Car Shopping (Part 1)

It's nearing the time to say goodbye to my Toyota Corolla. It's not exactly on its death bed. I just have issues with the fact that the next repair will cost almost as much as its blue book value.

So what am I looking at? I want a hatchback. My ex used to tease me about the hatchback thing but that's not going to stop me. I want it and I will have it.

The contenders (in no particular order):

• Mazda 3
• Volkswagon Golf GL
• Toyota Matrix (hatchback that is based on the car I have the longest history with, the Corolla)
  
• Scion XB (aka the toaster on wheels)

Yesterday I took advantage of comp time and went to look at the VW Golf. Meg's boyfriend has one (the turbodiesel version) so I have already climbed inside it and noted its roominess and standard features. I was taking a chance by stopping in a car dealership on the last day of the month. I was also performing a social experiment to see how a black female wearing a "Vote for Pedro" t-shirt and jeans would be treated. The VW guy was really nice. I told him that I wanted to test drive the golf. He asked for a copy of my driver's license and my insurance card and handed me the keys. He gave me a brief run through of the controls once I was inside the car and told me to take it out to Spicewood Springs Road so I could really see how it handled. He said that I should take atleast 15-20 minutes to get a feel for the car. Holy Crap, I expected him to be riding with me clutching the dash and selling the car for the entire ride. WOO HOO! FREEDOM! I have to say that it was a nice ride. The drawback was that the view out the rear window was obscured by the 3 headrests on the back seat (those would have to go).

When I got back to the dealership the sales guy asked if I was interested and I said yes. He took the time to give me a quote at the current interest rate and to appraise my car for trade. He got bonus points for that. He warned me that they were down to 2 Golfs on the lot right now. I told him that I would keep in touch. I had a few more cars to test drive.

The next stop was the Toyota/Scion dealership. I went in and asked to drive the Matrix. They didn't have one available so I asked if I could check out the Scion XB. The sales dude said that he would get a member of the Scion team to assist me. In the meantime was I interested in perhaps the Corolla or the Camry (what part of "I want a hatchback" do you not understand). I said no. The Scion dude was eager to get me into the XB. Unfortunately someone had taken it out for a drive. I was told that they would be right back. After several games of solitare on my palm pilot I was told that the XB was last known to be heading out to Westlake and they weren't sure when it would be back. I told them that I would call before I came next time and headed out the door.

By this point in time I realized that the traffic had increased and I was tired. I decided that I would head out to the Mazda dealership anyway. The lot was full of Mazda 3's. Was this a good sign or a bad one? I told the sales guy that I wanted to drive the Mazda 3 hatchback. He said he'd get the keys. He didn't ask for my insurance or driver's license so I guessed that I wouldn't be riding solo. The inside of the Mazda 3 had enough controls to launch a space shuttle. A wee bit intimidating. I took it down 2222 down to the County Line. It was a really nice ride. The Mazda guy wasn't selling the whole time but I could tell that he felt he was wasting his time. Who was I but a black girl in jeans and a "Vote for Pedro" t-shirt. Anyways, he said that he'd show me a video of the safety ratings and specs once we got back to the dealership. I was not impressed with the service. This is something that is available on the Mazda website. He gave me his card after I told him that I had a few more cars to test drive.

Stay tuned for part 2...