ICanSleepWhenI'mDead Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 if hyundai keeps doing what they're doing they are going to be the new benchmark, very soon. the sonata (did i mention i like turbos) is an a great car at a great price. i could have gotten my warranty extended to 10 years /100k miles for $3k through hyundai and i'm still kicking myself that i didn't. no other car company has the balls to do this. did you just get a letter saying there gonna send you a check every year that you own based on your mileage and local gas prices cuz they overestimated epa mileage figures? i was stunned. this is amazing customer service. This might interest you: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2012/11/11/Auto-Outlook-Hyundai-Kia-revise-mileage/UPI-73621352629800/ecently I attended an auto show this year - - great way to check out lots of different makes and models with no sales pressure. It helps me narrow down the list of what I want to eventually test drive when the time comes. I sometimes have headroom or legroom issues, so a few possibilities get thrown out based solely on ergonomics. For the most part, my auto show visit confirmed what I already expected based on past test drives some years ago and what I have more recently read. The big surprise to me - - I had very low expectations for Hyundai models, but the Hyundai Elantra GT is now on my list of future models to test drive. I don't know anything about its power or handling, but it felt like comparable models that I sat in costing way more $$$, and the warranty is a plus. Just my 2 won. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdog1960 Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 This might interest you: http://www.upi.com/B...2629800/ecently I attended an auto show this year - - great way to check out lots of different makes and models with no sales pressure. It helps me narrow down the list of what I want to eventually test drive when the time comes. I sometimes have headroom or legroom issues, so a few possibilities get thrown out based solely on ergonomics. For the most part, my auto show visit confirmed what I already expected based on past test drives some years ago and what I have more recently read. The big surprise to me - - I had very low expectations for Hyundai models, but the Hyundai Elantra GT is now on my list of future models to test drive. I don't know anything about its power or handling, but it felt like comparable models that I sat in costing way more $$$, and the warranty is a plus. Just my 2 won. elantra gt is based on their euro model the I30. meant to compete against other sport "hot" hatches like the golf, focus and mazda 3. we drove it and liked it. liked the variable suspension and it comes in leather with a 6 speed - as i said earlier this is rare. the car companies seem to think if you want a manual, you want inexpensive and stripped. humongous sun roof - it's reallly almost like a convertible. it's a bit slow off the start though. not gonna knock your head against the seat but if that doesn't matter to you i think it's a good deal. the best car in this segment, imo, is the focus st - it screams and has actual recaro racing seats. but there relatively hard to find (what is it with the companies not making enough to supply demand?). my business partner ordered one - supposed to take about 2 months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkyMannn Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 (edited) Btw, my best ride http://s967.beta.photobucket.com/user/Markymannn/media/picsof7-16-2009025.jpg.html?sort=3&o=27 Edited December 18, 2012 by MarkyMannn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdog1960 Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 for all you GM haters, check this out: http://www.insideline.com/buick/regal/2012/2012-buick-regal-gs-hits-162-mph-in-open-road-challenge.html. not your grandaddy's buick! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mead107 Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 Still driving my 2004 Nissan pu. Wife still diving her 2003 trailblazer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevbeau Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 (edited) I bought my 350Z from CarMax and it was a great experience. I don't want to buy brand new, and I just can't trust any of the million used car dealers in Atlanta. My goal for this week is to close with insurance, get a new car by Friday, and then get on the road to Buffalo to surprise my family for Xmas (as they think Im going to be stuck in Atlanta with no car, which is true right now). Wish me luck! If you're looking at Audis check online and see what other luxury dealers have in stock. My experience is that they're willing to deal just to get the car off the lot. I bought my Acura at Lexus dealer here in Atlanta, our Tundra from an Audi dealer and the Lexus ...actually think it was a Lexus dealer, but it was used. Got great deals and