Update from me:
I’m now on my 2nd Porsche Macan: absolutely beautiful, easily better than anything else I’ve ever had.
@twojarslave EVs just seem to have no soul to me, I’m sticking with petrol for the foreseeable.
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I like the Macan. Up until the recent Cayenne GT is was my favorite Porsche SUV. Light, nimble, quick. Whats not to love? I don’t have any experience to judge reliability. My 911 has been ‘ok’ the first month I’ve owned it with a few nannies I was able to resolve simply over the phone regarding the display/PCM.
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75 buick century was my first…it was my mothers, bought it off of her for 500 bucks when i was 17
Favorite…1995 ford t-bird, t-roof, 8 cylinder, opalescent color…loved that car
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It has been a little while since I’ve shopped for used cars. However, something I found that I think you might find interesting that kinda backs up your post here is that on the used market, between the ES 350 and the Camry or Avalon there isn’t really a price difference. There is when buying new, but on the used market there doesn’t seem to be.
I noticed this more between the Camry and the ES 350 (I wasn’t really looking at Avalon). I kinda figured at the time I’d go with the ES 350, as it is basically the same with more features (I went a different direction in the end with a Mazdaspeed 3). I actually found the best deals on ES 350s if considering age and mileage. At the time I just figured the strong reputation of the Camry was responsible for the high resale price. I think that might have truth to it. I assume there is a lot more Camry cars on the road. Meaning lots of people have positive experiences with the car given Toyota reliability, and that V6 is a great engine. Maybe part of it is that the Avalon / Camry are just as good or better?
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First G-ride: a 1983 Oldsmobile 98 Regency I got from my older brother who drove it as his first car, which originated with my grandmother who had driven it for years (When I got this car it was 13 years old).
What a ghetto dream car! I put 2 15’s in the trunk and 6x9’s in the back seat, I put in a fancy digital stereo and a 6-disc changer in the trunk. The seats were factory velvet-covered. BUT it did have power everything (but it was SLOW power everything…windows would take about 15 seconds to roll up). I was one of but a handful of white kids in my high school and I played football. Man, all my teammates would fight each other for who would ride with me to go to lunch during school, or if we went out for fast food after football practices, etc. Every time there was one of them trying desperately to get me to sell them my car haha. We’d put on some bone thugs n harmony and with the weight of 5 big football players in it, MAN, that lowrider was rollin slow, choppin it up, shaking the shit out of other cars! LOL, it was fun.
The worst part of the car? Everything mechanical!! I had a paper route to pay for my gas and for general spending money, the only thing my folks paid for was the expensive insurance for a 16yo male. But the power steering leaked REALLY bad but I never fixed it (not sure why, thinking about it now…probably because I was spending all my money taking chicks out and getting BJ’s in my backseat lol), so I had to add, I’m not joking, a can of power steering fluid everyday before I headed out for school, errands, etc. And like once a week I’d add a can of stop leak to it too. The automatic transmission also leaked, not as bad as the pwr steering, and I had to add trans fluid about once or twice a week. To really put the cherry on top…and this is the god’s honest truth…after about a year of driving this car, the REVERSE went out/stopped working in the car!!! I shit you not!
So, I always had to “pull through” [I’m saying it like George would in a Seinfeld episode] where i was parking, so that I could just drive out of the spot. That, and I had to be deathly afraid of making the mistake of parking somewhere there was a slight incline and no room behind me, because if so I was finished. My worst/now funniest memory of this is one night at the usual after Friday night football game post game meal at Chili’s, I was running late and not thinking, perhaps I got my bell rung in the game, and I parked on a slight DECLIne…so I was nosed into a parking spot, with a car in front of me, and the reson for the decline is there was a sewage grate near the front of my car, hence the decline so water would run down into it.
When I came out afterwards I obviously had NO reverse, and I couldn’t just pull through the other spot since there was a car there. i had to solicit help from my buddies and some strangers to push this probably 3 ton beast of a car back out of the spot, while naturally everybody inside Chili’s watched and laughed. They did cheer though once I got free! Of course, I was praying to god that it would then start (I forgot to mention that the starter was finicky also).
Well, that’s my .02…oh, real quick best car? Man, I’d say for comfort and fun to drive, luxury, It would have to be my old 2018 Yukon Denali. That thing rode on pillows, had a powerful V8, and with AWD you could take a turn even on a wet road and never lose traction. Interior was excellent, seats comfortable. I loved that truck.
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Tell me about it. I learned about the situation here shortly after writing and posting my 5000 mile update/review.
