Finding my Fast Posted July 19, 2006 at 10:12 pm

A month a half ago, I drove home with my first new car ever; it was a Volkswagen GTI. I wanted to share my impressions of all the vehicles I looked at and, hopefully, offer some insight to other new buyers through my own experience. The process started late last year when I received my first lesson on driving stick shift from my uncle and culminated in me driving home my GTI over the Memorial Day weekend.

What I was looking for…

My last vehicle was a third-generation (1987) Toyota Supra, which stands as a pure 80’s Japanese sports car and favorite among modding enthusiasts. Personally, I never went farther toward “pimping” my ride than tinting the windows, but I appreciated the car all the same. In some sense, the Supra was my starting point. I wanted something with the same basic elements that made the Supra great, but with the added benefit of some 20 years of technological innovation. With that in mind, I evaluated the Mazda 3, Subaru WRX, Scion tC, Mini Cooper S, and even the Porsche Boxster before deciding on the GTI.

Why I chose the manual…

During the process, I frequently had to explain why I wanted to go with a manual transmission car, so I might as well do it again here. It was mainly a fun-factor motivation. I had never driven a stick and it seemed like fun. Riding in a car always seems more exciting when the driver is doing more. Then, there’s the long-time association between sports cars and the manual transmission. I wanted a sports car so adding the manual to the equation was just moving me further down that path. I also looked at the learning experience as a challenge; another one of life’s checkboxes to mark off. I wanted to prove to myself that I could operate a clutch proficiently. So I took the plunge and bought my first new car with my first manual transmission.

Test-drive: Mazda 3

The Mazda 3 was my first tester. I was primarily interested in the 5-door hatchback, rather than the more popular 4-door sedan. The 3 presents itself as a nicely equipped and priced car that didn’t compromise on the sporting nature exuded by Mazda, in general.

In my driving, the car felt surprisingly powerful considering its 160HP rating and the automatic was pleasantly smooth and responsive. Handling and braking were also quite satisfactory. I also found myself liking Mazda’s interior aesthetics and I felt like the overall package was well-constructed. While the 3 certainly left a positive impression, it failed to stand out in any particular aspect, which ultimately kept it out of the running.

Test-drive: Subaru WRX

My second driver was the Subaru WRX. I actually drove a 2004 automatic and a 2006 manual, both in wagon trim, before giving up on the ‘rex altogether. Going into the process, I felt like the WRX was a sure favorite. On paper, it offered a track record of superior reliability, gobs of power, and the sporty demeanor I was after. Somehow, the real thing failed to live up to expectations.

The automatic immediately left a negative impression with its power delivery characteristics. I had heard of the term “turbo lag,” but I never truly understood what it meant until I drove the WRX. From a full stop, the WRX felt like it just dead until the turbo spooled up, which is a long enough time lapse to be quite noticeable. When the turbo does kick in, the boost is pretty ferocious, but just couldn’t get over the jarring transition during normal driving. When I tried the manual, the effect of the turbo wasn’t nearly as noticeable. I found this to be true when comparing the 6-speed and DSG on the GTI, as well.

Even disregarding the turbo lag, the WRX just didn’t impress me. I went into the Subaru dealership expecting the world from this car and it just didn’t live up to those expectations. Still, I’ll freely admit that a rather short test drive and my horrible bumbling with the clutch at this point in the process may have colored my impressions of the car.

Test-drive: Porsche Boxster

I decided to take a look at the Boxster after hearing rumors of pristine used models rolling into dealerships at asking prices well within my price range. took a look at Boxster mainly on recommendation from my parents. I soon found the prospect of owning a car that would normally be well out of reach (when new) too much to resist. I located a 2001 Boxster with Tiptronic at a nearby dealer and took it for a test drive.

The Boxster provided a positive impression in every aspect save interior space, where I ultimately felt like I would be uncomfortable using the Boxster as a daily driver. (Taller drivers, take note, I stand at about 6′4″, so adjust for your height accordingly.) The tiptronic was functional, but it didn’t prove to be as engaging an alternative to the manual as I had hoped. I found this to be true of the DSG on the GTI, as well.

The Boxster was also by far the most expensive car to insure of all the vehicles I looked at. It’s not surprising, but insurance is something of a hidden cost that needs to be considered. While a used Boxster can be had for about the same amount as the other cars I looked it, it could easily prove to be much costlier to insure and maintain.

Interlude: The 2006 AJC Auto Show

The 2006 AJC International Auto Show arrived roughly in the middle of my car shopping experience. Since my first auto show experience, I’ve felt they provide an excellent opportunity to take in the entire gamut of vehicles on the market with minimal interference from sales figures. A large scale auto show will have nearly all the manufacturers in attendance and almost every car is open to sit in and become intimately acquainted with the interior. About the only thing you can’t do at a car show is actually drive the cars.

