Automoblues

By the end of this week, I will have a new car.  If I'm still alive.  It's proving to be a very stressful process.  I wanted a Nissan 350Z.  That's the only car I bothered to learn the name for, because I'd been admiring it forever.  The problem (as you may have guessed based on the fact that is has a "Z" in the name) is that it's a sports car, and as a general rule, those are pretty expensive.

So we had it narrowed down to a 2010 Kia Rio and a 2010 Hyundai Accent.  They're the same price, both in great condition, and they even have the same engine.  They're basically the same car.  The safety ratings, however, are less than stellar.  So now we're looking at Toyotas, which is pretty ironic, if you ask me, seeing as how it was Toyota, and not Kia or Hyundai, that recalled thousands of cars because they were unsafe.  I don't want a Toyota.  I want the Kia Rio.  It's cute.  But that's about as far as my knowledge goes.

Pretty much every car I look at is an improvement from the 1996 Buick LaSabre I'm currently driving.  Don't get me wrong, I'm proud of that thing.  I won my high school's yearbook award for "Gimpest Car" for driving it to school everyday. I referred to it after that as my "award-winning vehicle."  And it's about as safe as a Sherman Tank, which is a plus.  But it helps to keep a little perspective when you're comparing a Kia to a Hyundai to a Toyota and thinking it's all too much.  After all, we're comparing them all to that Buick Houseboat.

My mom wanted me to get an Accord, because she's a Honda person.  But the Accords are all very expensive, compared to the other two.  I'm thinking, "MPG" pretty much nonstop because that's what's coming straight out of my wallet.  And without a job, I'm looking for a car that gets about 150 Highway. Unfortunately, that doesn't exist yet within our budget.

I wanted to live on campus.  That would have solved all car problems.  But then I would have had to pay room and board, I guess.  Six one way and all that.  Feel free to weigh in on Hyundai, Kia, or Toyota if any of you faithful readers have any knowledge or opinions.