Teamwork wrote:
That's what kind of worries me a bit that you got a 2017 and are already planning on your next car... What makes it even worse is the fact that the car 300 is probably one of the cars I'd consider when I decide: A) manual is done for daily drive usage and B) I need to upsize class. I figure if I dealt and felt the brunt of "German reliability" that to follow up would possibly be the only time I ever consider an "American" product. I mean if it is somehow worse then the German experience then I know I'll just go crawling back to Germany... if it's better then the German product then I'd chalk it up as a W... Seems like a win/win trial in my book where I can actually afford to make expensive mistakes.
i don't think i'd easily consider an FCA mobile, despite having had VWs. my experience w/ VW also seems to have been much better than yours, to the point of not considering them (or at least the 2 cars i've had) unreliable. the new dealer is also much better than the one i bought and serviced the jetta at. the golf is also much nicer than the jetta was (higher spec and better quality interior etc.). where i see the bigger cost is on the service side. oil changes, whether done at the dealer, at jiffy lube or at home, are more expensive (MOAR oil, no cheap oil option that i know of, special filter and drain plug). other parts like windshield wipers, filters, etc. are specialized and hard to find cheap. advance auto has had every part listed wrong for the ones i've tried to buy there, and ended up not having any of the right parts. these things are not major to me, since i don't have to replace them every time i turn around. as for the manual thing, i told this to BK in private, that he (and you) should enjoy driving manual while you're able to and while you enjoy it. not that all of you are going to get fat and have joint and other issues like i have, but there will probably come a time when you become less enthustiastic about shifting your own gears. not that you'll truly regret not having driven manual up until then, but this is the time to be doing it, while you can and while you like doing it.
In my mind though Potown still has the Honda Accord Sport (brain can't update for some reason- thankfully he changed his avatar) and you still had the Mazda 3 though...
yeah, accord sport was a good car, but i don't think it was as nice as it looked. it was quick enough, it was quiet enough, economical enough, etc. but it also had its shortcomings. it had a rough ride (this is one area where an SUV like the CR-V is better than the accord, IMO - the higher ride height and softer suspension of the CR-V, while not helping much with handling, made for a much smoother ride. it didn't have comfortable seats - despite the adjustable lumbar support, which did come in handy and helped, the seats were still hard and cheap feeling. the stereo was the lowest end SPL and SQL wise (both power and sound quality wise - plus it just had 4 speakers) but was okay for me. i didn't really think it was bad once i got the EQ setup right, and that was coming from the much more powerful CR-V stereo.