Readers of my twitterings will know that I’ve been trying to decide what kind of car to get when I move to California at the end of next month. I want to get all of my planning done in plenty of time, because I expect to be travelling in China right up to the time of the move. So I’ve been reading Edmunds, Consumer Reports, and Cars.com, prowling the dealers, and test-driving various cars. And of course my many net-buddies have been chiming in with recommendations.
My original plan was to go for a recent (possibly new) Prius, but a number of alternatives presented themselves. The new Honda Insight looked cool, the Mini Cooper S would be fun, and then I saw my first Hyundai Genesis Coupe, which looks like an amazing value.
We rented a Prius through Zipcar. Very nice, better handling than I expected.
I sat in a Honda Insight. I didn’t bother to drive it, because it was immediately apparent that there wasn’t enough legroom for driver or passenger.
I went to a Mini dealer intending to take a test drive, but the salesmen seemed indifferent. Screw ’em – I decided to use Zipcar again. This morning we reserved a Mini for a couple of hours. Sadly, the verdict was negative: uncomfortable seats, noisy cabin, and a choppy ride at highway speeds. (Bad pavement was OK: the oscillation emerged at 60+MPH.)
So right now the Prius is looking like the best choice, but I still have several weeks before business travel and relocation kick in. Stay tuned…