Hello All, I am a Minnesotan who has been converted. Everyday, I drive my lovely 1994 Alfa Romeo 164 LS who has been a reliable companion. I can rely on it to drive in subzero temps and survive stop-and go traffic in blistering heat without it missing a beat. A great car it is because it makes everyday, boring commutes an adventure with its gusty Italian engine note. That being said, I passed my dealer today and was reeled in by a Scion IQ. Being a lover of small cars, as I also have an AMC Gremlin, I looked at it. Since I have been looking for a replacement for the Alfa Romeo, I have been searching for a smaller, fuel efficient car for practicality sake, however, the IQ was priced a little to smartly for something so small. To its side, I saw a Prius C and was intrigued. Size good, price good, and of course, gas mileage good. It did drive very strangely. The steering was extremely light and brakes very touchy. And of course, the engine made no Italian sounds. But I really liked it and feel it will be a good car for my 60-100 mile daily commutes. This was really a snap decision because I have done little research on it as it has been on market less than a month. But I feel that since it is a Toyota, it should be a good product. (I know, basing decision on laurels) And, my family has had many of them. Echo, RAV4, Highlander, Land Cruiser, and my own, a MR2 Spyder SMT. What I ordered: Bloomington Walser Toyota, 2012 Prius C Three, Blue, Gray/Black interior. Should come April 10th. Cost: $22,782. Not too bad considering how well it is equipped! I look forward to discovering this car's eccentricities and occasionally, asking a question or two on this forum!
If you want to check out my Alfa Romeo 164 LS, it is on Ebay right now. I cannot post a link since I am a new forum member but it is located in Eden Prairie, MN with 101K mileage!
Wow car is in amazing shape. How many miles did you put on it? The center dash is...not user friendly...
That's not what I asked. I asked how many miles HE put on it, not how many miles the car had in total.
Thanks for the distinction. ;-) I just ASSumed he was the sole owner, lol. EDIT: And that would also be a mistaken assumption. According to that same auction: Owners: 3
Holy cow that is immaculate! I've seen a Spyder here and there and a 404 in not-so-good condition in my neighbourhood.
Ha ha, you people are funny! Very polite too! I put nearly 7-8K mileage on the car. They are wonderful cars. The car did have age-related maintenance issues with leaking fluids however, nothing was terribly expensive to fix. With proper maintenance, I feel they can be just as reliable as a Toyota. That being said, they do require more diligent maintenance and driving protocol than a Toyota too. The center stack isn't bad. It is fairly easy to use because there really aren't that many buttons. I found the Prius controls amusing. I had a hard time figuring out what the odometer mileage was on it because on the Prius C, you need to cycle through various menus. Most of my driving occurs on the highway. I believe about 80% of it. As a result, I really can't enjoy driving the Alfa Romeo when driving on highways is so monotonous! Pretty much, the car drives itself so I look forward to saving a buck or two on fuel!
Incidentally, I did strongly consider a Honda Insight but I wasn't impressed by its powertrain. For the record, I did have a 2001 Acura CL Type-S. It ran like a top albeit with 6 transmission failures at the end of 260,000 miles!
This thread reminds me of what Jeremy Clarkson said about Alphas. Specifically that one can't truly be a petrol head, until he's owned an Alpha.
YES! And I quoted him in my Ebay Advert. Alfa Romeo's are cars you can drive everyday and feel special about! Quite True!!!
I had a girlfriend who loved her Spider convertible, me not so much. The stick shift kept getting in the way!
