This is the first time that Aunty took so much time and effort in finding her perfect next vehicle.  Usually, it is a one stop deal for a car that catches Aunty’s fancy, and then surprising Uncle and kids with it in the driveway.

This time Aunty wanted a compact SUV that had a power lift gate, looked good, smelled good, drove well, and was quiet.  Also, it had to have a lane change assist feature that would audibly beep if a car was in the blind spot in the right lane.  Keyless entry and start, as well as a good backup camera were also on the list.  And, the price had to be affordable (see Aunty’s older post on making money work for you).

New blog pal Gigi of gigihawaii.wordpress.com asked why an SUV rather than a compact or sub-compact car.  Aunty’s latest few cars were all SUVs, and driving a little higher than other vehicles on the road was something that Aunty was used to.

Each and every compact SUV that Aunty visited or tried out had excellent points, but none of them had everything that Aunty wanted.  It came down to three final choices.  The awesome foot waving power lift gating Ford Escape, the head turning super cute technology laden Honda HRV, and the super quiet Mazda CX-5 underdog with bells and whistles.

Aunty went back to see cute Leo Kim at Cutter Mazda for her third (!) visit.  Earlier, Mazda super salesman Wayne Hurst had given Aunty an earful about CVT transmissions (Honda), had a few choice words about Fords, and then had Aunty check out how easy and smooth the tail gate on the Mazda was.  It was indeed very smooth, almost luxuriously smooth, and much easier than her current Subaru Crosstrek.

Leo ran circles around the lot and put Aunty in the drivers seat in 5 different CXs before Aunty finally decided – BAM! – she wanted the red 2016.5 Mazda Touring CX-5 with a cream cloth interior even if it did not have a power lift gate.  Aunty would be leasing for 3 years.

It didn’t have a power lift gate, so wasn’t perfect, but maybe in 3 years (when the lease ends) there will be the absolute perfect car for Aunty.  Actually, the Mazda CX-3 would have been the one if Aunty were 40 years younger because it had the most luxurious smell good, feel good, look good interior with a very sporty feel and drive.  It is lower in price and size from the the CX-5 but has all the bells and whistles and is a real head turner.  The only drawback was the very small cargo space with the seats up.

Aunty met up with managers Matt Wong, Chico Ramos, and finance manager Jess Hong to close the deal.  It was quite surprising how easy it was to negotiate with the Mazda team – after the first sticker shock price sheet came in, to reaching a number that Aunty felt very comfortable with, and signing page after page with Jess in his warm (the rest of the building was freezing cold) office.  Meanwhile, cute salesman Leo is practically jumping up and down with happiness for Aunty’s new toy.

Aunty drove off (actually it was just around the block) to take possession of her good smelling, good looking, quiet, powerful, keyless entry and start safe car with audible lane change assist and fantastic back up camera.  An added bonus was an audible cross traffic alert that could sense cars coming while reversing out of driveways and parking spots.  And, it was a gorgeous shade of screaming red that makes Aunty flaunt and want to laugh out loud, “Moooohahahahaha!”

Aunty can’t wait to drive it around town, back it out of driveways with confidence, and glide in peace and comfort.  If you do see Aunty flashing around town in her bright red Mazda CX-5, give a shaka and a wave.

The quest is over, Aunty is happy, Moooohahahahaha!

Aunty’s update after 6 months:

Ho boy.  Aunty is not as happy with this vehicle because of a few things.  First off is the rather inconvenient center console “button” that controls the dashboard screen and functions.  The junkest part of it is that it takes several steps to put a playing CD in “pause”, and when the car is started up again, the default is to play automatically.  This causes problems when Aunty has passengers and has a gory part of a Stephen King CD going on.

Next is that it isn’t a very quiet car on the road.  Maybe that is Aunty’s fault for expecting quiet in a non luxury car.  Actually, it is Aunty’s fault.

No power lift gate.  Old ladies deserve power lift gates.  And you know what happened?  The next year (2017), power lift gates became available on the higher end options.  NObody told that to Aunty – who WOULD have waited a few short months because that is a very desirable feature so Aunty doesn’t have to do gymnastics while balancing a heavy box or bag and opening the back gate.

Aunty’s bad.  Sigh.  To break a lease could be quite expensive but Aunty is seriously thinking about it.  A friend just showed off her BMW X-1, her lease is less than the Mazda’s, maintenance is FREE, and it has a great foot opening power lift gate with a gorgeous interior.  Aunty used to be adamant about not getting a BMW so that prevented her from checking the X-1 out.  Ah well, life is full of lessons and surprises.  Having a quest of finding a just right car will be an ongoing adventure for Aunty.

