Camry?

[Chris Meutsch]

I'll get this back on topic:
"Thermal protection switch twice"

Me too! Crummy part.


Get what you want but do research as well to make sure you don't get something overly prone to failures.

 

[supton]

Err, that was what I was doing... Trying to do research. Wife has done looking on her current car, and found out that it was a lousy year, about one of the worst for Civics. Go figure. Still got 10 years out of it, so still not a bad lemon I guess...

 

[Minou]

Good luck finding a manual transmission Camry in the US. Do they actually still sell those? A very incongruous combination if you ask me and likely a tough sale come trade in time.

 

[supton]

I'm a bit worried about resale too, since that's just not what people seem to want... However there is a number of base model Camry's in stick near us, so there is a bit of selection around here. And I'm not sure if the wife will want to keep to 5 years or to the 10 years like on her last car. If we do 5 years it'll have at least 100k on it; I kinda doubt we'd trade it off sooner than that.

 

[supton]

Forgot to add: If we kept to 10 years, it'll probably be 150-200kmiles, and at that point we won't care about residual value. If we only did 5 years, well, how much is it worth to have the car that made the wife happy? 1k in resale loss? Besides, car will likely lose more than that due to either kid-induced damage or NH road salt.

 

[Hokiefyd]

They do make MT Camrys. They're 6-speeds, in fact. Any 2010+ Camry you see out there has 6 forward gears, auto or manual. I'll bet they're rare. It took me a while to find an MT Corolla when I bought mine. It was the only one in the area, and happened to be an '07 LE model. Many Corolla fanboys didn't even know they made MT LE models.

(To most of them, though, Corollas didn't exist outside of the S model.)

 

[warrior]

WOW! Did I open that can of worms?

Just trying to offer my honest opinion. I would love to see some topics on Domestic vs Import. Seems like it would be very hard to stick to facts without so many emotions.

However,this is NOT the thread to do that in. Now, to stay on topic...I will never, ever,...OWN,Rent, or Recommend any GM products due to past mechanical issues and customer support. Just in case someone that is highly informed reads this...remember the "Aluminum Nylon Strap timming gears"? GM 3.8L went BOOM. That is the short verson...Thanks for everyone that responded and I hope the author has been informed enough to make a great decision.

 

[johnachak]

I think the wife will go out and test drive some cars. I might too, today, as I have to watch one kid and I don't know what else we might do for the day. I hate car shopping (well shopping in general) but it's necessity of life I guess. [/quote]

Are you kidding? Cars are a LOT of money. You should enjoy the whole process... Test drive everything you can get your hands on. Doesn't cost you anything. Sometimes you even get to mess with really pushy salesmen. When else can you get someone to let you drive their new car just because you said I want to drive it?

 

[supton]

Are you kidding? Every test drive takes an hour. You kick the tires, talk to the dealer, etc. On top of 45 minutes to drive there and 45 back. Then you have to deal with collecting vehicle info. As in, collect maintenance tables, estimate maintenance costs, tire costs, depreciation costs, expected vehicle repairs, actual mpg, driving range, and any sort of impressions from others. Then you have to compare against all other vehicles. Then you have to figure out if you want to go into debt to buy something for the next 5-ish years*. Then you have to accept that you’ll be dealing with a dealer for a while to come, a dealer who is likely going to try to get as much out of you as they can just in purchasing the car—then they’ll want to shaft you on every repair and maintenance that comes up.

I’m sorry, but I find this whole process time-consuming and stressful. Cripes, I generally spend 4 hours or so to figure out what kind of tires I want to buy…

[*I try to pay off cars in 3 years or less. But due to depreciation one generally wants to keep a car for 5 years or so, so as to get their money’s worth. Hence the notion of being locked into a car for 5 years.]

 

[mpvue]

Originally Posted By: supton
Are you kidding? Every test drive takes an hour. You kick the tires, talk to the dealer, etc. On top of 45 minutes to drive there and 45 back. Then you have to deal with collecting vehicle info. As in, collect maintenance tables, estimate maintenance costs, tire costs, depreciation costs, expected vehicle repairs, actual mpg, driving range, and any sort of impressions from others. Then you have to compare against all other vehicles. Then you have to figure out if you want to go into debt to buy something for the next 5-ish years*. Then you have to accept that you’ll be dealing with a dealer for a while to come, a dealer who is likely going to try to get as much out of you as they can just in purchasing the car—then they’ll want to shaft you on every repair and maintenance that comes up.

I’m sorry, but I find this whole process time-consuming and stressful. Cripes, I generally spend 4 hours or so to figure out what kind of tires I want to buy…

[*I try to pay off cars in 3 years or less. But due to depreciation one generally wants to keep a car for 5 years or so, so as to get their money’s worth. Hence the notion of being locked into a car for 5 years.]


wow, OCD much?

 

[supton]

It's a 5 year investment. Should I not do the homework? I still have a house to pay off, and eventually I'll have kids to put through college. Spending lots of money on cars is not going to help...

