What makes this your car?

  • stinerman@midwest.social
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    1 year ago

    We were until recently a one car household (my wife and I both work from home). So I drove a 2019 Toyota Camry. Why? Because that’s what my wife wanted.

    My sister got a new car so I bought her old one off of her so I could have a backup on the rare times we needed two. It’s a 2012 Ford Fiesta. Why? Because it was cheap ($2k) and it gets good gas mileage. I also like the car because I’m a minimalist at heart. It’s very simple and I like that.

  • wirelesswire@lemmy.zip
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    1 year ago

    I drive a 2018 Subaru Forester. I got it because I wanted a SUV with AWD and a turbo charger. My previous vehicle was a Camaro, and while I loved driving it, having a RWD car in the winter sucks, and I had recently bought a house, so having a vehicle that can carry more than just groceries made sense.

    I was driving the Camaro around Xmas time and there was a light dusting of snow on the highway. I hit a patch of it and started to fish tail, and that scared the hell out of me, so I traded it for the Forester the following fall. The Forester has handled any conditions I’ve come across so far like a champ, including heavy rain, snow, ice, and muddy hillsides.

    Trading the Camaro in and getting the Forester marked the transition (in my mind) from being a young adult, to becoming an older, more sensible one. I was driving home from work one day, and a Camaro passed me on the highway. I couldn’t help but sigh and ask myself why I had to get old. The Forester is a good vehicle and very nice (got the XT Touring package), but the Camaro was way more fun to drive, and I still miss it. I’d like to get another sports car in the future, but we’ll see if that happens.

    • BearOfaTime@lemm.ee
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      1 year ago

      Tires make all the difference. Both the size/proportion and materials.

      I’ve had RWD cars that were beasts in the snow (East Coast ice no less) because they were near perfect weight distribution and had the best winter tires on the market (Nokian).

      I’ve had AWD cars that sucked, because the car was poorly balanced, the tire sidewall was too small (so the tire can’t flex much), entry level winter tires (rubber was harder), and stupid electronic traction control that tried to out think the driver but just got in the way.

      RWD will still usually be more challenging to drive than AWD (I think even more so with RWD cars post 2000), though some AWD systems can be unpredictable. Part of the issue with newer RWD cars is the tire sizes - it can be hard to get proper winter tires (plus they cost a lot). I’ve seen some cars for which winter tires didn’t exist, or were exorbitantly expensive to get (it’s assumed by both car and tire manufacturers that these cars won’t be driven in snow).

      Fortunately Subaru uses a dead simple AWD system (basically open diffs at each end) - the most complex thing they do is use the brakes for traction control/torque distribution, which is less likely (In my experience) to get in the way than things like electronic diffs (can you tell I’m a fan of Subaru AWD?).

      • fuckwit_mcbumcrumble@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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        1 year ago

        I’ve driven RWD sports cars in the snow with ease. Tires are aboslutely everything. People tend to ignore their tires for WAY too long before getting them replaced, and/or get shitty all seasons that suck in every condition possible.

        The trend of “I need AWD SUV because snow” terrifies me because people are buying bigger, heavier, and worse handling cars when they really just need better tires. A FWD sedan with good tires will do WAY better than an AWD SUV with crappy tires. The only upside is people will tend to put better tires on their SUV because it’s more expensive than their shitty sports car/sedan.

  • pedz@lemmy.ca
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    1 year ago

    None. I don’t have one and do not want one. They are a blight. I want them gone.

    • anothermember@lemmy.zip
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      1 year ago

      Terrible that you’re being downvoted for this while, currently, the top upvoted comment is someone boasting about having two cars.

      • pedz@lemmy.ca
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        1 year ago

        I was kind of expecting it. The question is “What car do you drive?” and not “If you have a car, what’s the one you’re driving?” because it’s to be expected that everyone has or wants a car. So those without cars are not being asked, and saying you don’t have one is “not the question”. Worse if you don’t like them. I’d bet that saying I don’t have one but wish I had a specific one would have gained more sympathy.

        As a North American that doesn’t like cars, I’m just used to that type of reaction. A car is status and prestige. A car defines who you are. If you don’t have a car, you’re not normal.

    • qevlarr@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I’m happy for you. I drive an electric scooter to work and my husband by bicycle. We have a car but only for longer trips. I hope car sharing becomes more accessible where I live, because I don’t need to have my own car if I only use it occasionally

  • lath@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    I don’t drive because I know I’ll eventually hit someone, whether by my own fault or another’s, and i don’t want that on my conscience.

    There’s often a high chance at least one of any participants in traffic, regardless of the chosen mode of transportation, is truly dumb or having a dumb moment and will fuck something up for everyone else.

    And I know that when a dumb fuck eventually crosses my path or I myself become one, I won’t be able to handle the situation reasonably, so my chosen preventive measure is staying away from the wheel.

  • HEXN3T@lemmy.blahaj.zone
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    1 year ago

    My legs.

    But, if I was forced to choose, I’d go with an RV, and then live out of it. No in-between. Why?

    I have two preferred modes of living. One is without a car in a walkable area. The other is with a car, and my house is attached to the car. Everybody already gets walkable cities, but having an RV would warrant the freedom to be able to bring all of my possessions anywhere I want, whenever I want. For practicality, I’d use a motorbike for travelling after parking the RV. This is the only way I could own a motor vehicle–it must serve a purpose beyond merely moving a few people and objects between point A and point B. Else, I don’t want one.

    The only cars I’ve been at all interested in otherwise are old Honda Stepwgns, the Peel Trident, station wagons, and, indeed, motorcycles. Still see no point in these when a hypothetical RV would be much better for a solo road trip, and when I can go on a vacation via plane or another friend’s car. I’m not going out alone.

    I don’t like single-use items. I prefer everything I have be as multi-purpose as possible.

  • Sequentialsilence@lemmy.world
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    1 year ago

    2023 Kia EV6

    I was driving a 2004 Chevy cobalt, it was paid off and the motor wouldn’t stop working, that’s all the good that could be said about it, everything else was falling apart. One day the AC stopped working, so I went to roll the manual window down, and the handle came off in my hand. I decided I was done. I knew I wanted at least a hybrid, preferably a plugin hybrid, maybe a full EV if the price was right. They are way more efficient than a traditional ICE, and with less maintenance. I knew I also wanted cooled seats, summer’s in the southeastern US can be brutal.

    It happened to be near the end of the year, the dealership was in the process of unloading the 2024 model cars, and they only had 2 2023 models left that fit my requirements, so I got a brand new car with options for less than base MSRP, and I completely skipped the hybrid / plug in hybrid phase.

  • Enkrod@feddit.org
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    1 year ago

    2019 Škoda Fabia Monte-Carlo Edition.

    It’s a relatively small car, but bigger on the inside, allowing my 6.5 feet (1.98m) and considerable bulk to sit comfortably and commute a route where sadly public transit isn’t an option. It’s only drinking 5.5l per 100km (4.277 mpg) and I have had good experiences with that model in the past in regards to the cost of maintenance.

    I can go 200km/h (125 mph) (downhill and with a tailwind) and the sporty features (manual transmission, sports suspension, sports seating, stronger engine and spoiler) are really nice when going quickly around corners on country roads or speeding down the Autobahn.

    • Retro_unlimited@lemmy.world
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      1 year ago

      I sold my matrix recently, nice car, good gas Mileage, plenty of space to haul stuff when the seats fold down (I somehow hauled a 53” tool box in it once). Little weird the trunk is plastic, but has tie down rails. I miss the car a lot, but I moved out of state and could only drive one car.