2016 Mazda CX-5 (2017 not available yet)

Mazda of Honolulu is located on Ala Moana Boulevard where the go carts used to be for a short time.  A friendly young man waved as Aunty drove in to test drive a CX-5.  This was the instantly likeable Leo Kim, who was more than happy to let Aunty check out their vehicles and ask a lot of questions.  The first question was, “Does it have a power lift gate?”  Answer, “No.”  This was a bummer and at that very moment, Aunty decided that Mazda’s CX-5 was not for her.

However, because Leo seemed more than willing to help, Aunty asked if she could drive one, even if not planning to buy one.  “Sure!” Leo said, and went off to find the keys to the Grand Touring top of the line model.  We drove to the parking lot of Point Panic and even though Aunty just wanted to hop in the car and drive, Leo had to point out the key features of the vehicle.  The safety of the body, the 180º backup camera, the oncoming traffic warning, lane change assist, cargo space and hidden storage, engine stuff that only men understand, and about Mazda’s CX-5 being ranked tops in its class by somebody or other.  It was quite impressive, actually.

And then, Aunty got behind the wheel and was super impressed with how quiet the ride was, how good it smelled inside, and how well it handled and drove.  It was almost like a Lexus inside, though not quite as plush.  It was with sadness that Aunty drove back to the lot with Leo, because this vehicle did not have a power lift gate and was a teeny bit too big.  While saying our farewells, Aunty spied the zippy looking CX-3, the CX-5’s little brother.  Oooooh oooooh ooooooh, SO cute!  “Does it have a power lift gate?”  “No.”  Bummers.  Even so, Aunty told Leo that she wanted to return another day to test drive that little one.  “Sure!” said Leo.  Aunty did return a few weeks later, got to test drive the cute but too small CX-3 with Josh, and then got a little talking to by Wayne (that’s Josh, Aunty, Leo, and Wayne in the picture above).

Wayne insisted that Mazda was just about the best of the best and that the 2016 CX-5 is better looking than the 2017, etc., etc, etc.  Anywho, here is a review of it:

2017 Kia Sportage and glimpse at the Hyundai Tucson

The next stop of the day was Aloha Kia at the corner of Lagoon Drive and Nimitz Highway near the airport.  Why a Kia?  Because when Aunty asked Mazda’s Leo Kim what he thought about the Korean cars such as Kia and Hyundai, Leo said that he thought they were good cars, because he is Korean.  LOL, Aunty had to chuckle, so also had to check out at least one Korean made car.

The Sportage is just the right size with some very nice features.  The rear passenger seats can recline, lane change assist is available, and it DOES have a power lift gate!  There is a lot going on with the exterior design, it does have a very peppy look and the ride was quite alright.  The front sides of the car rose a bit like shoulder blades and were a bit of an irritant to Aunty – taking away some of the visibility while driving, but that might just be something to get used to.

Martin Kozlik was totally not pushy and easy to talk to.  He even gave Aunty a color brochure of the 2017 Sportage with nice glossy color pictures and specs and such.  It has a special braking system in case the car in front stops suddenly as well as rear cross-traffic alert, lane change assist, and rear and front park assist.  Quite nice, but it had a strong chemical smell (which will probably go away after a bit) and the head rest was irritating to Aunty because it pushed Aunty’s head forward.  Still, it had a power lift gate that automatically opens if standing behind the vehicle with the key in close proximity.  Cool!

What about Hyundais?  Martin said that they were a level above Kias, and the Tucson was the same size as the Sportage.  Hmmmm.  The Hyundai Tucson SUV was a nice looking classic compact SUV.  In fact, it looked very similiar to the Mazda CX-5, with the same or better features than the Kia Sportage.  This may be another one to look at.

2017 Ford Escape Titanium

Aunty used to really like European cars because they are beautiful and they smell good.  Like a million dollars.  They also cost a lot more and have a certain prestige of flaunting wealth.  Japanese cars are for smart practical people, and so are the new Korean cars, except for the high end ones such as Infiniti, Acura, Lexus.  And then there are the American cars, which used to be THE best when Aunty was growing up, and then they weren’t.  Maybe they deserved a chance, especially after Daniel Morisato over at Infiniti of Honolulu mentioned Ford’s leading technology and improvements.

Aunty decided to stop in at Honolulu Ford on King and Dillingham after a quick lunch at Bob’s Barbeque (yum yum).  Somehow it felt patriotic.  Buy American brand, support an American industry, give it a test drive and then decide.

Stuart Alsup greeted Aunty and was very easy to work with.  After a short stroll looking at the demos on the lot, we got into a 2017 Ford Escape Titanium model that had the ability to park itself in parallel situations as well as backing into perpendicular parking stalls!  Pretty cool feature, and very foreign feeling.  Its best feature was a power lift gate – activated by waving my foot under the gate!  THAT was really nifty and Aunty was almost ready to sign up right then and there.

