I’ve had my truck for the past 3 years now and I can’t say anything bad about it. It’s getting old but it’s strong as an ox, unless you count the exhaust system which seems to be its Achilles’ heel. It also drinks gas like a shark (no fishes here). So with gas prices going up and my truck limping with a rear suspension that is going bad or already there depending on how you look at it, I’ve decided that now is a good time to look at a new ride.
I’ve been going back and forth between a used car and a new car. I’ve always driven a used car and I haven’t had too many problems with them, but they all have had if not 100,000 miles, pretty close to it. My Pathfinder affectionately named Blue Bandit started in my care with 79,000. We’ve been through a lot, Trips to NC, FL, moving folks, hauling, and 3 stereo systems. He’s my buddy and the work horse of the family, so I know that with good care cars can provide you with years of service.
Another thing about used cars is that you can get a higher priced vehicle for the same amount that you would pay for a new lesser vehicle. So I can get a BMW 5 Series used for the same price as a used Toyota Avalon, the BMW will have more miles on it but it can be yours if that’s what you really want. I’ve gone through my BMW phase. Not more than 2 years ago I said, “My next car will be a 530x or 535x (with the twin-turbos *drool*). I was adamant about acquiring that vehicle. Hell I was young I can technically afford one, used and as a status symbol (not my main consideration however) it said I was going places. Fast forward 2 years later and here I am on the cusp of purchasing a new car and the 5 series is little more than an afterthought. I thought about it but in my present situation I knew that owning one would require either a huge bank account, or buying a used one with more miles on it than I wanted to have on my next car.
After some research and some test drives I have landed on 2 cars that I think will fit that bill for me nicely. This is just a preliminary list as there are still a few other cars I want to research but for now we have, in this corner we have the 2011 Subaru Legacy Limited and in the other corner we have the 2009 Volvo S60.
An upstart has entered into the competition. Coming in at the last minute is the Acura TL. The fiancé and I took a test drive in the 2011 TL AWD with the Technology Package. It was quite nice and I’ll have a more in depth review in another post. So there you have it. The contenders have been picked and now the brawl is on.
More to come soon