I dunno. These days I have buyers remorse after every purchase, until the purchase "proves" itself it could always be a bum purchase. If it's $20 or less, big deal; $100 and over and seems like it was a waste of money, you know? Like I'm stealing money from the family somehow.

 

[supton]

Oops, wife ran the numbers, and figured out that she's driving more like 19kmiles/year. I guess if she got a new car and we started driving that more for family trips it could get a substantial portion of the 10k I've been driving per year for those same family functions.

She also ran the numbers, and it appears that her car is running at 26cents/mile. I would have thought less, as I had been running something like 22-25 on my Jetta (more expensive car, but more miles and better mpg, I guess). Ouch.

 

[addyguy]

I know I sound like a broke record here, but Ford Escape 4-cylinder 5 speed.

I really think this is the perfect size vehicle, even for hauling around two kids. Very proven design.

 

[supton]

Hmm, stickshift and green, 'bout the only two things the wife absolutely wanted (and she was only willing to give up green 'cuz there was a chance I'd get the car when my Jetta gives out). I guess we will have to test drive. However, so far, MIL has an '04 CRV which, while the kids like, it's a pain to have to lift the kids up into the car. At least as an automatic the gear shift is in the right spot (not on the floor!).

[That vehicle sucks as an automatic. The slightest touch and it downshifts. Rides like a truck, not very powerful/confident at highway speeds, body lean in corners--not quite what I'd want for highway travels. But I hear the newer CRV's are better.]

Oh: wife did some looking online. Interior has 8 cubic feet more than her Civic, but less than any of the sedans she's been looking at. Not sounding too good...

 

[Hokiefyd]

Originally Posted By: supton
However, so far, MIL has an '04 CRV which, while the kids like, it's a pain to have to lift the kids up into the car. At least as an automatic the gear shift is in the right spot (not on the floor!).


It's interesting to read that, because we just went in the opposite direction. We traded our 2011 Camry for a 2008 CR-V. The Camry was too low to comfortably put kids in the car seats. The height of a car-based SUV or minivan is perfect for us, because car seats are at chest height. So if you're already holding the child, you just set them right down into the seat without having to bend over and crane them in as with a sedan.

Plus, with the SUV, the car seats are high enough so the kids can see out of the side windows. Our youngest couldn't see out of her window in the Camry.

 

[supton]

Weird. Well, wife and are early 30's and 5'8"; not sure if that makes a difference. I guess we do stoop down a bit to scoop the kids into the car--but actually, these days, we don't pick them up anymore. They are just at the size now where they need help opening/closing the doors on the VW; they can work the Civic doors ok. They can climb in by themselves (that's very important to them, you know!) But the CRV is too high off the ground for them to climb in, they really have to work at it. [It's hard being 6&4!] Still have to reach in and buckle them in, and I don't remember if it was harder on the CRV or not (probably the same amount of work).

Wife and I were wondering about taking kids with us or not while shopping. I guess now we definately will. The kids are in boosters now, but have never complained about seeing out the windows. At least with the boosters we don't have to deal with LATCH--by golly, those were a pain in the VW with the leather seats!

 

[Hokiefyd]

I would definitely take them with you. Our 5 year old can climb into either of our SUVs easily. Our 2 year old can't yet, for obvious reasons.

We are taller than you are, so maybe that's a difference. Both of us in our early 30s, but my wife is 5'10" and I am 6'0". Also consider the length of the Camry's rear doors in parking lots (they're about as long as the state of Tennessee). That was another huge plus for us on SUVs. The rear doors are short. On the 2007+ CR-V, the rear doors also open a full 90 degrees, which makes getting the kids in super easy.

Just more food for thought.

 

[salesmantony]

I've got a '98 model with 266k Miles on it. Six cylinder automatic. It's been a good, reliable car. I'm about to pass it on to my 16yr old stepdaughter. Also have a 2007 Camry with 88K miles, no issues, and a 2005 Corolla MT with 150K miles on it. All of these cars get over 30mpg (Corolla gets 40mpg), but then again I don't drive like a bat out of H*ll.

I just change the oil & filters and keep on driving.

 

[supton]

The wife seems to have put her foot down: no SUV. No stickshift, low mpg, poor driving feel. If she were to go that route, she'd rather have a minivan! [Not sure how a Camry fits into that, every review talks about dead driving feel. Need to find time for that test drive...]

 

[Hokiefyd]

Well, our 4,500 pound SUV gets better fuel mileage AND drives a ton better than our previous 4,300 pound minivan. We owned two minivans, swore we'd never own anything else, but the SUVs are so much more engaging to drive.

If "poor driving feel" is high on her list, may I suggest something other than a Camry? It's a fantastic vehicle if that's what you're looking for. But both of our SUVs are much more responsive in terms of driving dynamics. The CR-V pretty much equals the Camry in fuel economy also. I was averaging 28-29 mpg with the Camry, and we're about 26-27 with the CR-V.

I understand she wants a stick shift. She'll just have to go out and test drive and start prioritizing what's important, because she may not find one solution that has everything.