This orange beast is expensive, but will soon depreciate (or so I imagine..)
notice a little black thing hiding behind it.
I traded the two.
I now have a cr-z.
Aren't all automotive purchases supposed to be spontaneous and emotion based?
In other weird things I notice, the cars I marked as sold in "my garage" disappear. I was hoping they would stay, I miss them all.
From one end of the scale to the other! That's what GRM is all about! Kick butt!
Just got back from vacation; for the last three days, heavy wildfire smoke in the area put the kibosh on most of our planned activities. I was surprised at myself when one of my first alternative thoughts was to go car shopping...
The steady 70-mph drag home would've been a lousy break-in anyhow...
daytonaer wrote: In other weird things I notice, the cars I marked as sold in "my garage" disappear. I was hoping they would stay, I miss them all.
If you click on "view full profile" in the little menu that pops up when you click on your avatar the cars you have sold will still be listed. They don't appear in your garage though, as you pointed out.
wasn't there a Jimmy Buffet song where he went to Buckhead to buy a paper ... and then the adventure started ?
am i the only one who thinks you are 100% insane?
patgizz wrote: am i the only one who thinks you are 100% insane?
I would agree, but it doesn't appear to be an SRT-8, so meh.
When I was first married my wife and I went to buy a dryer and bought her a 93 (I think) Sentra (non SE-R) instead. I just wanted to look at the new SE-R. 
First new car, impulse buy. Yeah, I got taken. Fortunately, I would rank it in the top 3 of best cars I've owned. A relatively inexpensive lesson.
I went for a tux fitting in 2007, and got a Speed 3 instead.
daytonaer wrote: Aren't all automotive purchases supposed to be spontaneous and emotion based?
Absolutely! Which is why when I went shopping for a good solid winter 4x4 extended cab pickup for driving in Alaska last September I came home with a bright red Ford Mustang.
No regrets
I can show you 25 cases of spontaneous car purchasing, and one I thought about
Never tried that trick with cars, with guns OTOH, you just leave with an empty case and claim its full. No suspicion when you come back with a gun in said case. I suppose you might try a similar move with a car hauler if the opposition is paying little attention.
major upgrade in both car and car color, IMO.
patgizz wrote: am i the only one who thinks you are 100% insane?
Unless he's got serious problems with gas mileage, I agree.
I really like the cockpit of the CR-Z. It just fits right for me. I'll drive one sometime; I hear that their depreciation is in my favor.
patgizz wrote: am i the only one who thinks you are 100% insane?
the cr-z is a great car. It is no cr-x. Pretend the cr-x never existed and think of it as a civic coup.
The dodge is a good copy of mercedes technology, a good engine, a great transmission and a pretty body. Lots of interesting technology, but it is a GT cruiser. I will miss it on long highway trips, but I don't take those every day.
The honda is depreciated a bit already, will serve as a more appropriate DD so I can save money for other things. Like a porche. Which I want to pay for cash, I do not want to take out a loan to own a porche.
I did finance the dodge and bought new, now that it's almost paid off and still has some value seems like a good time to jump ship. So yes, I am crazy.
I hope to add more about driving impressions, I just thought this group would appreciate the not entirely normal vehicle swap.
I also once traded a car i loved for one that "made more sense" - NEVER again!
-Sean
Wow... I would have kept that sweet Challenger. That is on my list of cars I need to own, and the one in my head is just like the one you traded in, right down to the color. CRZ's do nothing for me.
But if it's all in the goal of saving money to get what you really want, then it's not such a bad thing. 
I'm completely ambivalent on this trade. On one hand I dislike the LX platform. On the other side, I dislike Honda I think even more than the LX. I'm not sure where to land on this. Congrats for getting a car you like instead of one you NEED? I'll go with that.
SilverFleet wrote: Wow... I would have kept that sweet Challenger. That is on my list of cars I need to own, and the one in my head is just like the one you traded in, right down to the color. CRZ's do nothing for me. But if it's all in the goal of saving money to get what you really want, then it's not such a bad thing.
You should by this one then, for sale soon in central PA. Should be selling for around 28-29k, the color is header orange and was produced for only one month without proper announcement. It has full synthetic fluids, I painted all the bare metal/nuts and bolts when new to prevent rust and future frustration. A good well cared for example. I have all the records (dealer didn't want them, said they would throw away if I left in the glove box?!?) including every fill-up tracking mpg's from new. 93 octane averaged 19.30 mpg over 16000 miles. Best tank of 27.27mpg, and worse tank of 10.18mpg. Always seemed to get 17mpg in town and 23 mostly highway, but those are the actual numbers from my spreadsheet.
I did not mean to start a debate, but I actually think the honda is a better car than the dodge. It just happens to have a big battery and electric booster motor and happen to be bought by primarily crazy hyper-milers. It's only downside being a lack of a back seat. Oddly enough, I had tried to trade it for a fr-86 which would have been a little more practical, but the toyota dealer wanted a 3k premium for my benefit of letting him sell me his car. So I bought an na miata for 3k and use that for my modding itch. My impressions on the fr-86 is it feels like a toyota with a subaru engine and drives like a miata. All palpable characteristics.
This was not a trade of need, something I wanted to do. Honestly I was worried I was going to be that guy in mopar magazine in 2050 about his super rare one owner car bought new and kept perfect, and was scared to drive now. I always appreciate their cars, but feel bad like they missed out on variety, and it becomes an obsession.