I would advise anyone in the market for a new vehicle to attend a show if it’s reasonably convenient. You can easily expand or limit your search based on a good car show experience. I added the tC, Cooper S, and GTI to my list largely based on seeing these cars up close at this year’s AJC show.

Test-drive: Scion tC

As mentioned above, I added the Scion to my list after seeing it at the auto show. It was not initially on my list because I felt like it wasn’t as sporty as what I wanted. Unfortunately, my initial impressions of the tC stayed with me right through the test drive.

Power delivery was reasonable, though not exceptional, but I found the brakes lacking the confidence to match to match the engine’s output. The aesthetics of the Scion are probably the car’s strongest point. The interior is very well equipped for the money, with a premium stereo system and various electronic goodies. Ultimately, I felt like the tC was more flash than substance, which wasn’t what I was after.

Runner-up: MINI Cooper S

A lot of my friends tell me that they couldn’t see my in a MINI. For that reason, I find it humorous to admit that I seriously considered a Cooper S. Sure, I thoughts MINIs were downright weird at one point, but I’ve met enough satisfied MINI owners to give the marque a shot. I was ultimately quite glad I did, because I came away from the test drive supremely impressed with the car.

In Cooper S trim, the MINI was plenty fast and agile, but what impressed me more than anything was how naturally the car drove. At the time, I was still plenty ungainly with the clutch and I found the MINI to be far and away the easiest to operate of all the manuals I’ve driven to date.

Overall, I was very impressed with the MINI and I would easily look at one again. But as good as the MINI was, it didn’t impress me as much as the GTI.

The Winner: Volkswagen GTI

As I mentioned earlier, I decided to give the GTI a shot after seeing it at the AJC Auto Show. I had considered the VW at length during my early research, but concerns over reliability kept me from putting it at the top of my drive list. Obviously, I’m glad I gave the GTI another shot.

I was impressed with the VW’s interior appointments at the show and I was even more impressed with the car after driving it. The GTI immediately conveyed the feeling of agility and power that I was looking for. Turbo lag was unnoticeable with the manual transmission and only became somewhat apparent with the DSG option. Clutch feel wasn’t quite as smooth as the MINI, but not bad overall.

It’s hard to find fault with the GTI. It has aggressive swagger of a sports car and the performance to back it up. While I had lingering concerns over the long-term reliability of the car, it seems silly to discredit all the tangible benefits the car has over something that might or might not happen down the road. The GTI most closely embodied the traits that I was after and that’s the reason it has earned a place in my garage.

Closing the Deal

Once I knew what I wanted, the rest was easy, right? Not quite. I actually found the process of locating the right vehicle and negotiating with car dealers to be the most frustrating part of the entire process. I suppose that’s because I had one bad experience before I finally did get a good deal on my GTI.

The bad experience came from a dealer in town where I had first driven the GTI. I initially indicated that I was interested in a black GTI. At the time, I hadn’t nailed down the color I wanted so I picked something safe. I later decided that I actually wanted the dark gray color instead. The dealer was informed of the change, yet they decided to try to push a deal through with the black car through pressure sales tactics. The sales manager actually called me at work and dropped the asking price in $100 increments until I agreed to take the car in black that same day.

I made a mistake a this point. I caved to pressure tactics. Luckily, I gave myself time to think about the deal instead of running right down to the dealer to pick the car up. What I realized was that the price of a new vehicle is far too great make unwanted sacrifices just to save a few hundred bucks. When I realized that, I did what I had to do to get out of the deal. Yeah, I initially felt bad about breaking a verbal agreement, but looking back I don’t think that dealer had my best interests at heart. They seemed more interested in selling me what they had on hand than selling me what I actually wanted.

I did end up finding a fair deal on a GTI with the color and options the way I wanted them. While dealing with the dealer I detailed above, I did solicit offers from other dealers and the deal I ultimately took came from one of these other dealers. I had contacted the winning dealer through their internet sales manager and rejected their initial offers. Their sales manager later came back with a much better offer at the end of the month. Through monitoring their inventory online, I already knew that they still had a car equipped to my specifications so I accepted the deal. The rest of the process was pretty painless. I showed up at the dealer, took my car for a test drive, and spent the rest of my time chatting with salesmen while waiting for paperwork to go through.

Lessons Learned

I’m happy that my buying experience ended on a high note, but there are a couple lessons to take away from my experience. One is, obviously, to be aware of the tactics car salesmen will try to use to get you to buy a car. It’s in their best interest to sell what they have on hand as quickly as possible. Know what you want and commit yourself to making a decision on your own timeframe, not one set by the dealer. I know this seems like obvious stuff, but I didn’t fully understand what it meant until I had gone through the process myself.

The second thing to note is that if you’re patient, you’re more likely to end up with a deal that you’ll be happy with. Yeah, I wanted my new car sooner rather than later, but I got my best deal and the configuration I wanted by waiting it out. If I had jumped on one of those early offers, I would have paid a lot more for something less than what I really wanted.