Nice story about the Hyundai. My hope for the Avalon is that it will still be a great car to gift a young and deserving family member in 15-20 years. We will see what winter has to say about that though. I also started off with a land yacht, my 1983 Cadillac Seville with a continental kit.
@jshaving @pettersson I had a '09 Subaru Legacy before moving into my '14 Tundra and it was a really solid car. I found that their AWD system was actually better in normal winter driving than full-house 4WD in the Tundra. I would have been better off with an Outback and the extra ground clearance, but I’ve always been a sedan guy and I went with the Legacy. It can’t do what the Tundra does in the absolute worst conditions and really deep snow, but it’s an otherwise outstanding vehicle for people who get snow and lesbians.
@Polar-Bear I got to drive my uncle’s Chevy Bolt last week. He’s a man who could afford any car on the planet, but proudly lives on the cheap. He’s a big leftie too, so he’s really proud to have over-spent on solar panels for his home and an electric car that’s not very practical for his situation. But he didn’t buy it for the practicality, he bought it for the perverse satisfaction he gets from being extremely wealthy and keeping up the appearance of frugality. To give the man credit, he finally spent some of his money on a '19 Ford Mustang and had a lovely custom leather upholstery job done on it. That was a very fun car, even with the 310 HP V6 and not the V8. Manual transmission and RWD offers such a fun experience.
There’s a chance I go with a used Porsche as my mid-life crisis car when I turn 50 or so, but by that time the new Toyota Supras will also be a recipe for affordable thrills. I’ve always had a fascination with the Porsche brand while being limited by a Toyota budget.
@mnben87 In my opinion Toyotas only make a lot of sense when you’re looking at base trims. My Tundra was approximately 20k less than the top trim of 2015, and it is the same basic truck. Same engine, same drivetrain, same capabilities. It was also similarly priced to the upper trim Tacomas, which is what I originally set out to buy.
The Avalon XLE is the base trim, and it is priced similar to top tier Camry’s with the V6 option. The Avalon Limited is priced similar to base model ES350’s. The top trim ES350’s just have nicer interior and more doo-dads. In my opinion the difference between the base model Avalon and the top trim Camry is quite significant, but the difference between the base model Avalon and the base model ES350 isn’t.
I guess I’m stuck having to parallel park with the steering wheel, shifter, brakes and throttle instead of pressing a button. I also need to remember to activate the windshield wipers with the correct switch when it is raining, and sometimes even adjust the speed when needed. Lexus owners don’t need to concern themselves with such trivialities.
I was actually shopping for a base model 4 cylinder Camry as a daily driver, but none of the FWD 4 cylinders were for sale new and the used prices weren’t a good value to me. You get a lot of car with a base model Camry, but not if they aren’t for sale.
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What do you think about the Tacoma? I want to get a smallish truck to add to my options for bad weather driving, fishing, Home Depot runs etc. I am either going with the Ford Maverick, which is really small, or the more stout Toyota Tacoma. The Tacoma is real old tech but they hold value and seem to last a long time. I know they are coming out with a new gen soon, but I want something slightly used that I can teach my kids to drive with etc too.
I love Tacomas. The Tacoma is a body-on-frame truck, which sets it apart from many other small pickup “trucks”. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy any of the naturally-aspirated 4WD models. There’s a reason I see a ton of 1990’s Tacomas here in Maine and no 1990’s Ford Rangers.
Like most Toyotas, they are inferior on paper when comparing to other new vehicles, but this or that gadget or feature has never been the main draw for me, nor is slightly better theoretical MPG. Getting a good machine that will work as expected is the draw of Toyota. I don’t even particularly like the styling of either of my Toyotas, but I’m warming up to the Avalon’s lines and ridiculous grille.
In the case of a truck like the Tacoma, I’d start with your needs. Do you need 4WD? Do you need the towing and performance of a 6 cylinder? Do you need rear seats?
If not, look for a RWD 4 cylinder that meets your needs and you’ll probably be really happy with the value you get in a base model Tacoma, especially if you keep it for a decade. Or move up to 4WD or a 6 cylinder and you’re still getting a lot of truck for the money.
By the time I was looking at 4WD 6 Cylinder Tacomas with a double-cab, I was in the price range of the Tundra I ended up buying. Again, going with a near base model but with the best engine option offered. I got more room and all the truck I’ll ever need, while only sacrificing 3 or 4 mpg.
Edit: I’ll also add that teaching kids to drive on big, slow and clunky vehicles without any technological augmentation is the way to go. This isn’t like cursive handwriting, which isn’t nearly as important as my boomer relatives think it is. Teaching young people how to drive, park and do all of the safety steps that rely on your own brain and body is imperative to making sure you and I don’t get run over by your grandson’s Tesla while he’s swiping dates on tinder with autopilot in the driver’s seat.
