I need help deciding on buying a car
 

Ok, the time has come for me to purchase a newer, more reliable car. Ive been doing some fair research on different vehicles and ive narrowed it down to a few choices.

2010 Honda Accord coupe EX-L (not the V6)

or

2010 Hyundai Genesis 2.0L GT (not the 3.8L, 306hp)

or

2004 - 2006 Acura TL (used one)

My ideal wants in a car is a hint of luxury, leather interior, hint of sporty as well, interior space, sharp looking style, cheap maintenance, and reliability.

Ive test driven all 3 of the cars but its still hard to decide at this point becuz of a few factors:

-Acura TL is a 4dr which means more space but it is used and has quite a bit of mileage. Its definitely got luxury and style but once again, its a used car. (price is around $27,000 - $32,000 depending on mileage and year)

-The Honda Accord has a sharp look and nice overall design. room space is pretty good considering its a coupe plus it is brand new so its a fresh beginning. (price is around $35,000 $39,000 depending on model)

- Hyundai Genesis is sporty looking but with nice luxury leather interior, room space is not too bad for a 2dr, lots of options included, cheap maintenance, and the price is very tempting. (price is around $31,000 - $40,000 depending on model)

I would like to hear opinions on which one i should choose. im trying to consider the fact that the pricier ones are brand new versus the cheaper ones but used with quite a bit of mileage. My budget is $40,000 max.

you can get a 07+ TL for about 27g's-33g's, even the type s

cpo 3 series

TL is not that expensive.

I would choose the Genesis. RWD = Win.

bmw's are out of my list cuz the maintenance is expensive.

get a toyota?

nothing really luxurious in the toyota side right now. the camry is not bad but the interior is not too stylish plus camrys are used as taxi cars commonly. also the recent recalls on toyotas have turned me off with getting a toyota for awhile.

used IS250? even the base model fits into your price range.

I see a lot of teens and c lai drive that around town. Plus it's a lexus :D

i do like the lexus line but remember, im trying to find a car with cheap maintenance. lexus is the high end of toyota so the maintenance prices are almost identical to a BMW or mecerdes.

Nissan maxima?
it has a vq engine!

genesis looks pretty damn good

but id feel safer with a honda but thats probably due to prejudice

i feel the same way. it took the salesman a lot of effort to convince me consider the genesis while it only took 30 seconds to convince me to consider an accord or TL. The name itself is a big thing already.

Cheap maintenance?
If you're not gonna really DRIVE it, I would go for the Accord.

Honda reliability, rear seats actually have room, and it'd be comfier than the Genesis.
I also don't know how well you can drive and what kind of driving you do, so that's why I'm suggesting the Accord. The TL would actually be my choice since you can actually use the room. You might think you don't need room to move stuff, but you will, and 4 doors > 2 doors for room.

exactly my thoughts as well. ive tested the room space on the accord rear seats and they are just as comfy as normal 4 doors. i did kinda narrowed it down to a TL or an accord. I dont know what you mean though by how well i drive. if your asking if i pedal to the metal my cars then no, i do not ride my cars like im on a nurburging time attack. im mostly a subtle daily driver with the occassional "power tapping" if needed. As for 4 doors > 2 doors, i would prefer the TL since its got more space but once again its the battle between a fresh new car versus a used car, possibly not knowing the full history or whats been going on under the hood.

before you actually decide on the car, get insurance quote for all 3 or else when you get the car, you will be in for a surprise

food for thought

thanks. ive already done that research as well. all 3 for me are pretty much the same price range with TL being a little bit more expensive. i am a roadstar so i get full discount.

^^
Yup. That's a big one that people don't really check out before choosing a car.

What I meant by "how well you drive", I was talking about your ability to handle your car in an emergency situation. RWD + heavy foot + not knowing what to do = pole. That's why I added the "what kind of Driving you do" I don't know you personally, so thats why I asked. I don't wanna see an RS member making a thread about crashing thier new car.