We took it out for a short test drive.  The ride height was nice and high, but not so high that getting in the vehicle was difficult.  It did not have a luxurious feel, no million dollar car smell, but it was adequate.  The control panel and interior were rather nice, and it felt like a solid safe car with more technological conveniences than I could remember.  The Titanium Sports Appearance package gave the vehicle a sort of macho, hip, bully vibe that Aunty liked, with black rims and nice partial leather/trim 2 tone seats that looked really nice.

The color that Aunty loved was called Magnetic, a dark dark grey metallic that looked like it belonged on a luxury car.  This color with the Titanium Sports Appearance package was pretty awesome looking, in Aunty’s opinion.

Stuart printed out a sheet with lease option pricing for 2 or 3 years.  The price looked pretty good, but the Titanium Sports model in the Magnetic color was away in their storage lot, and Aunty would wait until she could physically see and touch it before deciding.

Meanwhile, here is a review of the 2017 Ford Escape:

To be continued…..

Aunty has bought cars.  A lot of them, because for some reason or another, Aunty’s current vehicle becomes outdated or lacking, and then the search is on for another vehicle.

2 years ago, Aunty bought a Subaru XV Crosstrek from Jace Sadowski at Kaimuki Subaru.  It was just the right size, super cute and cool looking.  Also, it was a Subaru – known for its reliability and high resale value.  It was a smart decision, in Aunty’s opinion, the price was right, and Aunty liked how it looked – sporty, hip, young-ish.  Aunty has an antennae for good people, and Jace was a nice humble young man that really believed in the Subaru brand and went out of his way to make the deal happen.  Aunty got a Hybrid that isn’t really a hybrid (no longer available), with keyless entry and start (wonderful wonderful), roof racks thrown in, and leather upholstery.  It even answers incoming calls from the cell phone and has a nifty backup camera.

The service department across the street from the sales lot is terrific.  They do a great job, have easy scheduling, and are fast.

This 2014 Subaru XV Crosstrek has been a good car, with one missing element.  A power lift gate.  Maybe not a biggie to you, but it has been an issue with Aunty, who sometimes struggles to open the back when her hands are full, and then having to reach up and push down to close, resulting in a dirty hand if the car is dirty (usually).

So, another quest began.  Finding the perfect compact SUV with a power lift gate for a very picky Aunty.  It also has to be beautiful, classy or cute, in Aunty’s eyes.  Aunty used to be in love with the gorgeous Mercedes Benz GLK, but that flame was extinguished after she was slighted by her go-to salesperson who used to be nice to her, until he wasn’t.  That Mercedes GLK had almost everything except for Uncle’s approval.  He didn’t like Mercedes vehicles because of its mechanical faults and quirks.  He was a Toyota man, through and through.  The salesman’s slight and Uncle’s bias took the gorgeous Mercedes line out of the running, this time around.

Toyota RAV 4

This would make the most sense, except Aunty gets car sick riding in Toyotas.  Isn’t that weird?  Driving a Toyota doesn’t affect Aunty that way, but Aunty wanted something a little smaller and preferred the looks of the older RAV4, so didn’t test drive the newer ones.  Here is a video of the top 10 good reasons to get a 2016 RAV4, which DOES have a power lift gate!  Hmmm.  Maybe Aunty needs some rethinking.

Infiniti QX50 and QX30

These are, in Aunty’s eyes, the most beautiful of them all.  Aunty met nice Daniel Morisato at the snazzy Infiniti showroom near the airport, but did not test drive either of these gorgeous vehicles.  Neither had a power lift gate, but they had that wonderful new luxury car smell and impeccable details that would have made Aunty feel like a driving queen.  Actually, the QX50 was a little too big, and the QX30 might have fit the bill, except for the lack of a power lift gate.

The QX30 has some really good reviews by car buffs and might be worth another look in the future.  Pricey, but not as much as the Audi or Mercedes, and ranked higher for its features and performance.  Interestingly enough, Daniel used to work at a Ford dealership and suggested looking at the Ford Escape because of its advanced technology and improvements.   Hmmmmm.  That vehicle wasn’t even on Aunty’s list.

Audi Q3

One of Aunty’s pals raved about his Audi Q5, which was a very nice SUV that he loved more than any other vehicle he owned because of its comfort and features.  So, Aunty went over to the old Audi lot near the airport (since moved to Ward and Kapiolani) and test drove both the Q5 and the Q3, with 2 adult daughters in tow.  Because the Q3 was a smaller SUV (perfect size for Aunty), it seemed to have more power and was somehow more comfortable for the back seat daughters, or so they said.  It was nice looking, not as luxurious as I expected, but still, very nice, very quiet, and smooth driving.  For a bunch of dollars more, a power lift gate option was available!  It would have been Aunty’s next car except for a very irritating back up camera/audio/navigation display that looked like an ipad permanently fixed and protruding above the dash.  Very irritating.  Boohoo, boohoo.  This was a pretty one that had to be let go.

To be continued in a few days ………