had been serviced when I got there.
If you look at any of the other popular midsize sedans, the front wipers are buried even more than the Fusion.
I was very happy the my stop/start worked today.
It hadn't activated in a couple of months, but I took an 80 mile or so round trip yesterday and it stopped the engine at most stops today.
Usually it doesn't activate in cooler weather until I drive the car 3 days in a row, average about 30 miles a day.
We figured with the M6 still in very good condition but starting to show signs of rust and with 160k miles, it was time to get something newer and lower miles (the Sentra has 68k). Plus my daughter would really like Bluetooth and a USB port, and the Sentra has those plus a lot of other goodies (Rockford Fosgate stereo, nav, keyless start, moonroof etc.).
I leased a 2010 Sentra S (same color!) for 3 years and it was a good car for me. Pickup isn't the greatest with the CVT, but she doesn't need to race around anyway. She likes how the Sentra drives.
I'm getting the car detailed next week (hard to do it myself in the winter), then put it on the market. If anyone in the Twin Cities wants a nice 2008 Mazda6i VE, let me know.
Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport; 2020 C43; 2021 Sahara 4xe 1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica Wife's: 2015 X1 xDrive28i Son's: 2009 328i; 2018 330i xDrive
Anyway, the car is worth at least $6000 for a private party sale and the loan is only for $4000, so low risk for them especially since they know I'm a long-time customer with an excellent credit history.
In fact, I'd say it's lower risk than loaning $30k to someone to buy an "average" new car that will depreciate like a rock, with a payment over $500 and not much in the way of assets, job history, or credit history--and "reputable" lenders do that all the time, right?
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
Aside from the 2020 Sonata, what else will be new in this field? There's a refreshed (but not all-new) Passat coming soon (saw it at the auto show in March, looks better than the current car but same underpinnings). Also the Legacy is redesigned for 2020. Since the Sonata has been redone there will probably a new Optima soon, and maybe a new Mazda6 since the current car debuted for MY 2014 which makes it I think the oldest design in the class. So quite a bit of action in this field over the next several months--think anyone will notice?
2020 Acura RDX tech SH-AWD, 2023 Maverick hybrid Lariat luxury package.
2018 VW Passat SE w/tech, 2016 Audi Q5 Premium Plus w/tech, 2006 Acura TL w/nav
Go to autospies.com for a bunch of the other brands.
I read a review of the new Corolla. Like other "compacts" it's grown in size to what mid-sizers were a few years ago. The new Mazda3 is bigger also, as are the new Forte and Jetta. That could be one reason sales of mid-sized cars is slipping--people who want a sedan can get a "compact" that offers plenty of room for most people but easier to park and maybe more fun to drive.
I also read some reviews of the 2020 Sonata. If it drives as well as it looks, it could be the top of the mid-sized sedan class when it debuts. Who knows, with gas inching up (I saw it for nearly $5 a gallon for premium while in San Diego) an economical sedan could win back folks who bought a truck or SUV but don't really need it.
The Lexus sells wayyy more volume due to the ES350, and the RLX mostly. I have to say that the Lexus lineup is looking good, if not derivative of the same design they have been making for years. My favorite was always the IS350, with a zero to 60 in 4.8 to 5.1 seconds, depending on the car and the aggressiveness of the driver. However, the ES350, stock....did zero to 60 in 5.8 to 6.2 (depending on which mag and reviewer).
Anyway, I still have my 2012 Kia Optima EX. It has a new engine, new struts,tires...all under warranty (and new brake pads that I paid $20 to install.
I also replaced the rear tint, now at 20% due to bubbling on the rear with the rear defroster being the culprit for causing bubbles in the tint. It got so bad I could barely see out of it. There was a Maaco shop next door at the Springfield, VA Fullerton Rd. location, and I had some pretty bad front end trim where the clear coat came off, etc. They took care of ALL of it....and it was a good bit of work, for $100. It no, after 7 years, makes it look brand new.
Sorry I dont post much-Chris