I've been told that every guy gets "car fever" in some point. Well, it hit my boyfriend last month, and he's been doing research on car sites and magazines ever since.

Tomorrow, we will be heading to test drive his favorites. We have a deal: he picks the brand, the technical stuff and I'll pick the color... ;)

Funny enough, he doesn't want a big car, but a small one with nicely space at the trunk.

Any recommendations? :)

Sanna

I got the Aveo for my son who will be going away to a Grad school next year. The rear seats fold down for added storage room. 

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Thank you, Ginger. :)

You're quite Welcome  :)

Awe, car shopping 8-) Here is a nice little two-seater, good on fuel, and it has a trunk, I think  ;)

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a toyta of your taste.
these cars will never bother you with any kind of problem.you just drive them.

57 T-bird   ;D

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I'm thinkin' Corvette...........
nice, plenty of cargo space.as long as you only need a purse........... 8-)

BTW....girls get car fever too,  huh Cathi?

1967 Stingray Corvette with a split rear window and a 327 small block!!!


Um... or a Toyota, lol.

1967?! :o

this must have already more klms on than spaceships to the moon and back!

i already imagine sandie pushing the car from behind and talking to her boyfriend on the wheel:
- you said you know about the technical stuff!don't you?
-well you said you love the color!well don't you? :D

How about an El Camino ??   ;D

There baaaaaaaaaaaccccckkkk
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Got just the thing for you, Sanna, and it's not expensive -

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Maybe small and retro?

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Charlie 8-)

Charlie, you're killing me.   LOLOLOL

with GM re-doing everything I was actually shocked to see a new version of an El Camino being touted as as a Pontiac instead of a Chevy.  'The times they are a-changing'  for sure.   heavy sigh....

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I guess nothing is sacred.  Next thing you know Apple pie will be made in China and baseball players will have to allow turbans instead of helmets just like the Canadian mounted police were required to allow a few years back that Margi & a few other Canadians told me about.  (they refused to wear the historic Mounted police hats they have worn, like forever)


But I digress from your original thread Sanna.  Sorry. I don't know what cars are available in Finland but just tell him to do his homework on whatever he chooses to go with.  If he is "car savvy" then he should know.  If not...tell him to find someone who is, to give him their experience in what can be fixed and what will cost too much money to repair.

[quote author=724640405A5671415A525D330 link=1285927472/13#13 date=1285977807]Got just the thing for you, Sanna, and it's not expensive -

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This will be perfect for both of them, and Sanna, you get to pic the color ;D
Awesome Brian 8-)

sandie99 wrote on Oct 1^st, 2010 at 6:04am:

We have a deal: he picks the brand, the technical stuff and I'll pick the color... ;)

I assume that if he picks something you don't approve then you'll pick a colour like bright pink or similar. ;)

I'd go with a Holden and I wouldn't touch a Ford with a barge pole. This is something that anyone here in NZ or over the ditch in Oz will understand given the huge rivalry between the two companies down under.

AussieBrian wrote on Oct 1^st, 2010 at 8:03pm:

Got just the thing for you, Sanna, and it's not expensive - START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE

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I gotta get me one of those!!!

Thank you, guys. ;)

We pretty much spent the whole Saturday looking at cars and took few of them for a test drive. We are lucky to live in Helsinki and in the area we do, because most of the car brands have their stores within a short journey from us. And if we would have visited them all and checked every small car, it would have taken more than just a day...

Esa has not been that into cars, but lots of his pals and his big brother are. They have been giving us advices, too.

Here's the list of the cars we liked the most (so far):
Esa's favourite is Toyota IQ
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(apparently is sooooo great car, but doesn't have enough space)

Toyota Yaris
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Peugeot 207
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Honda Jazz
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(we both we impressed how much space and possibilities it had)

and we're considering also:
Citroën C1
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But nothing's decided yet. We are wondering if we should get a new one or used one, a few years' old. With some models, the difference between used and new one is shockingly small, which means that then the new one might be better.

Search is still on, but we had lots of fun yesterday. :)

But I must admit that I've never seen Esa so excited about a small car than he was with the Toyota IQ. Knowing him, he's now making calculations, if we would have enough time between getting that and needing a bigger car! ;D

And yes, girls and women do get car fever, too. I've always been excited about Mini Coopers and Renault Twingo. We found the first one, and I checked it out (I'm less excited now - not enough space), but the latter is hard to find in this country, apparently, so we couldn't see it - the store didn't have any in Helsinki, but I'm not sure if that meant the whole country.

