Now, onto the actual start. I turned my car in at the shop for approximately one week of repair / repaint. The work will be done at Auto Nation (one of the largest in the area and after research, one of the highest rated facilities for INfiniti and Nissan cars). Enterprise met me there and drove me to their shop to pick up my replacement vehicle. They had a brand new Nissan Maxima on the lot, but once inside it was found that the car had already been reserved. As this is May in Ft Lauderdale and still a very busy time for rented cars, there was less inventory than normal. The choices were compacts (Honda Civic,etc )or a free upgrade to an SUV. I ended up with this 2015 Dodge Journey SXT.
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On the Dodge website, I built my own to match this model (base starts at $20,695). This SXT version costs $25,735 with the matching options included on my rental. After 10% cash down payment, dealer incentives, cash back bonuses, this SXT model can be had for $19,821.
It is red (not a sexy "arrest-me" red, just ermmm red. No option for a NAV system (sort of lame for a 2015 SUV that will likely be used for family holiday trips).
Choice of Wheat or Black cloth interior - no leather available. It has an actual key-fob like Infiniti and seems comfy enough to drive. It has an option that my Infiniti (fully loaded with rear entertainment, etc) did not have. As you approach the car, the interior lights up, and soon as your hand touches the handle, it unlocks itself. No mashing of the handle button is required. A nice touch for a bargain priced vehicle. Then it all goes south from there. The rest of the interior is completely plastic and cheap vinyl. The dash, the door panels, and the roof lining are obviously cheap quality. The last time I saw such hard plastic, it contained Tic-Tacs. The console is only about 4 inches wide so obviously no storage value there, but plenty of hidden storage under the lift-up seat cushions and in the floor. The dash illuminates in 'annoying red' and is only slightly adjustable for brightness. It has XM radio so I can still enjoy my usual stations. Visibility is good and the height of the seats allows for better view of surroundings. The ride is comfy for a truck, but rather stiff. I reckon if you use it for school runs, it should be just fine, but on long motorway treks, the road noise from the bargain Kumho tires and stiff ride could get a bit annoying.
Still, for $20,000, it's a lot of vehicle. With 10% cash down payment and NO trade-in, monthly payments are estimated at $311 for a 72 month purchase contract or $285 for a 48 month lease option.
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