alien_blueprint's Journal: The Quest for a New Car

So I resolved early this year to actually get myself an upgrade in the vehicular department - then I promptly decided I was going to change jobs and so decided to put it off until that was done.

Well, now that the "change jobs" phase of my so-called master plan is over, I can work on the "get car" bit.

So, Saturday afternoon after doing minimal research I grabbed a couple of mates and headed towards an area packed with car-dealerships (Newstead, for the curious locals). Something I quickly discovered - having some obnoxious friends around is an excellent way to do this. Picture it - a group of guys standing around a car, asking impertinent questions and making blunt observations while the unfortunate sales guy tries to a) talk sensibly to many people at once, and 2) figure out who has the actual money.

It shouldn't be hard to figure out - I was the only one not saying anything (as I know next to nothing about such matters) and looking generally bemused.

Now, just in case one of my American friends decides to make a recommendation - remember that cars in the US are incredibly cheap compared to here in Australia. And it's not just the exchange rate - the government just cranks up the price arbitrarily to "protect" incompetent and lazy car manufacturers here. Or something like that, anyway. And the more expensive the car, the worse it gets. All this means, of course, is that all "local" vehicles are overpriced and utter crap, and I wouldn't buy one on principle anyway even if they weren't. Of course, if you can figure a neat way to smuggle a car over here, then I'm all ears - just remember it's a 14,000K drive and there's a bit of water to get through on the way.

So, the requirements. I'm also pretty much settled on a new car - I've been through the used car dance for too long now. I figure I'll use up the warranty, then just get another one. I'm sick of dealing with what the last guy did to it, basically. Other than that, something relatively "sporty" - at my age I may not get another chance (without it looking like a mid-life crisis sort of deal). I also want to get a house *next* year, so it has to be cool without being extravagant (sadly).

So, we've covered Mazda, and some Honda thus far. Toyota, more Honda, and anything else I think of next weekend. I've got to say, it's a lot of fun doing this, and I think I'm going to drag it out for as long as I possibly can ...

Try mitsubishi.

[The Fink]

And while you're there, wave your corporate ID badge at them. Yes, it works *every* time - if you go read the internal web page on such matters, you'll see why. :-)