Hi;
Thinking out loud here.
Time to replace a 2008 Honda Fit, our main car.
It is driven mostly for groceries (20 km round trip, once every 2-3 weeks) and a few road trips per month (100-400 km round trip).
My other vehicle is a decaying 2003 Toyota Sienna, my filthy utility vehicle, driven mainly 1-10 km to ski trails, dog runs, farm roads, berry picking, hardware store, and 3-4 out of town ski/cottage trips per year (200-400 km round trip). Alot of back roads, snow, ice and mud. I have only been stuck once in 12 years.
I have a good Honda dealer nearby, and can get a fair deal on a 2015 Honda Fit, now made in Mexico instead of Japan. (For less money I could also get a 2015 Honda Civic; nicer ride but not a hatch).
Or I could get a 2015 Subaru Impreza Hatch from a dealer farther away, for more money (~$5000 more than the Honda Fit).
If I buy the Impreza, when the van dies, the Impreza could take over as my utility vehicle, with AWD.
Or, I could buy the Fit now, and when the van dies, buy a used Impreza as replacement.
My other fantasy is a Prius V, to open the possibility of setting it up as a back up generator. But I will never save the fuel to justify it.
I drive very little, and I hate visiting dealerships for purchase or repairs. Our cars tend to fail through under-use, not mileage.
Any thoughts?
For various reasons, most of the other makers are more or less off the table.
Thinking out loud here.
Time to replace a 2008 Honda Fit, our main car.
It is driven mostly for groceries (20 km round trip, once every 2-3 weeks) and a few road trips per month (100-400 km round trip).
My other vehicle is a decaying 2003 Toyota Sienna, my filthy utility vehicle, driven mainly 1-10 km to ski trails, dog runs, farm roads, berry picking, hardware store, and 3-4 out of town ski/cottage trips per year (200-400 km round trip). Alot of back roads, snow, ice and mud. I have only been stuck once in 12 years.
I have a good Honda dealer nearby, and can get a fair deal on a 2015 Honda Fit, now made in Mexico instead of Japan. (For less money I could also get a 2015 Honda Civic; nicer ride but not a hatch).
Or I could get a 2015 Subaru Impreza Hatch from a dealer farther away, for more money (~$5000 more than the Honda Fit).
If I buy the Impreza, when the van dies, the Impreza could take over as my utility vehicle, with AWD.
Or, I could buy the Fit now, and when the van dies, buy a used Impreza as replacement.
My other fantasy is a Prius V, to open the possibility of setting it up as a back up generator. But I will never save the fuel to justify it.
I drive very little, and I hate visiting dealerships for purchase or repairs. Our cars tend to fail through under-use, not mileage.
Any thoughts?
For various reasons, most of the other makers are more or less off the table.