Hamster
Resident Rodent
- Joined
- Aug 22, 2006
- Messages
- 45,954
- Reaction score
- 18,437
These branches are all in the Four ways/Bryanston area
Renault Clio
First stopped by Renault. Salesman is friendly, I tell him what I'm looking for and then starts showing off the Clio to me (the 1.2 Auto). Asked for a test drive but they didn't have that specific one available, so I ended up in the same spec Captur which. Took it out for a drive on the highway and back:
- interior is nice
- exterior is nice
- the drive is very quiet
- I felt a bit disconnected from it, as if there is a magic piece of something mushy connecting the steering wheel and wheels
- turbo lag....no really, it's bad. You put your foot down at standstill and it feels like forever for it to get going. The guy explained that it was their fancy new double clutch gear box, that you get used to it and the lighter Clio is more responsive. Same gearbox though so I dunno wtf.
Anyway, he made me a good deal on my car. Offered me R15k extra on initial offer and threw in free park assist. The extras came without me really pushing for it. All I did was tell him I'm still going to look at the Mazda 2. Not sure what to think of it, feels a bit...off. Renault just feels off.
Mazda 2
So off I went to Mazda and from the moment you walk in you kinda feel like they don't care. The guy who greeted me was the manager or something who called a saleswoman for me. Initially she came across a bit disinterested but showed me the car. I asked the difference between the Dynamic and Individual spec and she basically showed me the comparison table you find on the internet. The feeling is almost as if you should've done your homework and made your decision on which model you want before you go bother them. Anyway, the test drive (1.5 Individual Manual):
- the interior feels small and cramped compared to the others and I actually found it a bit boring
- the touchscreen on loo!s like a tablet was stuck to the dash with double sided tape
- feels solid/square on the road
- awesome to drive and go through the gears (test drive was very short though
)
- feels way more lively than the 1.2 t turbo charged Clio. Day and night.
Opel Corsa
After all of that I was faced with a non responsive but awesome looking Clio and solid feeling boring Mazda 2 (and a rake it or leave it attitude that kinda ruined Mazda for me).
As I exit the dealership William Hunt appears on the corner. With nothing to lose and not much hope I ask them to show me the Corsa (even if it is just to proof to myself how much better the other two cars are). The salesman is awesome and it was the best test drive ever! I'm actually considering the guy as a Facebook friend and stuff.
So the car and test drive (they only had the base model):
- interior feels a bit cheap
- car is not the most exciting looking
- I did not know a 1.0 literally turbo charged engine can go like that through the backstreets of Bloubosrand. Felt like I was driving a rally car
(somebody should tell Renault)
He told me the 1.4 is sold out but stock should be arriving soon.
Conclusion
Well I drive a 1.8 automatic Elantra with leather seats and the works. The only thing missing is a sun roof but like I've told the salesman - I'm tired of sedans. So that's why I'm looking at getting a hatch which might be a downgrade of sorts.
My current thinking on the cars:
Clio - looks pretty, nice place to sit in traffic, hate that gearbox, doubt I'll look at it any further.
Mazda 2 - depends on what they offer me for trade in but the small interior, only a 3 year warranty (I mean wtf, 3 years when almost everyone else is giving 5+) and the saleswoman kinda put me off.
Corsa - I'll test drive the 1.4 and depending on the interior I might just go for it.
It's funny, but the order of preference in car is almost exactly the order of "preference" I'd give the sales people. Just shows you what an impact a *** attitude or a lack of knowledge on the product you are selling can have.
Renault Clio
First stopped by Renault. Salesman is friendly, I tell him what I'm looking for and then starts showing off the Clio to me (the 1.2 Auto). Asked for a test drive but they didn't have that specific one available, so I ended up in the same spec Captur which. Took it out for a drive on the highway and back:
- interior is nice
- exterior is nice
- the drive is very quiet
- I felt a bit disconnected from it, as if there is a magic piece of something mushy connecting the steering wheel and wheels
- turbo lag....no really, it's bad. You put your foot down at standstill and it feels like forever for it to get going. The guy explained that it was their fancy new double clutch gear box, that you get used to it and the lighter Clio is more responsive. Same gearbox though so I dunno wtf.
Anyway, he made me a good deal on my car. Offered me R15k extra on initial offer and threw in free park assist. The extras came without me really pushing for it. All I did was tell him I'm still going to look at the Mazda 2. Not sure what to think of it, feels a bit...off. Renault just feels off.
Mazda 2
So off I went to Mazda and from the moment you walk in you kinda feel like they don't care. The guy who greeted me was the manager or something who called a saleswoman for me. Initially she came across a bit disinterested but showed me the car. I asked the difference between the Dynamic and Individual spec and she basically showed me the comparison table you find on the internet. The feeling is almost as if you should've done your homework and made your decision on which model you want before you go bother them. Anyway, the test drive (1.5 Individual Manual):
- the interior feels small and cramped compared to the others and I actually found it a bit boring
- the touchscreen on loo!s like a tablet was stuck to the dash with double sided tape
- feels solid/square on the road
- awesome to drive and go through the gears (test drive was very short though
)- feels way more lively than the 1.2 t turbo charged Clio. Day and night.
Opel Corsa
After all of that I was faced with a non responsive but awesome looking Clio and solid feeling boring Mazda 2 (and a rake it or leave it attitude that kinda ruined Mazda for me).
As I exit the dealership William Hunt appears on the corner. With nothing to lose and not much hope I ask them to show me the Corsa (even if it is just to proof to myself how much better the other two cars are). The salesman is awesome and it was the best test drive ever! I'm actually considering the guy as a Facebook friend and stuff.
So the car and test drive (they only had the base model):
- interior feels a bit cheap
- car is not the most exciting looking
- I did not know a 1.0 literally turbo charged engine can go like that through the backstreets of Bloubosrand. Felt like I was driving a rally car
(somebody should tell Renault)He told me the 1.4 is sold out but stock should be arriving soon.
Conclusion
Well I drive a 1.8 automatic Elantra with leather seats and the works. The only thing missing is a sun roof but like I've told the salesman - I'm tired of sedans. So that's why I'm looking at getting a hatch which might be a downgrade of sorts.
My current thinking on the cars:
Clio - looks pretty, nice place to sit in traffic, hate that gearbox, doubt I'll look at it any further.
Mazda 2 - depends on what they offer me for trade in but the small interior, only a 3 year warranty (I mean wtf, 3 years when almost everyone else is giving 5+) and the saleswoman kinda put me off.
Corsa - I'll test drive the 1.4 and depending on the interior I might just go for it.
It's funny, but the order of preference in car is almost exactly the order of "preference" I'd give the sales people. Just shows you what an impact a *** attitude or a lack of knowledge on the product you are selling can have.
