Buying, Owning, Driving and Maintaining a car in North America

chevelle · 10th March 2015, 02:14

We had a small Team-Bhp meet last Saturday.

Note from Support: Post moved here -> https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/team-...ml#post3660616

maddy42 · 10th March 2015, 03:40

Update from my end. My wife was driving a pontiac g6 which was rear ended into last week. The car was nice with 80k miles and drove like a boat with a powerful engine.

Insurance folks settled and gave a check for 9k so it was shopping time! Frankly speaking i wanted to keep that car for another 2 years and then sell but wife wanted to buy a new car for a while. This incident made my case close.

She wanted a suv as she had the sedan before. The reason was the elevation and the feel while driving it. Also she wanted good brand name and good interiors and something we may not buy in india.

This pointed us towards the 5 seaters in the german world and couple of lincolns and cadillacs. The following cars were shortlisted:(All used as i didnt want to take the depreciation)
BMW X1
Merc GLK
Audi Q3(Found none in our area)
Lincoln
Cadillac
Infiniti

We went to our first dealership which was a merc dealer who had a used X1. This was a good piece, 14k miles, 2014 make white color for 25k listed price. Took a drive on the car. It drive very well, sporty and i liked it. Interiors were plain jane which was a drawback, also you could feel the road.

We came back to the dealer and intended on going elsewhere and checking the other cars out before making a decision. That when i suggested checking out the new Merc GLA.

Love at first sight is a slight easy way of putting it. The interiors was miles ahead from the x1. There was absolutely no comparison. Took the car for a spin and the car had all the features my wife wanted and more and the interiors were really well made.

Now it was time for the decision. Wife had her mind set and it was just me who needed the extra push. I called a couple of my friends on whether it made sense or not. They kind of convinced me to go for it as she wants it.

So ended up buying the Merc GLA AWD in the jupiter red color with beige and black interiors. The car had 7 miles on it which i drove during the test. Its a HOOT to drive.

MSRP was about 35k and i got it for 38k OTD. Merc financial got us on the 2.99% interest rate with no prepayment penalty.

I will post the pics this evening.

Maddy

maddy42 · 10th March 2015, 12:09

Just got one of the babe at the moment - more to come over the weekend.

Buying, Owning, Driving and Maintaining a car in North America-image.jpg

amitoj · 10th March 2015, 18:53

Congratulations!
Red is a very fetching color. And don't pay any attention to those who tell you that it is also a ticket magnet. They don't know what they are talking about.

Quote:

Originally Posted by maddy42

BMW X1
Merc GLK
Audi Q3(Found none in our area)
Lincoln
Cadillac
Infiniti

So, you didnt try any of those except X1?

DieselAddikt · 10th March 2015, 20:47

Good car maddy42 !! It is excellent VFM from Merc. And I love it in Red too.

@amitoj
Looks like the winter is finally getting over. yyyaaaaaayyy !! I'd like to meet all of you. How about a small meet sometime in the East Coast ?

chevelle · 10th March 2015, 22:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselAddikt

Thank you vineethvazhayil, rajushank84, infotech58, VLOCT and kraft.wagen for helping me explore all the options before deciding on the car. We are awesome as a forum !

My car was finally delivered on Friday and I am loving every bit of it. Here is a pic.

Congrats DieselAddikt on wonderful acquisition. Wish you many miles of fun.

Quote:

Originally Posted by maddy42

So ended up buying the Merc GLA AWD in the jupiter red color with beige and black interiors. The car had 7 miles on it which i drove during the test. Its a HOOT to drive.

Maddy

Congrats Maddy, Wish you many smiles per miles.

Guys, do a small write on overall experience and first impressions.

DieselAddikt · 10th March 2015, 22:45

I will do that. There are certain things that one needs to keep in mind while buying the new C. Will get a few pics once the snow melts and post a small review, more like things to know.

raksrules · 11th March 2015, 01:49

I need some help from people here. I am currently in USA and in Ohio state. I am going to buy a used but newer (2011 / 2012 and later) version and have decided on Toyota Camry or a Honda Accord. The price I am getting is under $15K for under/around 30K miles from a dealer in Columbus. This particular dealer is only selling cars of year 2011 and beyond and miles is usually less than 50K.
I am confused as which would be a better car for me ? It will be me, wife and infant baby (in car seat) and we don't really want to go for smaller car like Corolla and hence fixed on Accord or Camry.
Usage will be going daily to office, if I continue in my current apartment, office is just 1 Mile away, if I move to another adjacent city, it will be 11 Miles approx driving one way (22 miles two way), worst case If i move even further away, it will be 20 Miles one way travel daily.
On certain weekends, will take car to mall and such (in 40 Miles radius) and may be once a month go to Indian grocery 80 Miles away.