had a pleasent experience every time. Definitely stick with used in Atlanta. Not worth worrying about a new car with all the road debris, semis (cracked windshields) and horrible drivers. The Acura ('08 TL; 97K) replaced an '00 Accord two years ago that had 270K+ miles. Got in a minor fender bender and the adjuster took one look at the odometer and totaled it. The Accord is the only new car I have ever bought. For whatever reason, it ws only 500 bucks more than the used ones sitting on the lot at the time. Without that accident, I believe I'd still be driving it. Hoping to get to 300K on the Acura.) Lexus ('99 RX300) has 170K miles. Only had to replace wear and tear items. Wife considering a new car, but the thing still runs like a top. Replaced a Dodge Avenger that was in the running for the Annual Biggest POS Car. To the OP...highly recommend the Tundra if you're looking for a truck. Have had ours for two years now and it performs beautifully (towing horses.) Decent used market, as there's plenty of trade-ins from people who've babied there trucks. I guess the same could be said of all truck companies. I remember when we bought our first truck, it was mostly high mileage work trucks on the market. When we first got it, it would be the only Toyota in the trailer lot at the local park. Now seeing (and know people) who are using the Tundra for tow/haul. I'd still stick with a 3/4 ton for anything with living quarters, but the Tundra easily handles a 3 horse slant load (goose neck/no living quarters.) If Toyota every gets in the Super Duty market, I'm in. The Tundra replaced a '99 V10 F250 that was the bane of my existance. In fairness, the truck had a 180K on it when we sold it (2nd owners), but I was under the hood at least every other weekend. Don't want to know how much we sunk into it in parts/time/headaches. Mostly electrical/ignition/plug issues because of poor design (Known issues with the V10). Diesels are a whole different story and with a couple exceptions, most people I know are happy with their Ford diesels. Obviously I lean towards Honda/Toyota. They've done more than enough to earn my loyalty. Additionally, I have quite a bit of work experience with Japanese companies... know how focused they are on quality...and these two companies are the gold standard they benchmark against. Edited December 18, 2012 by Kevbeau Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mrags Posted December 18, 2012 Author Share Posted December 18, 2012 for all you GM haters, check this out: http://www.insideline.com/buick/regal/2012/2012-buick-regal-gs-hits-162-mph-in-open-road-challenge.html. not your grandaddy's buick! as much as I hate GM. There's a few autos I really like. My father has a 2012 LaCrosse. It is absolutely amazing IMO. I really like the Regal Turbo but hoped the interior would be more like te LaCrosse with the lighting strips all over and in the open areas in the doors and console. The other GM I like is the Tahoe and Avalanche. They are just so damn expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpmenow Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 How about all those high price european cars that are past their warranties that people buy. Not all gm cars are POS! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevbeau Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 (edited) Wasn't a huge fan of the feel of the acuras. I haven't driven but just looking at them and sitting in them, they seem like they are really heavy, especially front heavy. Just feels like they are not nimble in the corners. But that's my opinion based in looks alone. But your probably used to that since the motors in the audis are pushed forward so far. Haven't driven the AWD, but as an Acura owner, I'd completely agree with this. When I bought mine (about two years ago) I I test drove the @#$% out of the following. I'm in my car for at least two hours a day, so my primary interests were comfort and a decent powerplant that also got decent gas mileage. Also keep in mind it's the only FWD of the lot. 335 - Best perfomance by far. Blast to drive. Figured all that fun would cost me an arm and leg in tires & brakes. G35/37 - Second best driving performance. Interior fit & finish left a little to be desired, but chalk it up to personal taste. IS350 - Great performance, great fit & finish. Cramped Cabin TL - Great fit and finish, Worst performance of the bunch, but it's a stacked deck. Felt it would be the most comfortable for my commute. Edited December 18, 2012 by Kevbeau Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cantankerous Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 2007 Toyota Tacoma SR5 56,000 miles on it, 6 speed manual. 