It’s a 2020, top of the line Signature, former company employee car <4200 miles, Certified Pre Owned. Even has the new car smell still. It’s basically a new car I got for $9000 off MSRP. Got a good trade in value for my G and a good interest rate for the financing as well. It’s not the blue I wanted, but the Gray looks classy enough, I think.

What’s great:
• Best looking non-luxury brand sedan inside and out IMO
• Love the brown interior, can feel a little dark when it’s cloudy but in the sun, you can see the different shades between the dash suede trim, Sen wood and Napa leather seats
• The touch surfaces are very high-quality, reminds me of an Audi. Temperature control knobs with metallic finish and a satisfying click, weighted buttons and infotainment controller etc.
• Heated seats, heated steering wheel and ventilated seats, Oh yeah baby!
• It’s very spacious and comfortable. Rear seats have a lot of legroom, even with a sloping roof you can get in and out ok and the trunk is pretty big even if not class-leading

• Handles great, but I think the Accord has it beat there
• Like the grumbly engine note, The turbo torque is the highlight, obviously. Strong anywhere from 2000RPM drops off at 5000 and the transmission short shifts anyway. I don’t even bother using the paddles. There’s so much midrange torque that I don’t even need to downshift
• One of the quietest cars I’ve driven, even at highway speeds. Some road noise from tires over 70mph I drove it back 4 hours, partly in the rain immediately after buying it. But in everyday city driving it’s a sanctuary where I can listen to podcasts in silence
• No torque steer at all, wheelspin is controlled very well if you don’t ham-fist it.
• Sport mode is a simple toggle switch you either turn it off or on. No cycling thru modes. Love that.
• Throttle response and gas pedal is very smooth, progressive and feels just right
• I had to switch my driving style going from NA High strung V6 RWD to FWD turbo. Roll into it, smooth and ride the wave of torque no need to wring it out
• It’s wayyy quicker when it’s on the roll that from a dead start. In suburban driving, managed to close some gaps in the 30 to 50MPH range so fast I surprised myself. Car& Driver tested 0-60 at 6.1 but 5-60 is what I go with which mirrors real world situations, that was 6.4.

Overall, it’s a very sophisticated car and punches well above its weight as far as midsize sedans go.

Wishlist in order of preference:
• 8 speeds or even just 7 with a short first gear would be perfect!
• AWD would be nice to have but with good tires it’s somewhat compensated. It doesn’t snow here a lot in the South and if it were a deal-breaker wouldn’t have considered this
• Fog lights
• 4 way lumbar instead of 2, and thigh support at least for driver
• Larger infotainment screen, 10+ inches with wireless Android Auto and wireless charging

Dislikes/Annoyances:
• Infotainment is kinda slow to start up, but the cameras come on instantly so that’s more important
• Android auto is not touch-enabled even when stopped, but I got used to it as I have to use the controller for everything anyway
• Ambient lighting is only white, need colors
• Centre console cover doesn’t come to the front all the way so can’t rest your arm on it. Thinner padded portion is not the best solution
• HUD fades away with polarized sunglasses but I guess it’s a universal problem
• Seat base is not soft but not bad
• OEM Falkens are just OK, can’t wait to replace them with a top rated UHP all season
• No hydraulic hood struts
• Brakes are not very progressive there’s some play before they bite and it brakes strong.
• Moving on from hydraulic steering is not easy. It’s quick and has weight but just doesn’t have the same feel but I knew this beforehand

Despite all this I’m very happy with the car and it has all the tech/safety/comfort features I need now.

What next?
• It’s already tinted, might get it professionally detailed (paint correction and maybe a ceramic coating)
• No performance mods planned, will just run Premium gas when I feel like it
• Drive it for 4 years (till I pay off the loan at the very least)

I've had it for a week. Took a lot of self control to take my time gather my thoughts and not post the day of itself LOL. Need to know more? AMA

@Italia " Just do what I did and buy a Tesla. Also, don't be poor"

And this was only the Big Island. Can't wait to go back again and visit the other ones too.