Please suggest. Assume both the cars of 2012 year are available and I have to choose between them.

Technocrat · 11th March 2015, 01:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselAddikt

Thank you vineethvazhayil, rajushank84, infotech58, VLOCT and kraft.wagen for helping me explore all the options before deciding on the car. We are awesome as a forum !

My car was finally delivered on Friday and I am loving every bit of it. Here is a pic.

Congratulations its a beautiful car, keep us posted on ownership.

Quote:

Originally Posted by maddy42

Just got one of the babe at the moment - more to come over the weekend.
Attachment 1348436

That's a great color & yeah, the red is prone to tickets is an urban legend

Waiting for more pics

kraft.wagen · 11th March 2015, 02:57

Quote:

Originally Posted by maddy42

Just got one of the babe at the moment - more to come over the weekend.
Attachment 1348436

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselAddikt

...

Congrats maddy and DA. Awesome rides.

Quote:

Originally Posted by raksrules

I need some help from people here. I am currently in USA and in Ohio state. I am going to buy a used but newer (2011 / 2012 and later) version and have decided on Toyota Camry or a Honda Accord. The price I am getting is under $15K for under/around 30K miles from a dealer in Columbus. This particular dealer is only selling cars of year 2011 and beyond and miles is usually less than 50K.
I am confused as which would be a better car for me ? It will be me, wife and infant baby (in car seat) and we don't really want to go for smaller car like Corolla and hence fixed on Accord or Camry.
Usage will be going daily to office, if I continue in my current apartment, office is just 1 Mile away, if I move to another adjacent city, it will be 11 Miles approx driving one way (22 miles two way), worst case If i move even further away, it will be 20 Miles one way travel daily.
On certain weekends, will take car to mall and such (in 40 Miles radius) and may be once a month go to Indian grocery 80 Miles away.

Please suggest. Assume both the cars of 2012 year are available and I have to choose between them.

You can't go wrong with both the cars. Accord and Camry are great at around the budget you have.
Drive both the cars and see which is most comfortable to you.

Did you consider Altima?

vineethvazhayil · 11th March 2015, 03:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by raksrules

I need some help from people here. I am currently in USA and in Ohio state. I am going to buy a used but newer (2011 / 2012 and later) version and have decided on Toyota Camry or a Honda Accord. The price I am getting is under $15K for under/around 30K miles from a dealer in Columbus. This particular dealer is only selling cars of year 2011 and beyond and miles is usually less than 50K.
I am confused as which would be a better car for me ? It will be me, wife and infant baby (in car seat) and we don't really want to go for smaller car like Corolla and hence fixed on Accord or Camry.
Usage will be going daily to office, if I continue in my current apartment, office is just 1 Mile away, if I move to another adjacent city, it will be 11 Miles approx driving one way (22 miles two way), worst case If i move even further away, it will be 20 Miles one way travel daily.
On certain weekends, will take car to mall and such (in 40 Miles radius) and may be once a month go to Indian grocery 80 Miles away.

Please suggest. Assume both the cars of 2012 year are available and I have to choose between them.

Something tells me that you are in the thick of Honda country in USA (an hour from Columbus, let's say). I would find it hard to choose between the two cars. Just look for color (used cars, you have lesser choices), features, odometer, interior condition etc. You can't go wrong with either.

maddy42 · 11th March 2015, 03:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by amitoj

Congratulations!
Red is a very fetching color. And don't pay any attention to those who tell you that it is also a ticket magnet. They don't know what they are talking about.

So, you didnt try any of those except X1?

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselAddikt

Good car maddy42 !! It is excellent VFM from Merc. And I love it in Red too.

Quote:

Originally Posted by chevelle

Congrats DieselAddikt on wonderful acquisition. Wish you many miles of fun.

Congrats Maddy, Wish you many smiles per miles.

Guys, do a small write on overall experience and first impressions.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Technocrat

Congratulations its a beautiful car, keep us posted on ownership.

