Drop It Like It's Hott, Hott, Hott

I recently sold my grandmother's 2003 Toyota Corolla LE.  Well, let me give credit where it is due--my wife recently sold my grandmother's 2003 Toyota Corolla LE.

 I had listed the car on Craigslist and put some signs in the window.  I had a couple of calls, but I had a thought--why not use my wife's Facebook account (I do not have a Facebook account.  No, it's not because I'm a Luddite.  No matter what the reason, I don't plan on getting one.  Let's get back to what's important here--motorcars) to get the word out about the car.  It worked great.  I posted it to her wall on a Sunday night, and by the next morning, my wife had set up three appointments for people to look at the car the next day.
The first girl who looked at it bought it, which is what I had figured.  The car was in great shape.  My grandmother was not a fast driver, and the vehicle only had 45,300 miles on it.  The girl who bought it was really excited about it, which is always a good feeling when selling off a car, especially when it is selling a grandmother's car because she can no longer drive it.
When I had listed the car, I drove it a couple of days to get exposure for the for sale signs in the window (kicking it old school with some selling technique there).  I must say that my first thought was--I don't see why people go crazy over these Toyotas.  I was like--how is this almost 10 year old car worth so much in re-sale value?  There is nothing special to them.  Interior is basic.  There is nothing to note.  There isn't much to the stereo.  Seats are basic.  Let's be real--I think it is boring.  However.  I realized after driving it for a few days why people go for these cars:

 Bam.  It's that fuel efficient but strangely powerful four cylinder.  I'm not going to bother with 0-60 times or torque ratings.  What I am going to say is that the little could move.  It's quick.  It got me where I wanted it to with much less effort than I had expected.  Dare I call it...The Little Engine That Could?
I was shocked when the car got away from me on the expressway.  I was doing 75 without realizing it, but it was nice to know that I wasn't burning up a bunch of fuel in the process (oh, it also felt good to fill up the tank for $35).
Also, as I was driving, I remembered how I see a lot of old Corollas on the road.  The motors keep going and going and going.
Coming back around, there wasn't really much else to note about the car.  I liked all of the compartments to store papers, coins, and unnecessary plastic objects.  I also thought that it was a good feature that I could not use the remote lock while I was inside the car.  The remote realizes when you are inside the vehicle; you have to step outside the car to get it to work.  The back seat is spacious for a car its size, and the trunk has more than ample space.

Otherwise, it was boring like I said and the ride is a little rough.  But at the end of the day, this is a great car for people who want a reliable car that gets them where they want to go (with little fuel consumption).  It was a great car for my grandmother, and I know it will be a great car for its new owner.

To Infiniti and BEYOND!

I'm pretty sure I'm the only person who has made that joke about Infinities.
Which brings up the question...if you own multiple vehicles that are of the Infiniti make, can you say that you own multiple Infinities, or should one say that he or she owns an Infiniti plus 1?
Okay, on to the review.
My friend asked me to drive a used late model Infiniti G37S convertible.  To many, this could seem like a chore, but I was happy to assist.  On a recent lunch break, I took one (a 2009 model listed at $33,000) for a test drive.

I didn't go in with a lot of expectations for the car.  I know that Infiniti cars are nice, but I was just expecting a fancy Nissan (their parent company).  This was not the case.  This Infiniti G37S is truly a driver's car.  I was very impressed .
The 3.7L V6 engine boasts of 325 horsepower with a 0-60 time in a little over five seconds (yes, I tested that and putting the pedal to the floor gave very little wheel spin).  There is plenty of torque to propel the car easily from 40 mph to 80.  The car has a seven speed automatic transmission, which works well for the better fuel economy with highway driving.  The shifting was smooth in all of the gears, and, even though seven is a lot of gears, it doesn't feel like it is shifting all the time.  
The car has varying sized Bridgestone Potenza tires, meaning that the rear tires are bigger than the front.  This causes a higher cost for tire replacement, but the soft compound tires really helped the car to grip well through the turns.  I appreciated how the car had a very tight suspension without bouncing me into the roof.  Riding over railroad tracks and over not-so-smooth roads was of no issue.  The engineers on the car did a good job making a performance car that doesn't beat up the driver.    

On the interior, the racing-style seats are great.  They are very comfortable, having more adjustments than I have body parts.  The steering wheel feels great in the hands.  The real wood highlights are a nice feature, and there were more Bose speakers than I could count. 
I appreciated the other transmission options; there are two manual modes that can be used.  The driver can switch over to the sport mode (that actually doesn't downshift or upshift on its own without you telling it to) or use the paddle shifters.  If you decide to never use the manual modes, I wouldn't think less of you.  The automicatic is responsive on its own. 
I didn't feel cramped in the car at all (I'm six feet tall).  Now, keep in mind that this isn't your family car.  I would barely consider putting a garden gnome in the back seat, much less a car seat, and the trunk doesn't have a lot of space due to the hardtop. 
For the sake of my friend, I listened about all the fancy technology gadgets.  I personally do not care (no offense), but to those Inspector Gadgets out there who do care, here are a couple of highlights:  GPS, rear parking camera with assist, some crazy-sized hard drive to store music (can actually copy your music CDs to the hard drive), another memory slot for additional music (because a hard drive alone isn't enough), an IPod adapater, and a smart key.

Something to keep in mind with the convertible model is that it does not come in all-wheel drive (car weighed too much to be AWD and a hard-top convertible).  It is only in rear wheel, which can be problematic if you live somewhere that gets snow.  I didn't drive it with the top back (46 degrees is too cold for my blood--even if not in a convertible), but I got to see the car go from hard top to convertible.  It's like a really expensive Transformer.  It was great to watch, but my thought was...I wonder how much that would cost to fix.

The Infiniti G37S is a fabulous performance car; I did not want the test drive to end.  Infiniti did a great job with this car; it was much more of a car than I had originally expected. 
I called my friend that evening to tell her that I highly recommended the car for her (a single lady with a good paying job with no kids with a need for speed and love of convertibles).       
 

Turning the key

My poor wife has to hear me talk constantly about cars.  She came up with a great idea of writing a blog about it as a fun hobby.  So, here we go.  Hopefully this will mean that she has to hear about cars less...well, at least until our boys get a little older.
The intention of this blog is to give some insight into the good and bad of new and used cars from a light-hearted but informative review.  Don't take my joking of a car too seriously if you own it.  Remember that sarcasm is just another service I offer.  
You will find a mix of reviews on all different makes (except for KIAs probably) and models of various years and pricing levels. 
I hope that you find it fun and helpful.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.