Sanna

Sanna, we have a Toyota Yaris, I think it is a 2008 as a delivery car for our Auto Parts Store and it is doing very well. It has close to 200,000 Km's on it and has cost very little in repairs. Once we get to the 400'000Km's on it we will send it to another one of our "not as busy" stores and it will get replaced probably with another Toyota.
You will find the right car I am sure! 8-)

Sanna Here's another Idea ( I have the 2007 model) START PRINTPAGEMultimedia File Viewing and Clickable Links are available for Registered Members only!!  You need to or END PRINTPAGE

new or a used one?

it depends.
if you are buying a new one search for possible extras the companies provide(sometimes in quarantee plus regular free service for years to come for example can give you back the extra money you payed instead of a used one)

Depending on how long you intend to keep the car and depending on if you are going to have children while owning said care, would be a big factor.  If you intend to have the car and children, I would strongly suggest a 4 door (it's a pita trying to get kids in and out of car seats in a 2 door).

Now, my dream car(s) would be a 1964 1/2 Mustang (I know where two used to be and they were both completely restored) or a a vintage 2 door flop top Jaguar (my high school librarian had one).  Or an old pickemup truck.

Well I love the V8/V10 cig lighter thing and really would like to have one but as far as a real car I would go with a classic Porsche. They really do not cost that much up front and also they go up in value instead of down so not a bad investment as well and right now there are some great deals out there this one cost me 13k and looks brand new.

---

Barry,
that's good to know! :) We're actually taking one Yaris for a test drive this week. :)

Carolyn,
the thing is: Esa fell for a 2 door car, I wish for a 4 door one - for exactly the reasons you mentioned: 4 door one would be much better in the long run. We both know that children are part of the future, but at this point, it is difficult to tell how near future.

And the new/used car process is still going on. Esa's brother did give us lot to think about last night when he visited us and we talked about cars for hours. Back in here, naturally, some cars are only available as new cars, so we'll see.

I believe that few new favorites rose last night. Let's just see what the outcome is later on this week when we've tested two more cars on the road. :)

Thank you for your output, ideas and comments. It has helped us a lot. :)

Sanna

Another test drive weekend behind us. This time it was Peugeot's 207 and Toyotas (Yaris & iQ).

It will be interesting to hear what Esa has to say when he gets back home tonight. He and his brother are taking Esa's fave car for a test drive together. Who knows, we might have a car tonight! :)

And if that's so, it will be a Toyota. It already has a parking lot waiting... ;D

Sanna

Sanna, good luck!


BigMatt wrote on Oct 4^th, 2010 at 10:47am:

Well I love the V8/V10 cig lighter thing and really would like to have one but as far as a real car I would go with a classic Porsche. They really do not cost that much up front and also they go up in value instead of down so not a bad investment as well and right now there are some great deals out there this one cost me 13k and looks brand new.

Matt, you have great taste!

Joe and I just bought a Hyndai Sonata over the weekend. I love it. Pay attention to what someone else said about 4-doors. There have been many of us that have had to sell our beloved 2-door coupes to make way for babyseats in the back!!!  It is impossible to lean over a 2-door to get the seat in the back, let alone put the baby in!

In fact our reason for getting a new car was so we could give my Camry (which is an awesome car by the way) to Jeanette and Sean....  We'll be selling her Honda Civic. It's our way of helping along the process of eliminating obstacales for them..... so maybe we'll have a baby in the back some day! 8-)

I hear that a 4-door Toyota Yaris will be on its way to our parking lot this evening. The color is metallic blue and Esa fell in like with this one at this morning's test drive. :)

Can't wait to see the car myself! And, the rumor is that this one does have enough space for a stroller... ;) So we can keep it for years to come.

Sanna

Go German...I love my BMW truly enjoyed my Mercedes. You can not beat german engineering.

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TomM wrote on Oct 14^th, 2010 at 10:18am:

Go German...I love my BMW truly enjoyed my Mercedes. You can not beat german engineering.

Never love anything that can't love you back. ;)

Sanna - The Yaris is a great little car. I'm sure you and Esa will be pleased for many years.

Brew wrote on Oct 14^th, 2010 at 3:14pm:

Never love anything that can't love you back. ;)

Good point.

The Citroen reminds me of a large Smart Car. Your choice of Toyota or Honda is also good.

For daily driving it is a Subaru WRX...excellent for our Canadian winters and somewhat engaging to drive. The base Subaru Impreza is inexpensive and is a very reliable car too. 

Wifey's daily is a Kia Soul....Kia and Hyundai have really stepped up their game and are building world class reliable cars.

When he hits midlife and his "crisis" kicks into high gear you should pray he is not as car crazy as I...I turned into a hard core enthusiast collector of unique and rare autos...a great hobby for sure...which drives my wife nuts...picked up another collector car this week:)

Paul

Brew wrote on Oct 14^th, 2010 at 3:14pm:

Sanna - The Yaris is a great little car. I'm sure you and Esa will be pleased for many years.

Thank you. I hope so, too. :) We had a blast this weekend when we took our car for a first grocery store trip. ;)

Paul,
Right now I find it hard to believe that Esa would turn car crazy, but who knows? I didn't think we'd have a car now couple months ago, so things can change. :)

But I do know that the car fever has travelled from our house to my cousins'; her husband is now having acute car fever. Their first child is due to born in November, which probably explains  it, too. ;)

Sanna