Which car will you choose?

The first one:



2007 Infinity G35 Journey with most of the options (sunroof, navigation system, heated seats, homelink, etc.), 27500 miles, one owner, still have the rest of the warranty till 2012 or 60000 miles, asking for $22,000, hope to get it down to about $20,000;



The second one:



Brand new 2010 Hyundai Sonata SE V6 or Limited without much options for about the same price ($20,000) including rebates.



Both cars are from the same dealer. Which one will you choose? Why?

I would choose the 2010 Sonata. I would be starting out with new tires, a fresh battery and a warranty for 100,000 miles as oppsoed to 60,000 miles less the 27,500 miles already accumulated.

However, keep in mind that sunroofs, heated seats, navigation systems, etc. don’t excite me. I thought back in 1957 that the Studebaker Scotsman–a completely bare bones car–would be perfect for me. Others, who have more sophisticated tastes in automobiles may be of more help.

Hyundai

electric n heated this n that are just more things that can go wrong

G35 – it’s rear wheel drive. About as close to a BMW as any Japanese company makes. It does, however, feel a bit like a truck engine in a near luxury sedan – not a smooth as the Germans. I’d also go with a six-speed manual transmission. In three years, the G35 will be worth $10k and the Sonata will be worth $5k.

Twotone

#1- In 4 years the Hyundai will be worth about $10K and the Infinity will be worth about $15K. The Hyundai will take the big depreciation new car hit which has already occured with the Infinity.

I would first ask myself which one I would prefer.

The butt test is important. Sit yourself down in each possibility. Which one is most comfortable. If five of us were to test them out, I doubt if we would all agree. Of course the butt test includes looking on the trunk and seeing if you can get all that baseball equipment needed by the little league kids in there etc.

A big part of the decision-making process should be a consideration of the climate in the OP’s area.

If you live in the southern part of the US, where snow is never a consideration, then the G35 would get my nod of approval. On the other hand, if you typically have to deal with snow in your area, you will regret having a rear-wheel drive car on days when the roads are slippery.

Yes, the G35 has traction control, but the reality is that even with traction control, a RWD car (particularly one with a powerful engine) will never give you winter traction equivalent to a FWD car–assuming that they are equipped with similar tires. Traction control will help you get going, but it is not a cure-all for traction problems, and when used on a regular basis, it will lead to premature wear of the rear brake pads.

These are both very good cars, albeit with very different levels of both luxury and engine power. But, no matter which car you buy, make sure that you equip it with a set of 4 winter tires if you live in a snow region.

That price for the Hyundai is outrageously high.

The last 2010 Sonatas were built about a year ago. They went on clearance immediately, as the much-improved 2011 model went on sale around February. There is no excuse for charging that much for a car that has been sitting on a lot for a year. Based on the prices I saw the few remaining 2010 Sonatas around here going for on clearance back in May, it really shouldn’t run you over $15,000…

I’d stretch out and include more options. Having said that, I’d say just between the two…the Infinity. I would not get a front drive 6 cyl. You can best utilize the performance of a bigger motor in rwd. I’m not a Hyundai fan; yet.