DVad3r
Diamond Member
My baller uncle came down from Poland and he wants to go to a few dealerships tomorow and test drives some cars. He likes all types and has probably had 50 + cars in his lifetime. He told me to recommend him some cool ones they wouldn't have in Europe. I looked into a Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT 8 2009 but they don't have one anywhere in the GTA to test drive, so gg.
Anything you guys recommend? Also price point should be below 70 k ish.
UPDATE:
Alright we test drove 3 cars today.
Car 1: 2009 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Supercharged
There is only 1 word that can sum up this car, and it is: AMAZING. Honestly I've never been in a Land Rover before, and have heard numerous things about the past models saying that they don't live up to their name, and that reliability is terrible. Somehow I did not get that impression from this one. The car inside is refined top notch. It has every feature you could possibly want, and everything just feels solid. When you sit in it, you feel confident, the windows are nice and big everywhere, the look over the hood is very nice.
Driving the Range Rover Sport was pure pleasure. I personally love the sound of supercharged engines, and this one had a crazy note to it. It feels stable, and acceleration wise it's a total beast, I didn't think a car that big/heavy could take off so fast with ease. Easily the best car of the day, no comparison, and I am starting to think that this truly is the SUV / off road king.
The only downside? Price tag, $ 85,000 Canadian + 13 % tax. But then again, driving it, you feel what you are paying for.
Car 2: 2009 Infiniti FX50 Type S
This is the car that guys with families buy when their wife wants them to get something family oriented, but the guy still wants to have a sport car, and decieves the wife into buying a FX50 Type S.
The car is a monster, it accelerates like a total beast, we took it out on the highway (403) and on a little stretch I ended up going 170 km/h without even noticing what was happening. Outside it looks pretty stunning, and inside it's refined pretty well also, although I did notice a lot more cheap plastic etc than that of the Land Rover.
Space wise it was nice at the front, but at the back my uncle said it was pretty tight. Also the windshield and rear sidewindows are on the small side. Personally I like having great visibility. One thing that was really cool about the FX50 was the camera system, which basically showed you a 360 of your car, with switchable views to the front etc. You can park anywhere with this car, even into the tighest crevices, and be able to see everything inch by inch. Another cool factor when driving this car was lane change. Changing the lanes without a signal would prompt a little computer alarm buzz sound, telling you you forgot to put the signal on. Good for people who suck at signaling 🙂 Also good if you are falling asleep or something and need a wake up call if you are drifting out of a lane.
All in all, nice car, if you want a sport car in disguise of an SUV. I wouldn't buy it, too small, a bit too loud, and does not even come close to the refinement of the Range Rover. It costs $ 70,000 also, so if I was in that price range Id rather put down the extra cash and get a Rover, no doubt about it.
Car 3: 2009 Lincoln Navigator
I've never driven a Navigator and remember the car coming out when I was a kid. I was pretty fascinated by it back in the day and have always thought they looked good on the road. Driving it today gave me a mixed bag of impressions.
Ill start off with the negative of the car. The # 1 thing is price. $ 72,000 for a Ontario made car. $ 72,000 for a rebadged Ford with the same exact engine etc. Definetely not my cup of tea, if the car was $ 50,000, then it would make sense. Another thing driving the car around is performance, the 300 hp engine does not cut it compared to the 400 + of the other cars. The car feels bulky and sluggish, it definetely needs more power under the hood to move it along. I've driven an F-150 before, and that feels more sporty than the Navigator.
Other then those factors, the car was great. When driving it, you just felt safe, and if you hit anything you would probably destroy it, quite the massive car. Another thing which suprised me in an American car was the interior, it's really nice. I liked the whole white/black/silver theme, and it had a shitload of options for pretty much anything. THX system, DVD, Navigation, etc. Very impressed. I also liked the folding side boards when getting in/out of the car. Aside from the sluggish performance, it still was a good ride.
If the car had a bigger engine, felt less sluggish, and had a better price tag, then it would be a good contender, but at this point I can't see why anyone would want to buy this car justifying it's price.
