Disaster
Been here awhile...
- Joined
- Dec 31, 2009
- Messages
- 647
- Reaction score
- 1
- Points
- 0
Cross shopped these 4 cars. Was looking for something that looked good on the outside and inside, was comfortable for the driver and passengers, and of course, was a good value.
Volvo S80: Volvo had huge sale at the end of the year. $4000 off and $1000 owner loyalty. They also raised their basic warranty to 5 years, 60K miles and included free maintenance over the same time (including brakes.) I also can get an employee discount. That put the S80 in the ball park of others. $31,000 out the door got the base model, which has decent standard features like bluetooth. For $1000 more the climate package had 4 heated seats...nice for the passengers. The interior of the Volvo is nicely appointed...but not flashy...just what you might expect from the Swedes. It had HD radio and bluetooth...but nothing too fancy. I am a bit surprised Ford didn't provide it's Synch system for their upscale brand. I liked the standard fold down rear seats which opened up the trunk space...but the small pass though limited the usefulness of this feature. It wasn't the peppiest...with 235hp, but OK. The ride was a very nice combination of comfort and stiffness. It handled well without being sports car stiff. Safety features were maxed out...this is a Volvo afterall. The deal killer was the rear leg room. With the driver seat adjusted for my 6 foot frame I could barely squeeze my knees behind the seat. Getting in and out was a contortionist act.
Buick LaCrosse: Prices were competitive...but there wasn't any incentives as this a new, hot model. I've been hearing about this car for awhile...supposed to change Buick's reputation and compete with Lexus. The car looks very nice, interior and exterior. The interior definitely has a Buick heritage...lots of leather...looks more luxury than sporty. Tons of front seat leg room...more than I needed. Decent ride and power, 255hp...a bit softer than the others...but when I tried to look out the rear it was like looking out one of those small windows over a mid engined sports car. The window is high and narrow and the huge c pillars block much of the view in the rear. The back up camera should come standard. The back seat is where the sleek styling took it's biggest toll though. While there was plenty of leg room my head was pressed against the ceiling and my eyes were about level with the top of the side window. It felt horribly claustrophobic. You wouldn't want to put anyone back there taller than 5-10.
Ford Taurus: The price of the Ford base model was the lowest, but once we moved up to leather and heated seats, it became considerably more expensive. This is basically a Ford Volvo S80 and like the S80, Ford has sacrificed back seat room with their slopping rear window. The previous model, while not nearly as pretty, was a much better rear seat people hauler. It had a bit more horsepower than the Buick and Volvo...and felt peppier. The Synch system is truly the best feature. The interior, however, didn't look up to the level of the other cars...there seemed to be more hard plastic and less of an integrated theme. But, for us, the back seat made this car a no go.
Hyundai Genesis: There were about $3000 in incentives on the 2009 models...2010's were hard to come by. The Genesis was a looker...inside and out. Loved the use of soft materials everywhere. The tech package was out of our price range...we shopped the base model...the only disappointment was the plastic/wood interior pieces which just felt cheap. The V6, with it's 290hp, was by far the sportiest of the cars we drove...as was the suspension...to a fault. The car definitely bounced more than the others, and felt generally less "settled." The back seat was truly a nice place to be...lots of leg and head room...nice climate control. I was impressed with the features of just the standard radio and blue tooth..even if they weren't integrated, and the Lexicon system, in the Premium, was the best sound system I've ever heard in a car.
In the end we ended up with the Genesis. It was a combination of looks, comfort, features and price that sold us. The end of year incentives put the premium V6 model at just over $30K....for a car that felt more like it should cost $40K.
Volvo S80: Volvo had huge sale at the end of the year. $4000 off and $1000 owner loyalty. They also raised their basic warranty to 5 years, 60K miles and included free maintenance over the same time (including brakes.) I also can get an employee discount. That put the S80 in the ball park of others. $31,000 out the door got the base model, which has decent standard features like bluetooth. For $1000 more the climate package had 4 heated seats...nice for the passengers. The interior of the Volvo is nicely appointed...but not flashy...just what you might expect from the Swedes. It had HD radio and bluetooth...but nothing too fancy. I am a bit surprised Ford didn't provide it's Synch system for their upscale brand. I liked the standard fold down rear seats which opened up the trunk space...but the small pass though limited the usefulness of this feature. It wasn't the peppiest...with 235hp, but OK. The ride was a very nice combination of comfort and stiffness. It handled well without being sports car stiff. Safety features were maxed out...this is a Volvo afterall. The deal killer was the rear leg room. With the driver seat adjusted for my 6 foot frame I could barely squeeze my knees behind the seat. Getting in and out was a contortionist act.
Buick LaCrosse: Prices were competitive...but there wasn't any incentives as this a new, hot model. I've been hearing about this car for awhile...supposed to change Buick's reputation and compete with Lexus. The car looks very nice, interior and exterior. The interior definitely has a Buick heritage...lots of leather...looks more luxury than sporty. Tons of front seat leg room...more than I needed. Decent ride and power, 255hp...a bit softer than the others...but when I tried to look out the rear it was like looking out one of those small windows over a mid engined sports car. The window is high and narrow and the huge c pillars block much of the view in the rear. The back up camera should come standard. The back seat is where the sleek styling took it's biggest toll though. While there was plenty of leg room my head was pressed against the ceiling and my eyes were about level with the top of the side window. It felt horribly claustrophobic. You wouldn't want to put anyone back there taller than 5-10.
Ford Taurus: The price of the Ford base model was the lowest, but once we moved up to leather and heated seats, it became considerably more expensive. This is basically a Ford Volvo S80 and like the S80, Ford has sacrificed back seat room with their slopping rear window. The previous model, while not nearly as pretty, was a much better rear seat people hauler. It had a bit more horsepower than the Buick and Volvo...and felt peppier. The Synch system is truly the best feature. The interior, however, didn't look up to the level of the other cars...there seemed to be more hard plastic and less of an integrated theme. But, for us, the back seat made this car a no go.
Hyundai Genesis: There were about $3000 in incentives on the 2009 models...2010's were hard to come by. The Genesis was a looker...inside and out. Loved the use of soft materials everywhere. The tech package was out of our price range...we shopped the base model...the only disappointment was the plastic/wood interior pieces which just felt cheap. The V6, with it's 290hp, was by far the sportiest of the cars we drove...as was the suspension...to a fault. The car definitely bounced more than the others, and felt generally less "settled." The back seat was truly a nice place to be...lots of leg and head room...nice climate control. I was impressed with the features of just the standard radio and blue tooth..even if they weren't integrated, and the Lexicon system, in the Premium, was the best sound system I've ever heard in a car.
In the end we ended up with the Genesis. It was a combination of looks, comfort, features and price that sold us. The end of year incentives put the premium V6 model at just over $30K....for a car that felt more like it should cost $40K.
