Let’s buy an SUV

I spent a TON of time researching the purchase of my past 2 cars. Completing 29 test drives in 2021, I then hit ⏸️and resumed again in May 2022 when I bought my house, eventually ending on a Subaru WRX 2011. The WRX was a lemon 🍋, and manual transmission was no longer the right choice for me , so I took a slight loss on the 2011 WRX, and used it to trade up to a a 2017 Lexus IS 350 F Sport in Jan 2023

For most of 2023, and all of the spring of 2024, DIY/Garden/Landscaping work has been my #1 passion. Replacing my janky front walk, or planting a tree, I love it so much

The Lexus IS 350 F Sport has a trunk size of just 13.5 cubic feet. This tiny ass figure is comparable to other cars in it’s class: Such as the Infiniti G37 & Q37, Acura TLX, BMW 3 series, Mercedes CLA, etc, but it’s a real burden when you’re visiting home depot twice a week or more to haul dirt, wood, plants, etc. Don’t get me wrong, the IS 350 F Sport is TONS of fun to drive and god bless Lexus for continuing to produce non-CVT V6 naturally aspirated V6 engines when everyone else is moving to eco friendly alternatives. However, it’s not the right car for me as I approach 45 years young on July 1, 2024

As a single dude, I’m often driving my dates around Montreal, Quebec, Canada where I live. I’ve had a few complaints due to it’s low ground clearance when passengers get in and out. I won’t be single forever, but would the a low-rider Lexus IS 350 F Sport pass the wife test? TBD, but prob not
Also related to being that low to the ground, you FEEL. EVERY. BUMP. Montreal is not the pothole capital of Canada, but were in the top 10 for sure. Having a higher wheel base smooths out the ride 12 months of the year

SUV class cars are generally a bit heaver than their sedan counterparts. So, if you’ve got similar specs for HP/torque in a sedan vs an SUV (cross-over), the sedan might “feel faster”. That’s certainly been the case for the test drives I completed over the past 2 weeks

Test drives

1) May 27, 2024: 2020 CX-50 w Turbo. 250 HP against a curb weight of 3823 LBS. Nice enough interior, ok exterior, but ugly plastic trim wheel wells. Felt mostly slow, but had some nice engine sounds, possibly artificial

2) May 28, 2024: 2019 Acura RDX. Better styling than the CX-50. 272 HP w Turbo against a curb weight of 4096 LBS. Felt faster than the CX-50, but would still be a compromise performance wise against the Lexus IS 350 F Sport which has 306 HP and weighs just 3700 LBS

3) May 29, 2024: 2021 BMW X3 30e: An interesting option. The base X3 30i engine is a bit lacking at only 248 HP against a curb weight of 4156, however, the 30E is a hybrid option, with a boost mode that combines power from the gas engine with it’s hybrid counterpart for a total HP of 288. however, in actual driving, it didn’t feel too fast. As well, due to the placement of the electric batteries in the back, you’ve got an awkward bump in the trunk, and loose a bit of trunk space. They are also generally over-priced on the used market, with an average selling price of $41k for 2018 models (prices based on June 2024 here in Quebec, Canada)

4) June 5, 2024: 2018 Audi SQ5 w Turbo. 354 HP against a curb weight of 4321. Felt plenty fast, interior was nice , but the exterior is a bit “soccer mom” for my tastes. To each their own, the one I drove was dark gray, which is a color I detest on any car. Audi has some super sexy colors on a few of their cars, my test drive did not. Another consideration, Audi’s generally rate lower on reliability against their luxury competition (see below pic from consumer reports)

NOTE: When doing this kind of research, you need to look at the over-all brand, the model, then the year. The 2018 SQ5 which I test drove, was retailing for $27-30k CDN 🍁, which is a sexy price, but that had to be weighted against not being able to purchase OEM warranty from VW/Audi, as it was being sold by Honda Boucherville. So, I’d be on my own should something go wrong, A 37/100 reliability rating from consumer reports is not good

NEXT!

5) June 6, 2024: 2018 BMW X3 M40i. This is the end, my friends. I’ve had an X-Series cross-over BMW in my cross hairs for a while now

BMWs are fully bean-ray approved 🐕🐩, which is an important consideration as a single dog-dad💓😍

I had rented an X1 for a visit to see my parents in Dec 2022. I then test drove an X3 M40i in the summer of 2023 @ BMW Laval, Quebec, and finally, in April 2024, I rented an X5 40i for a week in Arizona . Circling back to BMW X3 was inevitable

Prior to the X3 M40i test drive on June 6, 2024, I left each of previous 4 test drives feeling content , but not overly excited. In fact, I felt like I was cheating on my Lexus IS 350 F Sport (silver bird) with an inferior replacement. Not so with the 2018 BMW X3 M40i I test drove on June 6, 2024. It’s got 355 HP against a curb weight 4277 LBS, which makes for a very sexy driving experience in “comfort” or “sport mode”. As well, because this car was being sold at a BMW dealership, I was able to purchase it with 2 years warranty, something that wasn’t possible with the previous 3 test drives. that’s contrasted against a consumer reports rating that’s more than double that of the SQ5 from Audi @ 72/100. Peace of mind has it’s price, and I am willing to pay

Lastly, this part is certainly an individual choice, but I’ve wanted to own a dark blue car for the last 20 years, but have never been able to make it work. Not this time, dark BLUE BABY 💙🔵

Here some pix from delivery day on Thursday June 13, 2024. I packed up the bean, and drove silver bird (my existing 2017 Lexus IS 350 F Sport) to BMW Laval for the trade-in / delivery , from one bird to another! I had some great memories in the Lexus, I hope she goes to a good new home 🙂

And of course, I took the dog, to ensure she approved of the new car “Blue bird” 💙🔵🕊️

This summer is off to a great start

Thanks for reading and have a nice day 😎🌻

Owen / bean-ray ☕