Uncle liked the Rover the best, it's basically more than twice the HP of his 2.7 liter diesel Rover in Poland. He still wants to go test drive a few more, so I am thinking we might do a Cadillac Escalade, and not sure what else.
Anything you guys recommend? Also price point should be below 70 k ish.
UPDATE:
Alright we test drove 3 cars today.
Car 1: 2009 Land Rover Range Rover Sport Supercharged
There is only 1 word that can sum up this car, and it is: AMAZING. Honestly I've never been in a Land Rover before, and have heard numerous things about the past models saying that they don't live up to their name, and that reliability is terrible. Somehow I did not get that impression from this one. The car inside is refined top notch. It has every feature you could possibly want, and everything just feels solid. When you sit in it, you feel confident, the windows are nice and big everywhere, the look over the hood is very nice.
Driving the Range Rover Sport was pure pleasure. I personally love the sound of supercharged engines, and this one had a crazy note to it. It feels stable, and acceleration wise it's a total beast, I didn't think a car that big/heavy could take off so fast with ease. Easily the best car of the day, no comparison, and I am starting to think that this truly is the SUV / off road king.
The only downside? Price tag, $ 85,000 Canadian + 13 % tax. But then again, driving it, you feel what you are paying for.
Car 2: 2009 Infiniti FX50 Type S
This is the car that guys with families buy when their wife wants them to get something family oriented, but the guy still wants to have a sport car, and decieves the wife into buying a FX50 Type S.
The car is a monster, it accelerates like a total beast, we took it out on the highway (403) and on a little stretch I ended up going 170 km/h without even noticing what was happening. Outside it looks pretty stunning, and inside it's refined pretty well also, although I did notice a lot more cheap plastic etc than that of the Land Rover.
Space wise it was nice at the front, but at the back my uncle said it was pretty tight. Also the windshield and rear sidewindows are on the small side. Personally I like having great visibility. One thing that was really cool about the FX50 was the camera system, which basically showed you a 360 of your car, with switchable views to the front etc. You can park anywhere with this car, even into the tighest crevices, and be able to see everything inch by inch. Another cool factor when driving this car was lane change. Changing the lanes without a signal would prompt a little computer alarm buzz sound, telling you you forgot to put the signal on. Good for people who suck at signaling 🙂 Also good if you are falling asleep or something and need a wake up call if you are drifting out of a lane.
All in all, nice car, if you want a sport car in disguise of an SUV. I wouldn't buy it, too small, a bit too loud, and does not even come close to the refinement of the Range Rover. It costs $ 70,000 also, so if I was in that price range Id rather put down the extra cash and get a Rover, no doubt about it.
Car 3: 2009 Lincoln Navigator
I've never driven a Navigator and remember the car coming out when I was a kid. I was pretty fascinated by it back in the day and have always thought they looked good on the road. Driving it today gave me a mixed bag of impressions.
Ill start off with the negative of the car. The # 1 thing is price. $ 72,000 for a Ontario made car. $ 72,000 for a rebadged Ford with the same exact engine etc. Definetely not my cup of tea, if the car was $ 50,000, then it would make sense. Another thing driving the car around is performance, the 300 hp engine does not cut it compared to the 400 + of the other cars. The car feels bulky and sluggish, it definetely needs more power under the hood to move it along. I've driven an F-150 before, and that feels more sporty than the Navigator.
Other then those factors, the car was great. When driving it, you just felt safe, and if you hit anything you would probably destroy it, quite the massive car. Another thing which suprised me in an American car was the interior, it's really nice. I liked the whole white/black/silver theme, and it had a shitload of options for pretty much anything. THX system, DVD, Navigation, etc. Very impressed. I also liked the folding side boards when getting in/out of the car. Aside from the sluggish performance, it still was a good ride.
If the car had a bigger engine, felt less sluggish, and had a better price tag, then it would be a good contender, but at this point I can't see why anyone would want to buy this car justifying it's price.
Uncle liked the Rover the best, it's basically more than twice the HP of his 2.7 liter diesel Rover in Poland. He still wants to go test drive a few more, so I am thinking we might do a Cadillac Escalade, and not sure what else.
