QOTD: Which Car Buying Decision Would You Do Over Differently?
Published: December 16th, 2009
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Earlier today in my Celica Supra Mark II CC, I lamented about not buying a Supra instead of the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe I impulsively bought in 1983. How about you? With the benefit of hindsight, which one specific car purchase would you do over? What did you buy, and what should you have bought instead?
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Paul,
I had some great times in the Saturn, especially in the beginning. But the oil use problem really bugged me, especially given the lousy response I got from Saturn for so long. The NVH was a drag on both the first and second engines. I think my the-truth-about-saturn article pretty much expresses my feelings, both positive and negative. An Integer (term of affection, since I like numbers) would have been a much better choice, and I realized that after I'd had the Saturn for a couple of years. It's a shame--the SL2 came fairly close to being a really nice car. In any case, after the first couple of years I didn't love the Saturn nearly as much as I love my '99 Accord. The latter doesn't have the wonderful light feel of the Saturn, nor does it feel as if you're wearing it, but the engine never complains, and aside from the greater weight, the handling on the Accord is very enjoyable. Since I went to Skip Barber, I've had a powerful desire to do autocross in the Accord, although with 167k on the clock, I'd be afraid I would be abusing it . I probably will go ice racing again this winter.
Mlanghornes on the '98 SL2) It, of course, started burning oil right away, and near the end it wouldn’t go into gear unless I submitted a written request a few days prior. This is probably my best laugh of the month so far, maybe my best in several months. Note to TTAC editors: I think mlanghornes deserves some sort of a prize for this. I wish I had written this, but (fortunately) I haven't had this sort of problem since I abused the tranny on my '62 Falcon with too much clutchless shifting. Ironically, the switchgear was one of the best features on my own SL2, a '93.
Regrets? Must be Honda Odysseys. Two. Older one with sliding doors. Transmission failed twice. Second time out of warranty. Got rid of it because the transmission was not shifting right. Had other broken things like sliding power door, egr, gas vapor system, rear power windows. Got a newer Odyssey but it vibrates and shudders. Something about the transmission torque converter and, engine mounts. Steering rack, power steering pump needed to be replaced. Not good at all.
Our SUV was making noises like it might be about to go to the crusher in the heaven. So I bought a Mazda6 5 door as a replacement. Turns out the truck was not dying and my wife wants to replace the truck with another truck. Life with the Mazda has not changed her mind one bit (Too many women love the high sitting postion of trucks and the false sense of security they exude). Had I known all this, I'd be riding in a RX-8 right now!