Sometimes online research does not bring real world results

[jsharr]

ade and I went to a local CarMax today.  I told the salesperson my criteria.  $20k max price.  2015 or newer. 30K miles or less.  VW Passat, Chevy Impala, Nissan Pathinder and GMC Terrain on the short list

Did not love any of the cars on my list but we ended up test driving a low mileage 2015 Ford Taurus SEL  that was loaded.  Ticked all the boxes and was very roomy.  The touch screen left me confused, but I can learn to deal with it.

Right now the Taurus is top of my list followed by the Impala.  They only had one on the lot and it was sold, so I need to search one out to drive.  It fit all the boxes but I liked the overall look of the Ford better.

Found one online that has the same features, a few more miles and 4k less.  As soon as Geico hands me a check, I may go buy it.

[Page Turner]

Report: Chevy Sonic, Ford Taurus and Fiesta days numbered in US

 

...the only possible cautionary on buying a Taurus is that Ford has made a (stupid) corporate decision to kill the car in the US market.

I don't know how long you usually keep your cars, but I shoot for about 20 years....our 2000 Camry is starting to show some age.

 

If Toyota had killed the Camry here a year or two after we bought it, making 20 years would have been a lot harder.

[Tizeye]

Also check out the “twins” that typically have higher depreciation to benefit you.  Lincoln MKS?????? (MKZ is Fusion twin). Also, Buick LeSabre will be close to Impala. Taurus/MKS should be supported, as their platform is also used for a crossover. Noted that MKS no longer exists on Lincoln’s website as it, like the Tarus, were slow movers compared to MKZ/Fusion.

[Ralphie]

You are looking at cars?  Will you be run oot of Texas on a rail?

[MickinMD]

From when I retired in 2006, I decided I wasn't going to buy my next car until all my retirement income streams kicked-in at that the end of 2012. That gave me a lot of time to check out everything but when I bought my last car in 2013, I was frustrated by the lack of detail on cars - online, at car shows, and at the dealer's.

For example, I wanted to know if I could fit a 4 foot wide piece of plywood, sheetrock, etc. in the open hatch of the crossovers I was considering and the only way to find out was to take a tape measure to a dealership and measure it myself.  Also, how much room behind the rear seats in terms of inches to the rear hatch - so you could determine if you could store an 18" wide box, etc. there - was nonexistent.

In my 2013 Honda Fit, the rear hatch won't fit a 4' wide piece, but the "magic" rear seats' horizontal parts fold up so a 4'x4' board easily can be stood up behind the front seats and there is 18" of room behind the rear seats.  I checked all that out as well as the headroom, legroom, mileage, fun-to-drive, etc. before choosing what was then Consumer Reports' Best-Bang-for-the-Buck Car for the 4th straight year.