It was just 11 months ago when we bought a new 2010 Toyota Corolla. Here's the old blog entry:
http://taiwantotexas.blogspot.com/2009/08/new-car-blues.html
Well...that car is gone. Totally destroyed. Dead. Kaput.
Last Tuesday, during a major storm here in Austin, Christy decided to pull in front of a speeding car at an intersection. She claims she didn't see the other driver coming, and the other driver obviously didn't see her, because she made no effort to brake. The other car literally tore off the entire front of our car (see picture above.)
Luckily and thankfully, no-one was hurt. Had Christy driven a few feet further, the story might have been different.
We had just started with a new insurance company about 2 months ago, Progressive, and so far they've been pretty good about paying all the claims. They gave the other driver $981 dollars for medical expenses (even though by all accounts she wasn't even scratched.) They agreed to pay off the remainder of our loan with Toyota, and we still ended up having about $7,000 left over to get a new car. So yesterday, we had to again look for a new car, something I've always hated doing, and still do.
We went to three car dealerships and tried three styles of cars: The Hyundai Accent, the Toyota Yaris, and the Honda Fit.
I didn't like the Hyundai at all. It didn't feel smooth when I drove it. The air conditioner wasn't cold enough, either. The car just didn't feel like it was well made. To top things off, they didn't even offer us free drinks when we went inside! (if you wanted water, you had to pay for it.)
The Toyota dealer began things right by offering us Italian ice (for free!) the moment we arrived. Then they handed us about 4 bottles of bottled water right away. It was a hot day out, so it was definitely appreciated. I know this may seem like a petty issue, but I look at all aspects of customer service. What does it say about Hyundai if they aren't even willing to give their potential customers a free drink while they're talking business?
We came very, very close to buying a Toyota Yaris. It was a nice little car. Not as good as our old Corolla, but close. The sticking point was that they just wouldn't sell it to us at the price we wanted. In the end it just came down to $300. We wanted them to cut $300 more off the price. They offered $80. Christy wouldn't budge. They wouldn't budge. So, we ended up leaving. Had it been me, I probably would have just got the car, but this time I wanted Christy to handle the negotiations. Last year she complained that I didn't haggle for a big enough discount.
So our last stop was the Honda dealer. I thought the price for the Honda Fit was reasonable, and since we had $7,000 to put down, we knew it was within our budget as far as monthly payments. The Honda seemed like a far superior vehicle to the Yaris. It only required an oil change every 13,000 miles (instead of Toyota's 5,000), and didn't require any additional maintenance at all until the mileage hits 110,000. The engine has a lifespan of about 450,000 miles, and is (supposedly) impossible to steal (unless of course, it's loaded onto a tow truck and taken away, which is how they do it these days.)
The salesman at the Honda dealership was pretty cocky. He said the cars basically sell themselves and that Honda never gives discounts. He pointed out the reason that Hyundai and Kia give big discounts is because their cars have a very low resell value. Still, Christy wanted to haggle, and we did manage to get a small discount, but that was only by removing a few options from the car that we thought were totally unnecessary (like a plastic tray in the trunk of the car.)
http://taiwantotexas.blogspot.com/2009/08/new-car-blues.html
Well...that car is gone. Totally destroyed. Dead. Kaput.
Last Tuesday, during a major storm here in Austin, Christy decided to pull in front of a speeding car at an intersection. She claims she didn't see the other driver coming, and the other driver obviously didn't see her, because she made no effort to brake. The other car literally tore off the entire front of our car (see picture above.)
Luckily and thankfully, no-one was hurt. Had Christy driven a few feet further, the story might have been different.
We had just started with a new insurance company about 2 months ago, Progressive, and so far they've been pretty good about paying all the claims. They gave the other driver $981 dollars for medical expenses (even though by all accounts she wasn't even scratched.) They agreed to pay off the remainder of our loan with Toyota, and we still ended up having about $7,000 left over to get a new car. So yesterday, we had to again look for a new car, something I've always hated doing, and still do.
We went to three car dealerships and tried three styles of cars: The Hyundai Accent, the Toyota Yaris, and the Honda Fit.
I didn't like the Hyundai at all. It didn't feel smooth when I drove it. The air conditioner wasn't cold enough, either. The car just didn't feel like it was well made. To top things off, they didn't even offer us free drinks when we went inside! (if you wanted water, you had to pay for it.)
