...and bought an automatic. My morning commute now consists of bumper to bumper traffic on the highway flowing at an average of 20-30km/hr. Shifting up and down like a yoyo is not what I want to be doing after a long day of work.
Of course, I still wanted 30mpg or better. Which I
might get out of an automatic Geo Metro, but I understand they're completely gutless (and I'm used to driving a Metro...don't think I want even less oomph), and max out at 35 mpg. Kinda ruins it.
So what's left, in an automatic and gets 30+mpg? Couldn't find a Prius cheap enough. But I did find an Echo. Not just an Echo. A
blue 3-door! (I've always pined over them since first seeing a blue hatchback, and now I have one.)
Complete with a silly little wing on the back.
It's not all grand...though that's probably why it was cheap. 264k kms on it, the driver's window was off the track, and it needs a lot of love...in the form of cleaning. Only have an under hood shot, but it will give you an idea of what the seats and carpets look like inside...
Note the corrosion on the battery hold-down.
5 minutes with a pressure washer and a short drive to dry it out, and it looks much better...
As to the rest...I had the window back on the track in about 5 minutes. It will need fixing properly, but for now she's sealed back up. Despite the 264, she is one tight little machine...not a rattle, handles like a go-cart, goes like snot when you put your foot down. Engine is smooth and happy, for the most part. I'd prefer the cooling fan not to kick in so much at idle, but that's about it.
I'm guessing it survived it previous owner(s) due to being a bullit-proof Toyota. But she will start getting lots of love here on out. The whole interaction with her previous owner was an adventure in it's own right.
Tomorrow she should get shampooed. I'll tinker under the hood after that...
