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Automotive News & Views Chronic Car Buyers Anonymous
15300 messages, Last post on Nov 29, 2009 at 8:32 PM
You are in the Automotive News & Views Forum. Your Hosts are steve_ & claires
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I am ready to pull the trigger. Just have to make sure I know on what! And of course, find it. I did have a revelation Saturday. AWD is really, really good on wet roads! Test drove an S40 T5 AWD, on wet roads (and still raining). I tired hard to get it loose, and couldn't. Even punching it at a stop light, just gripped and took off. Quite a change from my Accord with the crappo Michelins (still have 7/32 on the tread too!). Whipped around corners with no fuss too. Very confidence inspiring. Giving up a couple MPG might be worth it given the lousy commute (distance, hills, curves, and stinky highways) I will have this winter. Fun car. RIde is a tad stiff/jiggly, but livable. A little concerned about the seats. They were harder than expected (not as big/cushy/padded as normal for "big" Volvos). But they should be OK. I hope. One thing the Accord does have is a quiet ride, fairly smooth, and roomy soft seats. Not enough support at the bottom of the backrest, but still comfy. I am deciding if I should go after a V50 (wagon) version of that car. Fun and practical, but maybe not quite comfy/luxurious enough for my aging bones! Should have grapped the '04 V70R with only 12K when I had the chance! I was high bidder on an Ebay auction for a 325 AWD wagon. Just no where close to reserve. Might go see that one in person, just in case they want to be lowballed (not likely at the BMW dealer, but who knows these days). Also just saw a local used car lot has a 2005 X3 that looked nice, but with 55K on it. But for the right price... I might have to give up on finding the V702.5T ('05-'06) I decided I wanted. Apparently there are none in the NE part of the country going to auction! I also decided I really like the '99-'00 V70R wagons, but that probably wouldn't make a practical daily driver when the daily driving is ~100 miles. Now if I had 2 cars to keep the miles down! Not that the wife is going for that one. If I end up not changing cars, I may have to go with new tries or snows on the Honda.
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Replying to: stickguy (Nov 10, 2008 7:10 pm) The V70 is a big step up from the V50, but you get what you pay for. Both are nice, its just obvious which is nicer. '99-00 V70R is definitely impractical for that kind of driving. I don't think I've ever seen one with exceptionally low mileage, so you'd be starting off with 100k, easy. JRL is always posting '04+ V70Rs that are coming to auction, so you should think long and hard about that now that you are on the AWD option. |
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the V50 is a bit smaller, and definitely "the "sportier" of the 2. Other than the cargo area room, the biggest difference to me is the trade off between sharp moves and comfier ride, and the 70 has nicer seats. I don't street race, and am getting old, so probably the Swedish Buick is a better choice! I just don't like the XC70, and the vast majority of the wagons available are XCs, or base engine 70s (too slow). NOrmal FWD or AWD versions are rare. I should have snagged the AWD one at Princeton about a month back. 44K on a CPO '04, on the web for $15,999. |
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Oh, if I got an older generation it would be as a 3rd car/semi toy. I would either keep the Accord for commuting, or sell it and get something older to beat up on. Trading the Accord for a fun wagon + something like a '98 ES300 for commuting duty would almost be a wash $$ wise (at least until maintenance comes up!), but we are already short driveway space with my sons car, unless I dump the Contour and let him drive whichever one of mine I ain't! Not sure the wife would be happy with this plan however. And the repair costs on a '90s R cn be staggering. |
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for all the X3 people out there, what kind of real world MPG can a 2005 X3 3.0 AT pull? Mostly highway commute, wither doing 65 or stop and go to sludging along. 90 miles or so a day, plus local putzing. Drove one. Nice unit. Could tell it was slightly "trucky" (probably tires and height) but nice. Also drove a 2005 325xit wagon. Nicer drive (ride/handling just tighter and more car like). SLightly smaller cargo area, but close and big enough. So other than the tallness factor, I like the wagon better for its more car like feel (being a car and all!). The 325 drove nicer than the VOlvo. More comfortable over all, similalr room but better seats. Just 1 my older with more miles, but fresh tires and CPO. ANd of course, probably more money! Orient blue over sand leather. My favorite color combo. Would prefer less than 49.5K on it, but that should be accounted for in the price. CPO until 3/11, so any problems won't cost me anything! need to go talk $$ and trade tomorrow, just to see. |
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I had the occasion to try out OnStar's much-lauded turn-by-turn navigation system yesterday. I will be keeping my portable Garmin nav system. First, there's no map display, which is kind of disconcerting. Then, there's no way to store frequently-used destinations. And, when you veer off course, it asks you whether you want it to recalculate--my Garmin is smart enough to figure out that I'm going the wrong direction and recalculates on its own. Finally, it told me I was "approaching my destination" when I was a residential block away and facing the wrong direction. BTW, stickguy, I think Orient Blue is one of the best colors.
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Replying to: stickguy (Nov 11, 2008 7:49 pm) The '05 has the 225 hp six, with 5-speed automatic from that year's 3-series. I would expect it to get similar mileage to ours.. The X3 is about as car-like as you get, but you still are lugging around 4000-4100 lbs, with poor aerodynamics.. We love it, but if I had a long commute, the 325XiT would be my choice.. On our '03 325i sedan, we averaged around 25-26 mpg in suburban driving... No AWD, but same engine.. Even with the AWD, I bet you could pull 27-30 MPG on the highway, depending on speed. Our 330Cic has the same engine as that '05 X3.. It's a great engine, but I vote for an AWD car over the SUV. If you are willing to go with an X3 (which I understand), what's wrong with the XC70? You seem to be a Volvo fan.. |
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Replying to: stickguy (Nov 11, 2008 7:49 pm) |
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Replying to: stickguy (Nov 11, 2008 7:49 pm) 2004 VOLVO V70 ASR $17,850 Black 38,181 Auto 2004 VOLVO V70 ASR $16,950 Silver 46,867 Auto 2006 VOLVO V70 ASR $15,950 willow 66,888 Auto 2005 VOLVO V70 ASR $17,950 Blue 41,450 Auto 2005 VOLVO V70 ASR $16,750 green 54,298 Auto Prices seem a little high to me. But maybe that Blue '05, if a 2.5T, with some negotiating? http://www.manheimimports.com |
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thanks for the input. The X3 was just a thought. If I still was working real lose to home and doing 1/2 the miles, I might go for it. I do actually like the 325 better. I like XC90s, but am not considering it for the same reason. Bigger than I need, and doesn't get very good mileage. But, If I needed to replace the minivan now, I might go that way. I saw the SS posting Q. I also saw a few of their listings on Ebay. They have some nice stuff, but pricey, but remember, there is always asking and taking on any car price! I have been working with JRL on Volvos. Just getting frustrating that there are no V70s out there, unless I want to downgrade to a base motor (too slow), or upgrade to a XC70 (don't really like the looks, but I should go at least drive one). Decided the V50 AWD wasn't quite right for me, so passed on that. I think the 12K miles V70R from a few weeks ago was the one I will regret not poaching. Wouldn't have been possible anyway the way the sale went. It just resold on Ebay fromt eh dealer in Oh that bought it for ~21,900 IIRC. Nice little profit for him. So, if the 325xiT doesn't work out, I will keep waiting for something good to pop up. May end up getting snows for the Accord just as a safety measure, or steal the Odyssey from my wife if the weather looks dodgy. She can always work from home if need be. I can't. If my commute changes in the spring to become more local (it might), then I will revisit the shole process if I still am driving the Honda. |
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