Not my miata, but gives a good size comparo
I should pre-face by stating that I have never owned nor driven a cr-x. I think if observed as a new type of car, the cr-z is cool. If observed as a replacement of the cr-x, the pre-conceptions kill the vehicle.
Driving impressions to me focus around the eco and sport buttons. I haven't found a good use for the normal button yet. When you push the button, you feel an immediate change.
If say, you were driving on the highway in eco mode, and you pushed sport for an upcoming offramp, the gas pedal becomes instantly responsive (sluggish, obviously, in eco mode), the steering firms up, the exhaust gets louder, the dash changes colors, you get electric boost for tip in throttle. It really is a very obvious change. Makes it feel like a different car.
Driving in eco is truly dull, like driving a hybrid. It feels slow and disconnected. But sometimes I like saving gas, and sometimes I'm just driving to get somewhere.
Driving in sport is fun. It revs quickly, makes decent noises, and pushes you forward decently. This is where the published numbers and actually driving the thing differ. The steering is weighted nicely, the 6speed shifter is the finest fwd selector I have personally used. I have the famous miata shifter and have never been spiritually moved by it however... I thought the dodge's tr-6060 shifted better than the miata box but needed the rubber isolators removed. Back to the honda, it has a nice feel and "snick" noise, which is obvious.
The suspension is rolly-poley stock, and will probably stay that way. I did get a little over steer on a slow turn, I think from the weight out back of the battery.
The interior is very nice. The dash is actually pretty amazing with the floating speedo inside the tach. Although the plastics seem to be scratched, there are no rattles or buzzes from poor fit, the dodge suffered this after the first 5000 miles... Road noise is relatively low, it is a comfortable place to be.
Seat height is low however, you have to get down to get in this car. I plan to drive it up to see my parents soon, and they will complain if I make them sit in it.
It needs a center arm-rest, avaliable from Honda. I also think it would be neat to get the rear seats (currently has rx-7 esque bins) from overseas for an emergency passenger ride.
I'll try to keep you guys updated with its progress. Perhaps the battery pack will explode, perhaps I will turn into a crazy hypermiler driving 32mph on the highway then riding your bumper, or perhaps, like I think, this will become a perfect backburner poor weather/winter/dont care DD. So you do know I'm crazy, of all the vehicles I've owned/driven/my parents had and I was younger, a 2001 toyota echo stands out as my all time favorite. Miss it more than my modified c4 corvette.
I've never traded a car worth more than I'm trading into; do they cut you a check?
I'm on your side with this one; I've been looking at Leafs and Volts lately.
chandlerGTi wrote: I've never traded a car worth more than I'm trading into; do they cut you a check? I'm on your side with this one; I've been looking at Leafs and Volts lately.
Cut me a check, AND paid the state sales tax! so weird to not pay tax on a car, because it was a negative amount.
The volt's haven't taken quite the same depreciation hit as the honda, I think that's just because everyone wants the crz to be a crx, and everyone else who wants a battery buys a prius. The cruize has a cult following, and they are pretty interesting!
Leaf's are interesting, not something I could use.
For those not familiar with the CR-Z hybrid system, it is more like a KERS F1 system (in basic theories) than the prius etc. The electric motor only works in tandem with the gas engine for power supplementation/charging. No electric only mode for driving around the neighborhood.
I may be wrong, but it appears the fit and cr-z share a similar 1.5 gas engine. The wheel base looks very close. The roof is higher, and obviously there is rear passenger room instead of battery and aero.
The dash is pretty cool. The speedo/tach combo are somewhat 3D, the speed is a reflection and appears to float/follow your movements.
These are the rear seat cubbies. The "back" folds flat to create a flat floor or cargo divider. Just like every other hatchback. Non-US cars got a back seat, not practical for adults but I think I want to try to get a seat bottom for emergency transport.
<img src="http://i441.photobucket.com/albums/qq135/daytonaer/Mobile%20Uploads/100MEDIAIMAG2366_zps2788382b.jp
The pedal placement is one thing that sold me on this car. Heel toe setup is perfect.
daytonaer wrote: Honestly I was worried I was going to be that guy in mopar magazine in 2050 about his super rare one owner car bought new and kept perfect, and was scared to drive
I dont think we will see the same types of auction prices for todays muscle cars. In the old days people drove the wheels off their muscle cars and nobody dreamed they would be worth anything. So the car supply died up and prices soared. Now every Mustang/Camaro/Challenger I know of is owned by somebody that barely drives it and is saving it for a future auction. If every body had a nice one, the value will not be the same.
You see it now with pace car editions from the 80s and 90s. Every one that comes for sale has low miles, documents and was garage kept.
I think cars like the CRZ may actually end up more valuable.
Interesting trade. Got to admit, the challenger never did anything for me so I definitely understand it.
Got to agree with the collect-ability of modern cars. I just don't see it as much. There are very few rare configurations out there beyond the factory race car configurations.
Too many people stowed their cars away for safe keeping. I know people that tucked away 89 turbo trans ams, ZR1, and GT500 thinking they will appreciate. I mean I can go on ebay right now and see 8 ZR1's with under 25K miles for sale currently. There is just too much stock out there.
You'll need to log in to post.