New would always be better than old. You also gotta remember that the TL's V6 has a good amount of power. it would be the best if you do random quick sprints, but it wouldn't be as economical as the Accord when you step on it. That said, I would go for the TL if you need space / if you don't have another car at home to haul big stuff. I still haul stuff around in my SC4, even though it has zero usable space. Looking back, I should've gotten something with 4 doors instead. The Accord looks really nice in white though.

wait for toyota+subaru rwd car?

um.. my last question is: are you really sure you really want a fwd?

how long are you planning to keep this new car?

^ hi5 for fellow RCi helmet owner.

Depreciation is what you have to look into in this. Strangely enough the Hyundai is likely to fair very well in this because it's in such a special market.

Genesis Coupe would be my choice. I've heard of and seen many bad transmissions coming from the TL's and a 4cyl Accord wouldn't cut it for driving fun. V6 is where it's at.

So then a Genesis Coupe 2.0T could definitely slap a good smile on your face from time to time.

Orange7 - yes i prefer a FWD over RWD. i currently drive a 94 3 series RWD and i just prefer the FWD goodness plus its a little easier come snow season.

Niteraven - i plan to keep this car for as long as the car can last. I dont plan to swap cars anymore becuz of the hassle of looking for one. I wanna keep this for good which is why im taking so much effort deciding on the right one.

hk20000 - depreciation doesnt matter much to me right now since im planning to keep the car till it dies on me.

saiko - im curious about this transmission problems. is that applicable to the 2010 models of accord or was it just the previous years?

Honestly I've been looking for a 04+ TL and a 06+ accord for... a while sadly I can't decided as well. I test drove the hyundai a while back and really like the handling but I can't get over the fact the interior quality isn't up to par.

Here's some key points I found. If your getting the 08+ accord (8thgen) they are rock soild so far with not much call backs of anything. Sadly depending on model ( I was looking at the ex-l navi v6 ) the instrument cluster looks very complicated. There's a lot of buttons for the navi/hvac. Which sadly threw me kinda off so that's why I looked at a 7.5th gen (06-07)

The TL, for the 04-08 if you wanted sporty there's a 6speed option, however with the 6speed you can get the factory navi with it. I think it was a combo they never had, unless you got the type-s. But if your looking for a TL I would say get the 07+ that's when the redesigned the car a bit and upgraded the look of the interior. For the 04-06 the HVAC and audio if it was a non-navi model look kinda weird with a stripe in the middle dividing the two.

http://www.canadiandriver.com/articl...s/04tl_int.jpg

just looks kinda weird, but with the 06+ it looks much better

https://www.agedstock.com/images/veh...8_10641790.jpg

As for tranny problems with the accord/tl yes they did have it for the 98-02 years for accord and up to 03 for tl but the 03+accords and 04+tl does not have as much of a problem. But it also depends on the driver. I mean if you do neutral drops, and sudden acceleration I'm sure it'll do it's damage to the transmission. I have a 99 accord, 03 accord and a 07 accord other then the 99 the 03 and 07 had no problems whatsoever.

^
thanks aznboi, good information. yea, i thought the strip in the middle of the audio looked weird like it was separated. nonetheless, i would definitely consider a TL. the only thing turning me off right now about those cars is the fact that its used and most of what ive found has quite a bit of mileage. I just dont want to go through the stress and hassle of finding out the car's history and the worry of undeclared hits and how the previous owners maintained and drove the car. just so much factors to think about versus a brand new car. although the price definitely is a big difference as well between the 2.

I went to northshore automall they had a couple of used TLs on the lot and it has factory warranty + they provide their own. I believe there was a 07 there was 30-40k which isn't too bad.

have you looked at a 06-07 accords?

ex. http://vancouver.en.craigslist.ca/rd...602421417.html

that's not bad good pricing same engine/base as the TL and you get leather, heated seats, sunroof, navi, bluetooth for cheap.