It was a perfect trip- Accommodations, Food, Weather, crowds. Just wish I had a better car for driving some of those amazing roads. I made a separate post about the Sentra. Hopefully I can rent something good from Turo next time.

We hit all the top attractions-

The waterfalls

The Valleys with their fantastic views and hikes down to their beach

The Volcano and its incredible power to destroy and create

Easily one of the best sunsets in my life at almost 14K feet

And of course the beautiful beaches and the sunsets you never get tired of

Retro done right!

https://www.motortrend.com/news/hyundai-n-vision-74-first-look-build-now/

@genesis-haysenhox-dt

And it's car-related too!

OppoUppuCar

That is all.

I have made several posts here on the fact that I've paid off my car and how crazy the used market is right now- https://opposite-lock.com/topic/7584/the-problem-with-having-paid-off-my-car-endless-scenarios-and-calculations-on-what-to-do-next?_=1615521226566

So, I'm going to sell mine while it's high. I doubt if a market like this will come around for a very long time. OK so now what?

I wanted to get a sedan again now. 4-5 years later with kid(s?) a definite possibility a (sporty) crossover is not out of question, although I might get a proper full size sedan too.

Requirements:

• My current and previous sedans were RWD-based AWD but as long as it has solid power and is fun to drive I was open to options
• MUST have Android Auto, Heated seats and Heated Steering wheel
• Nice to have: Ventilated seats, HUD, radar cruise
• Newer, Safer, reasonably reliable, big enough to fit a future infant seat and have a normal person sit in front of it
• Better fuel economy than the 18/25 I'm getting now in the G37 with premium fuel
• My ideal combination of 3 years old or less, <$30k , <30,000 Miles

So with all this in mind, either used German/Korean luxury sedans or newer Mainstream midsize sedans fit the bill. I was looking CPO'd Audi A4s and Genesis G80s, but ultimately based on all factors considered, this was what I decided:

A used Mazda6 Turbo (Gran Touring Reserve or top of the line Signature) preferably in this blue. Why?

• It looks a class above inside and out, and drives really well. I had a detailed test drive review of the 2018 turbo Signature, compared against an Accord 2.0T (that was lost with Kinja Oppo) I've had it in my shortlist ever since.
• Has all the Must have + Nice To Have features I posted prior
• Reliable, Safe (IIHS top safety + pick), spacious and comfortable
• Really wish it were AWD but it's OK I can live with that here in the South.
• Nobody buys Mazdas , and nobody buys sedans, and therefore nobody buys the Mazda6s so pricing is very attractive.

Already shortlisted a few and emailing/calling sellers, Carvana and Vroom have some good examples. If I'm able to snag the right one, will be my first ever Turbo vehicle.

https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a39708836/2023-subaru-outback-revealed/

Obligatory

@e90m3 Nice blue, grats!

@Manwich agreed. Anyone who can put their bare skin on a black leather seat in the middle of summer deserves praise, and a discount.

@Qaaaaa Palms sweaty, knees weak, arms heavy. I thought it would be mom's spaghetti ·

@MidEngine 2.70% on the house, we bought it at the bottom of the pre-covid curve in 2016 and I'm dreading my next house purchase- be it 5 or 15 years from know

3.65% on the Mazda in 2021 seems good given current rates. But before that was the magic 0.9% Infiniti CPO special rate. We may never see those kinda rates again LOL

@Cash-Rewards But remember, no matter what the most important thing is

@CarsOfFortLangley

@Mazda616 Good Luck. Remember, a good firm handshake will take you places.

@MUSASHI66 Any reason why the Genesis GV70 is not on that list?

@Krusty-Walnut ooh edgy!

@MasterMario Wormtongue personally could have reduced his carbon footprint if he hadn't slithered off to Cancun while Texans where freezing to death and tweeting every waking hour about "woke" shit, but who am I to judge?