That's a great color & yeah, the red is prone to tickets is an urban legend

Waiting for more pics

Quote:

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Congrats maddy and DA. Awesome rides.

Thank You All. This forum is like a nice break for a lot of us.

Congrats DA. Your car and color really looks good.

Amit i didnt test drive anything else other than the X1. It would have been a good experience but my wife is kind of low on patience here.

I need to get one of those Radar detectors now to prevent any tickets.

Let me put a short review on the car.

Pros:
1) Red color really looks great.
2) The DRLs are great and to add to it the Tri star lights up at night! How cool is that.
3) The seats are fully automatic with three memory settings.
4) Car came with Nav enabled. Had to purcahse a 200 buck kit of ebay to get this started.
5) AWD so no trouble with moving.
6) 3 drive modes. Manual, Automatic economy and Sport mode.
7) Semi hibrid for the green types. The engine shuts off when at a traffic stop similar to the scorpio :P
8) Interiors are well done and pampered.
9) Nice crate provided to carry stuff from the groceries. This will fold back to a nice sheet when done.
10) Warranty for the next 50k miles. Also 10k mile interval is welcome as i have a 3.5k mile on my genesis.
11) No drama with financing and haggling. Was a very straight forward experience.

Cons:
1) Being a new owner i will take the depreciation on this.
2) Tires and wheels are pricey so took the extended coverage on this.
3) The middle row seat is not very comfy as its too short. No ample under thigh protection.
4) Way too many features provided so will take a lot of time to figure everything out.
5) The gear stalk is on the steering column and not below the center console. Need to be careful on this.
6) The A pillar is pretty good at covering stuff. The blind spots needs to be checked properly too as its pretty easy to get lost.

Overall i have been getting good mileage on this at about 30 mpg.

Maddy

raksrules · 11th March 2015, 05:02

Quote:

Originally Posted by vineethvazhayil

Something tells me that you are in the thick of Honda country in USA (an hour from Columbus, let's say). I would find it hard to choose between the two cars. Just look for color (used cars, you have lesser choices), features, odometer, interior condition etc. You can't go wrong with either.

I am located in Sidney, Ohio which is yes around 1.5 Hours from Columbus. Most Indian colleagues here from my company have purchased from same dealer. Please check the below URL of that dealer.

http://www.columbuspowersports.com/

I won't be able to buy car immediately as I have to sort out loan and finances and then only I can proceed towards buying one. But yes the target is to buy in 1 Month if possible.

DieselAddikt · 11th March 2015, 05:41

Personally, I'd pick an Accord over a Camry. I somehow find Camry really boring to drive. And for me, the interiors also look better in an Accord !!

Jeroen · 11th March 2015, 08:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by raksrules

Usage will be going daily to office, if I continue in my current apartment, office is just 1 Mile away, if I move to another adjacent city, it will be 11 Miles approx driving one way (22 miles two way), worst case If i move even further away, it will be 20 Miles one way travel daily.
On certain weekends, will take car to mall and such (in 40 Miles radius) and may be once a month go to Indian grocery 80 Miles away.
.

I do hope you will have some time to do a little more driving and exploring of the USA then the daily commute and shopping. We loved our three years in Kansas City and managed to take endless (road) trips.

Try to enjoy your stay in the USA to the max. There is much that is wrong with that country, but it is still a very interesting and enjoyable place as well.

http://jeroendorrestein.com/Frances%...n/Welcome.html

Jeroen

10th March 2015, 02:14	#4531
chevelle Senior - BHPian Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: sacto Posts: 1,299 Thanked: 552 Times View My Garage	Re: Buying, Owning, Driving and Maintaining a car in North America We had a small Team-Bhp meet last Saturday. Note from Support: Post moved here -> https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/team-...ml#post3660616 Last edited by aah78 : 10th March 2015 at 18:33. Reason: Post moved to "The Team-BHP Meet Section"
	(9) Thanks

