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Biggins · 04-26-2009, 11:06 PM

I spent part of Saturday dealership hopping to test out a couple of these cars. I also drove my friend’s E46 323ci and was impressed. It felt like every other E46 I’ve driven, so he made a good choice. I guess these are my impressions starting with the two cars in which I was most interested:

Saturn Astra XR: I love its design and really wanted to love the car overall. I test drove a 3-dr hatch in blue which is a great looking car. I generally liked the handling characteristics, but I was under whelmed. For a “small” car, it felt pretty big and bulky if that makes sense. Apparently, they do make a turbo version in the rest of the world which is what this car needs. My biggest complaints were that it was SLOW (and I drive a 318) and the blind spot in this car is huge. The interior was adequate, but a little weird. With a turbo version and a slightly stiffer suspension, this could be a great car. With all that said, it was the new car I liked the most of the ones I drove. However, I was very turned off at the attitude I got from the salesman when I returned from the test drive and told him I had to test one more thing. I grabbed my helmet and got in the car with my helmet on. I guess he thought I was going on another test drive to the drag strip or on a high speed run. He never did understand that I was just making sure I fit in the car comfortably with my helmet on…

Volvo C30 T5: I tried to go in unbiased without listening to everyone else’s impressions posted on here, but most of your impressions were spot on about this car. I do think it is a great competitor for the Mini, but it falls short. This car has plenty of power to get moving, and the handling was surprisingly very good, but the car seemed a little twitchy. Perhaps it was the steering, but I felt like it was tough to drive this car smoothly. My biggest issue with this car was actually the seat. My father’s Tundra has seats that keep me glued to them more than this car. It desperately needs sportier seats that can hold you in and be comfortable. If the Mazda has better seats, it would definitely interest me. This salesman had no issues with my sitting in the car with my helmet on and understood what I was trying to do.

Toyota Yaris Hatch: The Volvo dealership was shared with a Toyota dealership, so the salesman handed me keys to one of these. Why not? I made it to the first stoplight where I pulled a U-turn and drove straight back to the dealership. I’m sure they’re great for fuel economy, but I was completely uninterested for a whole list of reasons.

Mazda 3: First of all, the dealership was open and I thought I was the only shopper. I went to the local Mazda dealership and mingled near the 3s for at least ten minutes. Despite a salesman smoking a cigarette right outside the showroom, no one came to ask me anything. I went into the showroom to look at the 3 sitting in there, and still just crickets chirping. This is the first time I’d been to a dealership where I had to find a salesman to ask them a question. As he was finishing his cigarette, he said they do not carry any Mazdaspeed cars at that dealership. He did not ask me anything after he answered my question, so I guess this dealership does not need any business?

After several hours of checking out cars, I still hate car shopping more than I remember. It was nice to learn a little about some of these cars, but I’m at the same place I was before the day started. I might be done test driving cars for awhile, but I’d really like to give the Mazdaspeed 3 a shot.

04-26-2009, 11:06 PM	#7
Biggins Crotchety Join Date: Aug 2007 Carmudgeonly Ride: 22 Tiguan, 11 328i Posts: 912	Impressions I spent part of Saturday dealership hopping to test out a couple of these cars. I also drove my friend’s E46 323ci and was impressed. It felt like every other E46 I’ve driven, so he made a good choice. I guess these are my impressions starting with the two cars in which I was most interested: Saturn Astra XR: I love its design and really wanted to love the car overall. I test drove a 3-dr hatch in blue which is a great looking car. I generally liked the handling characteristics, but I was under whelmed. For a “small” car, it felt pretty big and bulky if that makes sense. Apparently, they do make a turbo version in the rest of the world which is what this car needs. My biggest complaints were that it was SLOW (and I drive a 318) and the blind spot in this car is huge. The interior was adequate, but a little weird. With a turbo version and a slightly stiffer suspension, this could be a great car. With all that said, it was the new car I liked the most of the ones I drove. However, I was very turned off at the attitude I got from the salesman when I returned from the test drive and told him I had to test one more thing. I grabbed my helmet and got in the car with my helmet on. I guess he thought I was going on another test drive to the drag strip or on a high speed run. He never did understand that I was just making sure I fit in the car comfortably with my helmet on… Volvo C30 T5: I tried to go in unbiased without listening to everyone else’s impressions posted on here, but most of your impressions were spot on about this car. I do think it is a great competitor for the Mini, but it falls short. This car has plenty of power to get moving, and the handling was surprisingly very good, but the car seemed a little twitchy. Perhaps it was the steering, but I felt like it was tough to drive this car smoothly. My biggest issue with this car was actually the seat. My father’s Tundra has seats that keep me glued to them more than this car. It desperately needs sportier seats that can hold you in and be comfortable. If the Mazda has better seats, it would definitely interest me. This salesman had no issues with my sitting in the car with my helmet on and understood what I was trying to do. Toyota Yaris Hatch: The Volvo dealership was shared with a Toyota dealership, so the salesman handed me keys to one of these. Why not? I made it to the first stoplight where I pulled a U-turn and drove straight back to the dealership. I’m sure they’re great for fuel economy, but I was completely uninterested for a whole list of reasons. Mazda 3: First of all, the dealership was open and I thought I was the only shopper. I went to the local Mazda dealership and mingled near the 3s for at least ten minutes. Despite a salesman smoking a cigarette right outside the showroom, no one came to ask me anything. I went into the showroom to look at the 3 sitting in there, and still just crickets chirping. This is the first time I’d been to a dealership where I had to find a salesman to ask them a question. As he was finishing his cigarette, he said they do not carry any Mazdaspeed cars at that dealership. He did not ask me anything after he answered my question, so I guess this dealership does not need any business? After several hours of checking out cars, I still hate car shopping more than I remember. It was nice to learn a little about some of these cars, but I’m at the same place I was before the day started. I might be done test driving cars for awhile, but I’d really like to give the Mazdaspeed 3 a shot.