The Toyota dealer began things right by offering us Italian ice (for free!) the moment we arrived. Then they handed us about 4 bottles of bottled water right away. It was a hot day out, so it was definitely appreciated. I know this may seem like a petty issue, but I look at all aspects of customer service. What does it say about Hyundai if they aren't even willing to give their potential customers a free drink while they're talking business?
We came very, very close to buying a Toyota Yaris. It was a nice little car. Not as good as our old Corolla, but close. The sticking point was that they just wouldn't sell it to us at the price we wanted. In the end it just came down to $300. We wanted them to cut $300 more off the price. They offered $80. Christy wouldn't budge. They wouldn't budge. So, we ended up leaving. Had it been me, I probably would have just got the car, but this time I wanted Christy to handle the negotiations. Last year she complained that I didn't haggle for a big enough discount.
So our last stop was the Honda dealer. I thought the price for the Honda Fit was reasonable, and since we had $7,000 to put down, we knew it was within our budget as far as monthly payments. The Honda seemed like a far superior vehicle to the Yaris. It only required an oil change every 13,000 miles (instead of Toyota's 5,000), and didn't require any additional maintenance at all until the mileage hits 110,000. The engine has a lifespan of about 450,000 miles, and is (supposedly) impossible to steal (unless of course, it's loaded onto a tow truck and taken away, which is how they do it these days.)
The salesman at the Honda dealership was pretty cocky. He said the cars basically sell themselves and that Honda never gives discounts. He pointed out the reason that Hyundai and Kia give big discounts is because their cars have a very low resell value. Still, Christy wanted to haggle, and we did manage to get a small discount, but that was only by removing a few options from the car that we thought were totally unnecessary (like a plastic tray in the trunk of the car.)
I should also point out that at Honda, they had two enormous refrigerators filled with water, juice, and soda that were readily available for all their potential customers. A very nice touch!
So we bought the Honda Fit, and it seems like a nice little car. I hope it lasts us 10 to 15 years. I hoped the Corolla had lasted 10 years, but alas, it only survived for 1. Hopefully Christy has learned an important lesson on traffic safety (she has to pay a traffic citation for "failure to yield" as well as attend traffic school.) I think traffic school will be good for her. She learned how to drive in Taiwan, and their method of teaching driving is not exactly inspiring. Since she started driving, she has hit trees, posts, walls, and now...other cars. She even hit a pole while taking a driving test! So....yeah, she needs driving school.
As Yoda would say, she needs to "unlearn what you have learned!" Words of wisdom.
(Picture: Christy with our our poor, demolished Toyota Corolla)
You're lucky Christy didn't give you the middle finger when you were taking that photo! Seriously, thank God that she was not injured. Take care!
ReplyDeleteI would like Toyota over Honda, but still it's was a good choice than Hyundai,
ReplyDelete"Since she started driving, she has hit trees, posts, walls, and now...other cars. She even hit a pole while taking a driving test!"
Ya sure she needs a driving school and a good trainer as well to get ride of past driving habits
"All The Best For Her Next Drive"
Too close for comfort! She's very lucky to walk away from it. One or two seconds saved her life or from terrible injury. No doubt about it.
ReplyDeleteI believe you will be very satisfied with your new Honda. I have owned four Honda Civics since 1990 (two of them I bought for my lady) and they were absolutely the most dependable automobiles I have ever owned. The first one had over 150,000 miles on it when I eventually gave it to my niece and she drove it for another 70,000 before she sold it. All work on the car was basic maintenance... oil, tire rotation, fluids. Only the the tires and exhaust needed replacement. The exhaust because I lived in a state where they salt the roads heavily in winter. Honda makes supremely high quality vehicles.
Frankly, I am thinking of purchasing a Fit when I return to America in a year or so. It would be great if you give an Kensumer Reports update on your Fit next year. I would be interested to see how well it holds up for you.
I would recommend that you change the oil every three or four thousand miles rather than the Honda recommendation for 13,000 miles. That seems a bit of a stretch without a change. I don't care how advanced and precise the engine machining technology is.
Traffic school for the Mrs is a good idea. Where she learned to drive they teach people how to pass the test, not how to drive. Passing the test has nothing to do with driving in traffic. The entire educational system is about memorizing what you need to know to pass the tests and then forgetting about it all. Not the best practice when it comes to driving.
ReplyDeleteWhen we were in RSA we rented a Toyota Yaris and some kind of Honda. I liked the Honda much better.
And Hyundais may be crap, but your buddy Glen has had the same one since 1987. And he does not believe in things like tune-ups and oil changes. It must be a pretty solid car to last so long with him.