10th March 2015, 03:40	#4532
maddy42 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Coorg Posts: 2,131 Thanked: 1,328 Times View My Garage	Re: Buying, Owning, Driving and Maintaining a car in North America Update from my end. My wife was driving a pontiac g6 which was rear ended into last week. The car was nice with 80k miles and drove like a boat with a powerful engine. Insurance folks settled and gave a check for 9k so it was shopping time! Frankly speaking i wanted to keep that car for another 2 years and then sell but wife wanted to buy a new car for a while. This incident made my case close. She wanted a suv as she had the sedan before. The reason was the elevation and the feel while driving it. Also she wanted good brand name and good interiors and something we may not buy in india. This pointed us towards the 5 seaters in the german world and couple of lincolns and cadillacs. The following cars were shortlisted:(All used as i didnt want to take the depreciation) BMW X1 Merc GLK Audi Q3(Found none in our area) Lincoln Cadillac Infiniti We went to our first dealership which was a merc dealer who had a used X1. This was a good piece, 14k miles, 2014 make white color for 25k listed price. Took a drive on the car. It drive very well, sporty and i liked it. Interiors were plain jane which was a drawback, also you could feel the road. We came back to the dealer and intended on going elsewhere and checking the other cars out before making a decision. That when i suggested checking out the new Merc GLA. Love at first sight is a slight easy way of putting it. The interiors was miles ahead from the x1. There was absolutely no comparison. Took the car for a spin and the car had all the features my wife wanted and more and the interiors were really well made. Now it was time for the decision. Wife had her mind set and it was just me who needed the extra push. I called a couple of my friends on whether it made sense or not. They kind of convinced me to go for it as she wants it. So ended up buying the Merc GLA AWD in the jupiter red color with beige and black interiors. The car had 7 miles on it which i drove during the test. Its a HOOT to drive. MSRP was about 35k and i got it for 38k OTD. Merc financial got us on the 2.99% interest rate with no prepayment penalty. I will post the pics this evening. Maddy Last edited by aah78 : 10th March 2015 at 18:29. Reason: Post split & moved to "The Team-BHP Meet Section."
	(10) Thanks

10th March 2015, 12:09	#4533
maddy42 Senior - BHPian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Coorg Posts: 2,131 Thanked: 1,328 Times View My Garage	Re: Buying, Owning, Driving and Maintaining a car in North America Just got one of the babe at the moment - more to come over the weekend. Last edited by aah78 : 10th March 2015 at 18:23. Reason: Picture flipped.
	(4) Thanks

10th March 2015, 20:47	#4535
DieselAddikt BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Harrisburg, PA Posts: 586 Thanked: 950 Times View My Garage	Re: Buying, Owning, Driving and Maintaining a car in North America Good car maddy42 !! It is excellent VFM from Merc. And I love it in Red too. @amitoj Looks like the winter is finally getting over. yyyaaaaaayyy !! I'd like to meet all of you. How about a small meet sometime in the East Coast ?
	() Thanks

10th March 2015, 22:45	#4537
DieselAddikt BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Harrisburg, PA Posts: 586 Thanked: 950 Times View My Garage	I will do that. There are certain things that one needs to keep in mind while buying the new C. Will get a few pics once the snow melts and post a small review, more like things to know.
	() Thanks

11th March 2015, 01:49	#4538
raksrules BHPian Join Date: Jun 2014 Location: Mumbai Posts: 455 Thanked: 914 Times	Re: Buying, Owning, Driving and Maintaining a car in North America I need some help from people here. I am currently in USA and in Ohio state. I am going to buy a used but newer (2011 / 2012 and later) version and have decided on Toyota Camry or a Honda Accord. The price I am getting is under $15K for under/around 30K miles from a dealer in Columbus. This particular dealer is only selling cars of year 2011 and beyond and miles is usually less than 50K. I am confused as which would be a better car for me ? It will be me, wife and infant baby (in car seat) and we don't really want to go for smaller car like Corolla and hence fixed on Accord or Camry. Usage will be going daily to office, if I continue in my current apartment, office is just 1 Mile away, if I move to another adjacent city, it will be 11 Miles approx driving one way (22 miles two way), worst case If i move even further away, it will be 20 Miles one way travel daily. On certain weekends, will take car to mall and such (in 40 Miles radius) and may be once a month go to Indian grocery 80 Miles away. Please suggest. Assume both the cars of 2012 year are available and I have to choose between them. Last edited by raksrules : 11th March 2015 at 01:57.
	() Thanks

11th March 2015, 05:41	#4544
DieselAddikt BHPian Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Harrisburg, PA Posts: 586 Thanked: 950 Times View My Garage	Personally, I'd pick an Accord over a Camry. I somehow find Camry really boring to drive. And for me, the interiors also look better in an Accord !!
	() Thanks