[lupinsea]

I really would prefer the CX-3. The styling is fantastic, it seems to get rave reviews on it's handling and fun-to-driveiness, and I was very impressed at the interior when I sat in one at the dealership. The cramped cargo issue doesn't concern me as nearly anything is an improvement over the Miata. But it's too new which means it hasn't depreciated enough on the used market to get within our price range.

Our price point was $12k and I can probably stretch it to $14k.

Which sucks because it's a few thousand less than what's needed for more interesting cars. Let me rephrase that. At $12-14k we can either get interesting cars that are older or in poorer condition and / or higher milage (requiring more maintenance / repairs) or a new-enough car and low-enough milage but are otherwise lame. And I'm really resistant to getting an older car that will need more repairs.

Basically at that price point none of the Fiesta / Focus ST's are in range (which I'd be very interested in a Focus ST, too). The regular Focus is but I was so underwhelmed when I test drove one that, well, hm, I'll drive another before I completely rule it out but the whole thing was just "mushy".

I like the current gen Mazda3 but it's out of our price range and the previous gen Mazda3 is looking dated. . . . to the point I'd prefer the Juke's fugly styling to the last Mazda3. Weird, I know.

Golfs . . . there's a premium on those and again, older and higher milage / repairs or newer and out of our price range. Though with the current VW problems I don't know what the current market is like vs. 5 months ago.

Cherokee / Renegade. . . meh. Same too-new problem with the CX-3. . . . priced too high for us. And, I recently rode in the Cherokee, wow, lame. Completely characterless.



As for a particular Juke model:

AWD or manual, but not both
And at this point I'm more interested in the AWD. By the sound of it the torque vectoring AWD systems sounds like it's used to improved the handling and help rotate the car through the corners quicker. Plus the AWD has an independent multi-link rear suspension vs. the FWD with the torsion beam rear. And given that most of the time this will get driven in rush hour traffic, not having a manual would be nice. I've test driven the CVT AWD Juke and my FIL's CVT Nissan Cube . . . they're "fine." Not much worse than other automatics I've driven other than an odd disconnect from what I'm used to between the engine RPM note, vehicle speed, and throttle input.

Nismo RS models
Cool but out of our price range. Also, this only bumps power by 9hp and torque by 7 lb-ft, firms up an already sporty-isn suspension, and adds 18" wheels. The rest of the Nismo stuff is all cosmetic. And the oldest Nismo is a 2014 vs. 2011 for the regular Juke. Basically it's a $4-5k price difference on the used market. I don't think it's worth price premium even if it were in our price range.

Trim Levels
Looking over what you get at the different trim levels I actually prefer the base model. All Jukes have the same 1.6L DI turbo motor. All trims are available with AWD. However, the base comes with power locks / windows, steering wheel controls for radio and cruise control, and a simple knob-based A/C HVAC layout which is what I prefer. Stepping up from there is just creature comforts, cosmetic trim, and more technology than I want (I actually don't want the in-dash navigation or the touch-panel HVAC controls) and don't want to pay for.

So . . . . there it is.

Who knows. We'll see where our budget is at once my wife gets a job and if we can stretch it perhaps I'll resurvey the used car landscape again and see what's available.

And maybe this might not be so long term. I figure to get about 4 years of use out of the Miata replacement but maybe in 2-3 we can switch out for something else.