I learned how to drive in a 1992 GMC conversion van with a V-8 and terrible handling. By the time I got my 2003 Pontiac Grand AM GT I had already logged 10,000 miles of paranoid and very careful driving in a conversion van. No tickets or accidents in the last two and a half decades.
I think conversion vans are due for a comeback, but I haven’t found the right airbrush artist to commission for my van art just yet.
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My first car and my dream car.
1970 Pontiac Grand Prix. It had the longest hood on any production car. Bought it when I was 15. My grandfather was a mechanic. We pulled the motor and modified it. I did a lot of street racing with it. Took it to high school drags and did quite well. Lost the last race to a Shelby Mustang. It was ET racing and the mustang was given a head start. I took my eyes off the lights to watch the mustang launch and it cost me the race. I had a lot of memories with that car and would love to get another one someday.
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My love for 1960’s and 1970’s Pontiac is what led me to my 2003 Grand Am GT. Unfortunately for me, the buyer, they were very different calibers of automobile.
The 1960’s and early 1970’s were a magical time for American cars, especially General Motors.
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I think I would like the v6 merely for the “giddy up” but this will be a Home Depot run truck mostly. I also live in flat / sunny Florida so I figure RWD will suffice. Thanks for you input. What you’ve stated parallels many of my own thoughts. I’m looking for a basic frills (power windows / locks / basic cruise) only truck. I think the Tacoma fits the bill.
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Picked up this little toy at the weekend first generation BMW Mini Cooper S, the one with the supercharger. It’s 21 years old and needs a little love. My son who is 10 is very interested in cars right now so I bought this so we can work on it together.
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I love that idea. Before I had kids, I built two classics. Both were complete nut and bolt / rotisseries restorations. I’m hoping my kids show interest in doing that one day.
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i would love to do a proper old school resto but just don’t have the time or workshop space. The downside of living in a city close to the beach is unfortunate land block size. This one needs mainly cosmetic stuff inside and outside to undo a load of dubious mods the previous owners have done. and then just some mechanical love. If he gets proper interested then I will consider a bigger project next.
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I drive a Tundra with the same V8 that twojar has in his. IMO, if you are buying used, go with a Tundra. You’ll get a bigger truck with a bigger engine and if you think you don’t need that, well, you never know. What are the downsides? MPG, but a V6 Tacoma doesn’t get great mileage either. If you were looking for a daily driver maybe you would notice the difference but as a vehicle you won’t be driving a lot the extra money you spend on gas won’t be noticeable. What about price? Used Tundras are more than similar years and mileage trucks from the Big 3. They hold their value more and 100K miles on a Tundra (or Tacoma) is considered barely broken in. It’s not the same with the Big 3. If you compare the prices of used Tacomas and Tundras, especially V6 Tacomas, there isn’t a huge difference. As stated, a base Tundra is around the same price as the most expensive versions of the Tacoma.
So I would echo twojar and say that if you want a Tacoma, go for the 4 cylinder basic version as there will be a difference in price but if that doesn’t exactly ft your needs, maybe you want a backseat or maybe you need more cargo room, then you might as well get a Tundra.
This is exactly what I went through. Tacomas are more expensive than you would imagine.
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I agree wholeheartedly with everything you said. The big “but”… I need a small footprint for my driveway. I already have 3 vehicles and I won’t need to shuffle cars, barely, if I get a small truck. I’m just looking for a bad weather all purpose vehicle on the days I don’t want to drive my 911. I’m even considering a Ford Maverick as it’s even smaller than the Taco. I know, true truck guys will scream in horror.
Get a old Subaru Brumby “Brat” Thats small and a resto job at the same time. LOL
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Just go with the most base model RWD 4 cylinder Tacoma you can find with good maintenance records. In 20 years you will still be reaping the rewards of having the same un-luxurious, utilitarian vehicle that you forced your children to drive while they stared at your other cars.
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I know you mentioned slightly used but the last time I checked a used Tacoma that’s a couple of years old is not that much lower in price than a new one. They really do keep a lot of their value. And when you are talking about Toyota trucks, slightly used means something different than so called American trucks. I know nothing about the Maverick but I know one guy who has an older Tacoma, it’s gotta be close to 20 years old, that looks brand new and has given him no major issues. He said he wants to get a new vehicle but can’t justify it given his current one runs great.
I know someone else who traded his Tacoma in for a Suburu and even though he liked the Suburu, he regrets getting rid of his Tacoma. I see Tacomas all of the time which says something about them.
I think this is a big reason why they get so much love from their owners.
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You’re spot on.