6 payments left...I can't wait til she's paid off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ICanSleepWhenI'mDead Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 elantra gt is based on their euro model the I30. meant to compete against other sport "hot" hatches like the golf, focus and mazda 3. we drove it and liked it. liked the variable suspension and it comes in leather with a 6 speed - as i said earlier this is rare. the car companies seem to think if you want a manual, you want inexpensive and stripped. humongous sun roof - it's reallly almost like a convertible. it's a bit slow off the start though. not gonna knock your head against the seat but if that doesn't matter to you i think it's a good deal. the best car in this segment, imo, is the focus st - it screams and has actual recaro racing seats. but there relatively hard to find (what is it with the companies not making enough to supply demand?). my business partner ordered one - supposed to take about 2 months. Thanks for the input on the Elantra GT. I share your preference for manual transmissions, especially in anything sporty. Handling is probably a little more important to me than speed, but I like fast as much as the next guy. My last 2 cars (with manual transmissions) had published 0-60 times of just over 7 seconds, and that's peppy enough for me. Unless you really need a new car right away, there are advantages to ordering one. You can get exactly the options you want, and it makes it pointless for the salesman to try to convince you that you need to pony up more $ now to avoid the possibility that somebody else will buy the car out from under you. I also think it makes it more likely that the salesman will believe that I know exactly what I want, and I'm just shopping for the best price. True story - - last time I bought a new car, we eventually agreed on a price for my order, and then they sent me to their "after-sale" guy to try to upsell me on stuff. I listened to and turned down insistent pitches for an extended warranty, and then for rust-proofing. The last pitch was for a service to engrave the vehicle ID number on certain parts that were the most likely to get stripped if the car was stolen. It came with a window sticker to notify potential thieves that the service was used, so that the thief would move on to a softer target. I told the guy I wasn't interested, but asked how much he would charge just for the window sticker. He sighed, showed me the door and said they would call me when the car arrived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpmenow Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 (edited) Haven't driven the AWD, but as an Acura owner, I'd completely agree with this. When I bought mine (about two years ago) I I test drove the @#$% out of the following. I'm in my car for at least two hours a day, so my primary interests were comfort and a decent powerplant that also got decent gas mileage. Also keep in mind it's the only FWD of the lot. 335 - Best perfomance by far. Blast to drive. Figured all that fun would cost me an arm and leg in tires & brakes. G35/37 - Second best driving performance. Interior fit & finish left a little to be desired, but chalk it up to personal taste. IS350 - Great performance, great fit & finish. Cramped Cabin TL - Great fit and finish, Worst performance of the bunch, but it's a stacked deck. Felt it would be the most comfortable for my commute. Looking at the SH-Awd version with the 3.7 not the 3.5 as much as I hate GM. There's a few autos I really like. My father has a 2012 LaCrosse. It is absolutely amazing IMO. I really like the Regal Turbo but hoped the interior would be more like te LaCrosse with the lighting strips all over and in the open areas in the doors and console. The other GM I like is the Tahoe and Avalanche. They are just so damn expensive. The interior is average with the top dog turbo, kinda disapointed May just buy another certified audi a6. I wasn't gonna do that again, however when your 6'3" not much out there. Not a SUV guy. I like too much performance. There are a ton of black cars in the TL 3.7 version. Dont want a black car. Edited December 19, 2012 by roush Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdog1960 Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 (edited) The interior is average with the top dog turbo, kinda disapointed May just buy another certified audi a6. I wasn't gonna do that again, however when your 6'3" not much out there. Not a SUV guy. I like too much performance. There are a ton of black cars in the TL 3.7 version. Dont want a black car. i'm wondering if you looked at the gs. it's an entirely different animal. the interior is very similar to many other euro sport sedans (not quite an audi but every bit as nice as a 3 series bmw which i find pretty uninspired) - baseball stitching, piano black dash, dials that are either backlit red or blue depending on the suspension setting you pick and the gs suspension setting is tight. the caddys are damn nice, too. we drove the 2 door cts with the vette engine cuz it comes in a std and awd - unfortunately (surprise!) they only had the auto, rwd on the lot. felt a bit unbalanced to me. just too much torque and for me to