This might be a good thing because I may have to kill my nerves with copious amounts of alcohol to survive this particular phase of parenthood. Anywho, I took the girls out last weekend to get an idea of what they like, what they don't like, etc. While (specifically) the two of them aren't our demographic, they will be driving soon and so will a million more kids their age. This exercise is not complete. We went to four different dealerships: Kia, Chevrolet, Nissan, and Dodge. We plan to hit up others as time permits. FWIW, their minds didn't change much after the field trip. They still want the same cars they did before we saw everything else. Katrina wants a Charger, a Roadster, and a truck (she hasn't completely decided on which one). Saraya wants a Jeep Wrangler, a 370, and a VW bus. I'll update this thread as we visit other dealerships.
On a side note of mention: car salesmen are like cockroaches. They crawl out of the woodwork the second you step out of the car, they are creepy, and they won't leave you the hell alone, EVEN after the fourth time of you telling them, "We're just looking." And that's all we did. We didn't drive anything. I just wanted to get their opinions based purely on visual appeal and then price. Overall, they were pretty shocked at the prices of all the cars. Considering we never buy anything brand new, that's not surprising.
KIA:
- Katrina was appalled that there were only 2 manual cars on the entire lot. Both were found in Kia Forte sedans which neither of them cared for.
- Saraya liked the front end of the Optima and the vents on the front fenders. Other than that, she said it looked like a car her Grandma would drive. She said she absolutely would NOT pay $30K for it.
- They both liked the interior of the Forte Koup but thought the exterior styling was a bit plain. Katrina said she would not consider it with an automatic.
- Katrina said she would drive the Rio, but it wasn't particularly exciting. Saraya didn't like it at all; said it was too round.
- Neither of them cared for the Soul in person. They both liked the commercial (with the hamsters) but said the real thing didn't live up to the hype.
Overall opinion of the brand in general: Meh.
CHEVROLET:
- The only thing on the entire lot they liked was the Camaro and they weren't real fired up about it. Katrina found one manual.
- They both liked Greg's C5 but we didn't see any Vettes on the lot. (Maybe they were inside, we didn't go in).
- They hated all of the new cars: the Cruze, Sonic, and the Volt. They flipped when they saw the price of the Volt and realized they could buy 2 base model Camaros for the same price... or a used C5 for less than both.
- None of the trucks, crossovers, or SUVs appealed to them ( no surprise there).
Overall opinion: do not like
NISSAN:
(I'll start at the bottom and work my way up)
- Versa: Meh. Take it or leave it but not really.
- Cube - they both like it, a lot
- Juke - they both HATED it; said it looked like a bug.
- Rogue - they like the interior they saw through the windows but said the outside was a bit plain
- The both like the Frontier and Titan but said neither one of them was what they would choose to drive.
- Murano - they both hated it, especially the new front end
- Altima, Maxima, Xterra, and Pathfinder were of no interest
- 370 - Saraya fell in love. There was a white one on display with the doors and hatch open and she got to sit in it. I told her if she wanted one she had to buy her own. She didn't flinch when she said, "OK". I have no doubt there will be one in her future.
Overall opinion: they are brand loyal
DODGE:
- Katrina loves the Challenger and was thrilled when she found one with a manual. It's a lot of car and a lot of money, about $5K more than the Z. Not sure if she will save up for it but I'm not buying it for her. She can have at it.
- The Challenger was on display next to a Charger with the SuperBee package which Saraya liked.
- They didn't like anything else Dodge had to offer.
Overall opinion: everything sucked except for those two cars
Next up is Hyundai, Mazda, Ford, and Toyota.
