New Car Lust is Back

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

In what has to be one of the stranger trades of the year, I gave up a Lexus IS300 for a 2006 Prius. Each was bought to play to its strengths, and my situation changed from a curvy, mountainous weekend driving environment in Arizona, to a 25-30 minute city/interstate commute here in Florida (other than that, it has been a great move ).

My philosophy is the right car for the right drive. I've enjoyed the Prius enormously - gadgets galore (a weakness of mine), competent vehicle in its own right, and 55-60 MPG on my commute.

Oh yeah -- I've got a two-wheel BMW in the garage for the weekends.

 

[poboy]

Rich,  the two of us wife got a Prius last Thursday.  It does have bells and whistles galore.   I got her hand me down CRV, for important things (golf clubs).  She thinks I should sell my chevy pickup but I told her you don't go messin with a guy's truck.

 

[aaronc879]

If you've never driven a turbocharged car/suv before then make sure you test drive the CX-7 before buying it. I bought a Forester XT and I may now be too spoiled to ever buy a non-turbo vehicle again but it's not for everyone. Also if you like the turbo then you may want to consider the new Acura RDX. Nearly an identical engine as the CX-7 but the luxury and dependability of an Acura. If you want to stay under 30K then the new Toyota RAV4 V6 may be the best value. I would test drive all 3 or 4 if you include the Forester XT before chosing one. Their all similar but have distinct differences which set them apart from each other. Only you know which is best for you.

 

[FI@35]

fi@35, do you happen to know if i can put a hidden hitch on 350z for road & mountain bike? i'm considering summer travel around the country over the next few years. i've googled 350z hitch but don't find much.

I checked Nissan's website and they don't list a hitch in their parts section either. In the user manual, there's a section on towing but it's just a general section for all Nissan's. A trip around the country in a 350Z sounds like a lot of fun.

 

[Nords]

New car lust may be back, but our '94 Ford Taurus wagon was lusting after a new A/C evaporator core, a new transmission pan gasket, and other odds & ends for the 100K mile checkup...  

$2100 good as new, and I'm encouraged that the evaporator core won't rust out any more because at those prices it must be made of solid gold.

 

[saluki9]

Rich, I'm jealous

not about the Prius of course, but that two wheeled Beemer of yours

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Rich, I'm jealous

not about the Prius of course, but that two wheeled Beemer of yours

Gotta admit, the LT makes the Prius' hum-drum performance easier to overlook.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Uhaul says they can put a class 1 hitch on a 350z. That means you're limited to about a 1500lb total weight trailer that puts about 150lbs of maximum tongue load.

Dont know how "hidden" it'd be, but if you paint anything exposed the same color as the bumper, it'll be fairly invisible.

$120, not sure if that includes installation but I doubt it.

 

[Martha]

We had U-haul put a class one hitch on our Jetta. Works great. We have a bicycle rack that will go on that hitch and with an adapter, on a class three hitch. We also pull a very small trailer with the Jetta on occasion, most recently to haul some junk to my sister's house.

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Nope, doesnt include installation. Figure a couple of hundred bucks.

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

thanx for responses on hitch as i'd prefer a z over a stang. i'll contact u-haul & make sure before purchase. by "hidden" i was thinking maybe one could be attached facing down, hidden by the bumper, instead of facing back, then have some sort of adapter made for the bike rack. both bikes weigh in under 30 lbs each. i suspect the hitch & rack will outweigh'm.

of course i could solve my dilemma simply by buying an aforementioned suv though i'm going to deny in the very same sentence that i ever said that. also i'd have to rip the roof off.

as i mentioned on a prior post, when i asked a salesguy why there was no place to attach a bike rack he said, "that defeats the purpose of a sports car." i said "i don't want to haul a travel home; it's a bicycle."

 

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I had a bike hauler for my miata that worked extremely well. It was a rack with rubber bumpers that stood on the trunk and used a couple of sets of straps with rubber "u"s on the ends. You opened the trunk, hooked the rubber 'u's on the trunk lid, closed the trunk, snugged the straps and then you had a frame to lay and strap a bike to. Never made a mark on the car. On and off in 5 minutes.

