Dad's lookin for a new car...

[moonlite5hadow]

a 110 mile daily round trip in his Ford Ranger is killing him, so he's looking for another car, something right around 30MPG. he's narrowed it down to the Nissan Altima 2.5 SL and the 2.4 liter Honda Accord. He's pretty much decided on which one, and i agree with him, just wanted to see what anyone OTHER than a salesman has to say about these choices. its all going to boil down to who can give him a better trade in value on the Ranger that he still owes on.

[Qyn]

These cars new or used?

[cbogg]

I like the new altima personally

[hyunelan2]

New Altima = CVT transmission, which is unknown as to how long (and how much money) it will take before giving up.

Also, the Accord has much more interior space than the Altima, the Altima feels kinda narrow. Compare that with the fact that the Accord is ugly as sin, and it's a statistical tie, IMO.

[Doohickie]

If he's using it primarily as a commuter, the size doesn't count (as long as the driver seat is roomy enough) and the Nissan wins. I wouldn't expect either car to get 30 mpg unless the commute is virtually all open freeway driving. There are no fuel economy numbers for the CVT on Nissan's site, but for the AT, fuel economy is only 23/31. He'd be lucky to get 27 mpg on average.

[moonlite5hadow]

they're both new '08 models.

I agree with you, Hyunelan, on the CVT thing. Its new to me. sounds like more moving parts, which equals more things to go wrong.

My dad doesn't seem to be too concerned with the overall size of the car as long as there's room to haul light loads as he occasionally does with his job (suits in garment bags, work from home etc...) and both seem to have sufficient room on that. Personally, CVT aside, I'd take the Accord. i like its interior better, more HP on a (very) slightly smaller motor (2.4L for the accord vs the 2.5 on the altima), it looks a little more sportier and the specific Accord we looked at only had one dealer add-on vs the 6-10 add-ons on some Altima's, which also kicked up the price of the altima near $30,xxx vs. the $26xxx for the accord with only wheel locks added.

we'll see how it goes. seems like he'll be getting this all done next weekend or the weekend after. I also seemed to have talked him into a CAI for either car when he gets it. NOT to be installed by the dealer... *slight rant* the nissan dealer we went to said they would put on the CAI themselves for about $800 (including the price of the intake) :eek:

I told my dad I would do it for free if he got the intake. I used that whole $100 = 1whp idea. like my Elantra, he wants the intake mainly for the sound though :D

Also, that dealership had the baddest *** 350Z I've seen (not the NISMO). then the guy asked me if I would be interested in trading in my XD. Hell no.

If he's using it primarily as a commuter, the size doesn't count (as long as the driver seat is roomy enough) and the Nissan wins. I wouldn't expect either car to get 30 mpg unless the commute is virtually all open freeway driving. There are no fuel economy numbers for the CVT on Nissan's site, but for the AT, fuel economy is only 23/31. He'd be lucky to get 27 mpg on average.

His commute is about 53 miles one way, and ~51 of it is freeway. we took a drive out there today and used the trip meter to measure that. The CVT sticker stated 29 higway. I told him theres roomy cars with just as much space (accent, elantra, versa etc...) that get low-mid 30's, but he's set on a big car with a 4cyl. he's never been known to make sense all the time... :D He likes my XD in terms of room and hauling capacity and I even told him how on one lucky 500mile round trip with two passengers and cruise at 75mph I averaged about 40 mpg. I honestly think he's going with fuel economy with a tiny bit of status by looking at these cars, cause lord knows he could get a Yaris or a Fit as well and get about 10-12 mpg MORE on highway. I wouldnt be caught dead in those either.

[ilanpro]

Get a Civic Hybrid for that commute, I would but I like my Elantra

[moonlite5hadow]

Get a Civic Hybrid for that commute, I would but I like my Elantra

i mentioned hybrids, but he doesn't buy that idea much at all.

[WytchDctr]

they're both new '08 models.

I agree with you, Hyunelan, on the CVT thing. Its new to me. sounds like more moving parts, which equals more things to go wrong.



actually CVTs are very simple even compared to a manual, much less a standard slush box automatic. The real question is how long is that belt going to last and how big of a PITA is it to change.

