Short tripper
Salutations. I've been lurking for about a year and decided to join in. I'm a truck and equipment mechanic with thirty years experience. About a year & a half ago I decided that my E250 conversion van was way overkill for my needs. I live a mile and a half from where I work and rarely take long road trips. I decided my truck owning days were over and hatched a plan to buy a fuel efficient car and set it up to pull a small trailer for the occasional hauling jobs. I researched FE cars for several months and came up with a short list. My criteria was fuel efficiency, low maintenance & maintenance costs, chain driven cam, manual transmission, ability to do light towing, excellent parts availability and as basic (low option) as possible. My search ended after six months with a 2005 Scion XA. It is a 56k mile, manual trans little beasty. I bought it in Chicago where it suffered from scratches and minor dents that brought my purchase price to $3k under book. I live an hour south of the city so it doesn't suffer them indignities any more.
Because I have a very short commute and rarely drive highways, my main focus is on increasing my MPGs for urban driving. At present I am averaging 32.4 mpg long term. The XA is an excellent car for this kind of driving because it really wasn't built as a freeway cruiser. It is content and delivers the best mpgs at 52 mph @ 2250 rpm. On flat ground it will deliver low-mid 50 mpgs instant at this range.
Anyway, I'll see you around.
|