Cars I Might Buy in 2013
Posted September 15th, 2010 @ 09:04pm by Erik J. Barzeski
Our next car purchase is not slated for another three years, but I'm writing down some cars I like now so that I can get a bit of a head start. It'll also be interesting to see whether these cars even exist in three years or what changes they've undergone.
In no particular order:
- Acura RDX
- Nissan Rogue
- Nissan Juke
- Honda Crosstour
- Ford Escape Hybrid
- Ford Explorer
- Kia Sorento
- Buick Enclave
- Subaru Outback
- VW Jetta Sportwagen (or TDI)
- VW Tiguan
- VW Passat Wagon
- Volvo XC60
- Hyundai Veracruz
I may update this list from time to time.
Donate Life
Posted 17 Oct 2010 at 8:30am #
No Mazda?
Posted 17 Oct 2010 at 3:37pm #
[quote comment="63021"]No Mazda?[/quote]
Nope. Didn't see any I liked. I did look.
Posted 17 Oct 2010 at 7:18pm #
Came across your website when I was googling for NSlog documentation. Great name!
What about a more radical alternative?
http://editorial.autos.msn.com/article.aspx?cp-documentid=434468
We're doing it, and the money we save is going towards our next trip to Australia.
Posted 18 Oct 2010 at 7:38am #
What is happening in 2013 to necessitate a new car purchase?
Posted 18 Oct 2010 at 4:14pm #
[quote comment="63027"]What is happening in 2013 to necessitate a new car purchase?[/quote]
We're just on an eight-year plan. We replace one car every four years, and each of our cars every two years. We may keep the Forester we have now for our kid (it'll be within a year and a half of her being able to drive).
You might say that's dumb and we should drive our cars until they cost more to keep up than a "new" car would cost to own, and we're not the type to want a new car every two or three or four years, so we think it's a sane medium to replace cars after eight years. They still have some resale value and still run well enough that you've not risked getting stranded or broken down or something.
Posted 05 Nov 2010 at 1:01pm #
I can give you a bit of perspective on the Nissan Juke (AWD-SL Model) if you'd like:
I imagine if you have this car on your list, it's because you liked the way it looked first and foremost. The number one thing about this car is that everyone either loves or hates the way it looks. So far I've been stopped a few times as I'm getting into the car by folks asking about it...which means it's doing its job in the looks department.
Drive:
The nifty thing about the car from this perspective is the I-Con system, which lets you adjust whether the car is in sport, normal or eco mode. What each of these modes do is adjust the steering, handling, gear shifts, climate control for the car to give it a different feel. I can genuinely say that you do feel a difference between these different modes and is very fun to play with.
It handles corners like a champ thanks to the AWD-V system. I take turns way too quickly right now because I love the feel of it.
You can also turn the car into FWD, AWD-Vectoring and AWD modes depending on your needs. AWD-V and AWD modes function very similarly, so it seems more like a fuel economy decision more than anything between AWD and FWD.
Very very nimble car with nice pickup due to the turbo. There is turbo-lag, however. You feel your turbo kick in at about 2500 rpms in first gear, and then you're good to go for the rest of it's shifts.
The car is rated at 25 city, 30 highway, but mileage results in the Juke forums appear to be closer to 23-27. I'm personally getting about 23 on average due to massive amount of stop and go traffic in the morning and my liberal use of sport mode. The gas tank holds 11.7 gallons in the AWD model, so you're filling up every 250 miles, and the manual recommends premium (91+ octane) fuel, so keep that in mind as well.
Driving the car really is fantastic, though. Easily more fun and safe than my old 2008 Mazda 3 sGT.
Also, this is what it can look like at night if you have the fog-lights:
http://i13.photobucket.com/albums/a278/Rubxqub/photo-9.jpg
RARRRRR!
Interior:
Think of the interior much more like a Mini Cooper than an SUV. The front two seats are very comfortable, and in the drivers seat you feel like you're driving an SUV height-wise, but the performance feels like a mid-level sports car. It takes some getting used to, but I enjoy the viewing height for safety reasons so it's perfect for me. The height to the roof is pretty shallow, so if you're very very tall, you may want to test it out to see how you do. I'm 6'1" and fit in the car fine, and the only issue I have is when I wear a baseball cap that's pointing in the air a bit instead of straight. This is also due to the moonroof that came in the car I have, which traditionally lowers the roof an inch or two. The trunk is pretty tiny, but the two back seats fold perfectly flat for a lot of storage space if you need it.
The upgraded speaker system that comes with the Nav package is pretty decent. General consensus is that the quality of the sound is below that of other upgraded speakers people have used, and I'd agree, but it makes up for this by packing a hell of a punch with the bass. My old Bose system in my Mazda 3 was clearer, but listening to music was never quite as fun as it is in my Juke since you "feel" it more. This will vary based on your musical tastes of course.
The built-in Nav system is a nice feature for little money, but it feels very much like a system that needs an update. While the automatic traffic feature is great, the system doesn't do a good job of letting you know ahead of time just how far up ahead the next turn is until you're within a close distance of it (distance dictated by road speed, so you always have time to react). I'm used to seeing an onscreen graphic for "turn in 53 miles" that I can eyeball as I'm driving to let me anticipate the turn more. Gets the job done without question, but it could use some work.
Bluetooth integration in the car is also a nice feature, but also feels like they need to tweak it a bit. Pairing up to my iPhone was simple, and receiving calls is simple, but MAKING calls can be very cumbersome. There are a series of voice prompts the system wants to drill down to the person you're trying to call from your phonebook. Once you get used to it, it's not that big a deal, but it does feel a bit clunky. Also gets the job done, but could use a bit more tweaking.
There are some neat little features included as well such as a backup camera with guidelines (great for backing into spaces), heated front seats, climate control, a moonroof, auto-on headlights, tire pressure monitors, all the trip information you could want (time, mpg, avg speed, distance) and more.
The neatest thing electronically that I don't think exists anywhere else yet is the Climate and D-Mode buttons in the car. There is a set of controls under the nav system that when in climate mode look like climate buttons, and when in D-Mode look like driving and setup buttons. You need to see it to understand it, but basically it looks like a bunch of hard labels completely change to a different set of hard labels with the push of a button. Insanely cool and space saving. You can see it in action here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=53UGGuJpdAs#t=0m39s
Conclusion:
The car is insanely fun to drive, looks fantastic, but leaves something to be desired in the backseat and trunk space departments. The front seats are comfy, and the I-Con system both looks and performs wonderfully. While the bluetooth and nav components could use a little work, they get the job done.
It looks great and it drives great. If these are the biggest interests you have in a car, you won't be disappointed. If you're looking for something that is a bit more roomy or practical, this car may not be for you.
Feel free to shoot me a PM over at the ST if you have any questions!
...and happy hunting. Car shopping is fun 🙂