This is similar to what I had, but not the same make. I bought mine at REI. They had several sizes.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000AAYBSW/102-9323635-8543347?v=glance&n=3375251

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

thanx c.f. bunny. i had something similar for the stang only with sway lines reaching out to the sides of the trunk. with my driving ya wouldn't want anything less. also i wouldn't take a chance on that with these bikes (they cost about as much as most people's cars, the mtn bike even has tubeless tires and hydraulic disc brakes same as a harley. it is very fun to ride.)

problem is with these sporty type cars there is often no place even to attach the straps. the t-bird's long flat rear deck renders a bike rack useless and so i have to trunk the bikes and only one at a time at that. not bad for short distance but terrible for cross-country as there's also no space inside car for luggage.

i could fit my old rack on a new stang, but the z trunk is fitted with very tight tolerance especially on the hinge, also has flat deck to rear & no place to hook up sway control lines.

also if i'm traveling cross-country i want to be able to lock the hitch to the car and the bike to the hitch and i can't do that with a regular rack.

er has made my life soooo complicated. ah, but it's worth it.

 

[Sheryl]

Sheryl, DW just bought a loaded AWD RAV4 Limited, V-6, leather and all. Wow...what a neat machine. Dual auto A/C, multiple JBL speaker sound system, traction control, stability control, hill control, moonroof, etc, etc. Those 269 ponies launch just over 3600 lbs like it was nothing.  It's noticeably bigger than the old RAV4 and not at all the same animal.  It cruises the highway effortlessly. DW better not let me loose with it on the open highway when she is not looking.

Cool!   That was my first choice before I saw the Mazda... I will be doing some comparisons  of the two.   The V-6 is definitely something I would like to have - after my last trip over the mountains.     It just seems bizarre to replace one RAV with another...it's not like I own stock in Toyota..... Oh, wait a minute,  I do.

 

[Sheryl]

If you've never driven a turbocharged car/suv before then make sure you test drive the CX-7 before buying it. I bought a Forester XT and I may now be too spoiled to ever buy a non-turbo vehicle again but it's not for everyone. Also if you like the turbo then you may want to consider the new Acura RDX. Nearly an identical engine as the CX-7 but the luxury and dependability of an Acura. If you want to stay under 30K then the new Toyota RAV4 V6 may be the best value. I would test drive all 3 or 4 if you include the Forester XT before chosing one. Their all similar but have distinct differences which set them apart from each other. Only you know which is best for you.

Thanks for the input.   I am trying to stay under $30k - but it won't hurt to check out the Accura.   As long as I don't take the slippery slope to the Tribeca...Tourreg...Lexus........ 

 

[aaronc879]

Neither the Tribeca or Toureg would be a good choice. They're over-priced and over-hyped. The Lexus RX330 is a very nice SUV but it's in a different league than the others mentioned even the Acura. I hope to own the equivelant of the RX330 when I retire but if I were to buy it now, i'd probably have to postpone retirement for several years. I assume you would too which is why it's not a good option.

 

[Sheryl]

Precisely. Not a good trade in my mind.

 

[VoyT]

Have to admit, I like the CX-7's looks and the price isn't bad. I don't like it's need for premium gas, however

I've been considering a new car for a couple of years myself ... most of the sedans out there are boring ... maybe I should look at the crossovers..

 

[garrynky]

I like my little ole Mazdaspeed Miata for the weekend. It's a turbo car that came out of the factory at 145whp. I've played with it and now it is a little over 200whp, fun for a 2500lb car. The wife got a 2006 Impala this year. I primarily drive my Z71 pickup, don't know why. I've got a 2001 Road King Classic in the garage so I have most of my toys for retirement...still I need a boat..humm.

Anyway, I think the turbo CX-7 would be fun to drive.

 

[free4now]

The CX-7 is a good looking car.   But from looking at photos, it looks like my Prius has as much room or maybe even more, and the specs say I get more than twice the mileage.

I think of the Prius as a small SUV without 4WD. The hatchback design gives great access and folding the rear seats down gives lots of room for hauling stuff. I can get a bicycle in the back without removing the wheels. In fact I can fold the seats down and sleep in the back.