[cbogg]

the nissan cvt's from what I've seen aren't any less reliable than a regular autobox. our company cars are all '06 altimas with the cvt's, most have at least 60k on em, and all are completely beaten mercilessly everyday, so I don't see why anyone would not buy a nissan because of that.

[2001VE]

Brother in laws Murano just had a major rebuild on a CVT 10k out of warranty. There are less parts and the design is simplier than most automatics. But it cost him close to 5 grand on the dealer rebuild. It also died a second time two weeks after the rebuild and went back for further tranny repairs. He doesn't beat his cars and it was dealer ship serviced. Most CVT are supposed to get roughly 10% more fuel economy over regular automatics; that is the biggest selling point. Reliabilty I'm not so sure about. Do some research. My 2$.

[BobMs_wht2k2]

Sonata 2.4L. Easy solution.

Honduh's K24's are oil burners. I've warned locals in the past and everyone of them has said "Thanks for the heads up. It does eat a quart every 1000-1500 miles."

The CVT's are a joke, mix that with Nissan's so-so reliability and you're BEGGING for problems.

[Tommy]

if you've never driven a CVT, its a very awkward experience. I had a rental car awhile back with one and it was awful. Youd be stepping on the gas, watching the rpm's rise, but the car wouldnt go any faster.. it was just like the transmission was slipping or the clutch was held in, but it wasnt.

but yea, +1 for the 2.4l sonata.

[cbogg]

was the rental a chrysler? from what I've noticed the Jatco trannys in the nissans are programmed differently, and feel just like a regular automatic. the jatco box in the caliber, although built the same as the ones in the new sentras, have that real bad slipping feeling. I think it's in the programming. they also feel like they don't "let off" when you take your foot off the gas, and it feels like it's still surging for a split second. it's kinda disconcerting, which is why I'll never buy a caliber, unless it's the srt.

[Tommy]

haha, it was a Caliber. Biggest peice of **** ive ever driven. Worst 2 weeks of driving ive ever done in that plastic catastrophe of a car. I was talking to the sales guy at the dealer after I was done with it and he was like, yea those things are awful. Said his wife liked they way they looked, so he let her drive one for a weekend. Said her mind was changed by saturday afternoon.

[SWortham]

Of those choices I'd pick the Accord.

I agree with Bob that the Sonata is also worth considering even if I do think the 2.4L is too weak for that car.

But outside of those choices I'd pick the Volvo C30 to commute comfortably with style. Base model starts at $22K, which would be $2k more than the base Accord. But it'd be uber-comfortable, more powerful and fun to drive with 227 hp. And it would get 22 mpg city / 30 mpg highway thanks to efficient aerodynamic design and relatively low weight at just under 3,000 lbs...
http://www.carpages.co.uk/volvo/volvo_images/volvo_c30_04_10_06.jpg

But looking at these cars on paper is one thing. Time for some test driving. :)

[cbogg]

I would have to agree with mr wortham on that volvo, that's not a shabby idea, it's better than a smart! (unless dad's getting one with a hayabusa swap, then that's a different story entirely)

[xdforme22]

hahaha, that car is crazy. I agree with you too. The sonata would be a good choice, but the volvo is nice as well. As far as the two listed, I'd lean toward the honda.

[moonlite5hadow]

wow, lots of input here on things my dad and i never considered. I also mentioned the new 2.4 sonata, even the new HD, but my dad refuses to buy hyundai's now. i dont see why, honestly. He's really picky, he wanted a cedan with a medium amount of room to haul office stuff, but an engine with some balls. I told him you wont really get any "umph" out of a big 4-banger, but 6's eat gas. Talked to him alst night and it seems hes about 98% set on th Altima. I'll jsut wait and see what he says about the tranny after he drives it. he hasn't done any test drives just yet, but he probably will this weekend. I'll make sure he does some gas-pedal-mashing on an on-ramp to see what the trans feels like.

[moonlite5hadow]

http://www.carpages.co.uk/volvo/volvo_images/volvo_c30_04_10_06.jpg

But looking at these cars on paper is one thing. Time for some test driving. :)

we didnt even think about volvo. He's interested...

Thing is, i can only find melage for the turbo 5 cylinder (44 mpg highway), anyone know the mileage for the 2.0l 4 cyl??