say that means a lot of torque. in awd and std tranny it might behave very differently. anyway, i think gm is making some very good cars now. these opel platforms are really nice and the chassis are truly great. now if opel and citroen/peugot merge as rumored there may be some even more interesting gm cars coming out. Edited December 19, 2012 by birdog1960 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HopsGuy Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 if hyundai keeps doing what they're doing they are going to be the new benchmark, very soon. the sonata (did i mention i like turbos) is an a great car at a great price. i could have gotten my warranty extended to 10 years /100k miles for $3k through hyundai and i'm still kicking myself that i didn't. no other car company has the balls to do this. did you just get a letter saying there gonna send you a check every year that you own based on your mileage and local gas prices cuz they overestimated epa mileage figures? i was stunned. this is amazing customer service. Nah, I bought my Sonata used and only new buyers qualified. I get ~36 mpg on the highway so that's in line with claims. I'm guessing that's because they run the front bumper way low like a NASCAR ride. I ended up catching mine on a bush and it tore right away. After some inspection I determined that it had torn away before and had been re-attached with some marine adhesive. I re-did it with some JB Weld and now park with the mind that everything is bottom-out risk. I did some Googling and found that the brackets used to attach the bumper are quite weak. No big deal for me as I intend to drive this car forever but that's something to keep in mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpmenow Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 Looked at lexus gs series too. Having a hard time pulling the trigger! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
millbank Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 Four Cars, Truck... Lexus 460, Mercedes E350, Pontiac Wave, Hyundai Elantra Limited, GMC Denali. I lucky to get the Pontiac Wave most days. Just recently purchased the Elantra and am most happy with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdog1960 Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 Nah, I bought my Sonata used and only new buyers qualified. I get ~36 mpg on the highway so that's in line with claims. I'm guessing that's because they run the front bumper way low like a NASCAR ride. I ended up catching mine on a bush and it tore right away. After some inspection I determined that it had torn away before and had been re-attached with some marine adhesive. I re-did it with some JB Weld and now park with the mind that everything is bottom-out risk. I did some Googling and found that the brackets used to attach the bumper are quite weak. No big deal for me as I intend to drive this car forever but that's something to keep in mind. yup. i lost some paint on a parking lot curb on my front bumper. doesn't seem loose though. never considered it might be that way for mileage reasons but that makes sense. it's low and barely noticeable but i'll be going to advance auto parts for some paint when it warms up. for what it's worth, i get 33 mpg highway in a 300+ hp car. they seem to know how to wring out the mileage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExiledInIllinois Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 Wearing an all-white silk robe, I explore my vast gardens with a Segway, when I'm not in my Rascal. LoL! We are not worthy! We are not worthy! Four Cars, Truck... Lexus 460, Mercedes E350, Pontiac Wave, Hyundai Elantra Limited, GMC Denali. I lucky to get the Pontiac Wave most days. Just recently purchased the Elantra and am most happy with it. Hey Mill... You got me on the Wave... Had to look that one up to see what they called it here in the States! :-) How about all those high price european cars that are past their warranties that people buy. Not all gm cars are POS! Who drives them past their warranty? Must be the poor men out there... ;-) :-P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Justice Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 Traded in my Volvo S60R for a boring Toyota Corolla in an effort to go green. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helpmenow Posted December 19, 2012 Share Posted December 19, 2012 LoL! We are not worthy! We are not worthy! Hey Mill... You got me on the Wave... Had to look that one up to see what they called it here in the States! :-) Who drives them past their warranty? Must be the poor men out there... ;-) :-P I do, had my A6 for over seven years and it has over 119000 miles. Traded in my Volvo S60R for a boring Toyota Corolla in an effort to go green. Sounds like a bad move to me! Must have fallen down and hurt yourself . Joking Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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