Sigh...getting a new car tomorrow...

[NNadir]

The thing finally came in.

Every time I buy a car, I feel those lines in Allen Ginsberg's Howl:

...who cooked rotten animals lung heart feet tail borsht & tortillas dreaming of the pure vegetable kingdom...

Howl

[MontanaMama]

1. Fun!

Getting a new car is exciting. I ordered a car in 2019 and it took 7 months to come in...I had to fly to Salt Lake City and drive it back up to Montana. It was a pain but still exciting.

[Freddie]

2. What are you getting?

My husband gets auto parts wholesale from his work plus he can do a lot of things (brakes etc) himself. I have never enjoyed a brand new car.

[NNadir]

3. A Toyota Camry LE Hybrid; rated at 51 mpg. In my opinion, a hybrid makes the most thermodynamic...

...sense. I feel guilty for the cobalt requirement, but it's rather low compared to say, a Tesla.

Hybrids have relatively high material requirements, but again, if one has to have a car, it's the best option from a climate standpoint.

I started the process of purchase about 5 or 6 months ago. The cars are in short supply because of chip shortages.

I'd rather not have a car at all, but for what I do, it's required.

[Freddie]

6. Awesome!

My next (used) car will probably be a hybrid. There is no public transportation here at all so there’s no choice but to own a car.

[trof]

9. We have a 2014 Ford C-Max hybrid.

Initially they were only available in Europe.
We found this one on CarMax for a reasonable price.
Fleet car with very low mileage. Probably spent most of its life in a corporate garage.

It loves 45 mph.
50-51 mpg.

[2naSalit]

4. In spite of it all...

I hope you can enjoy it, congrats.

Out here, if you don't have your own transportation, you're screwed. Nothing is in walking distance.

[NNadir]

5. Along with the great gas mileage, I really bought it for the safety features.

Automatic stopping cruise control, pedestrian alarms, mirror alerts, stuff like that...

I'm old; my reflexes are not what they used to be.

We rented an SUV with this kind of stuff to move my son to graduate school. It got surprisingly good mileage. It definitely helped to have these safety features.

I live in suburbs. My house is somewhat walkable. I can walk to the library, and a fairly well stocked supermarket. I do have to drive for work, although I try to work from home as often as it's possible.

[4dog]

7. We got the same.

Pleased with mileage and safety features, though its criteria on driving between the lines are stricter than I like and context-free. Goes beep-beep-beep. What the heck.

[NNadir]

8. How long have you had it?

Are there any other unusual features about which I should know?

[4dog]

10. Since April.

Ordered August '21, slow delivery due to chips they say. We got winter package with warm paws, warm outside mirrors, warm seats. I'm frequently getting surprised about features since I haven't read the whole, rather verbose manual. Use with iPhone, toggle Google and Apple maps. DM me if you have a particular question and I will try to help.

Has some minor but appreciated improvements over the 12-year-old Camry Hybrid XLE.

[NNadir]

11. I picked it up today. Because of the chip shortage, they could only give me one key fob.

They said they'll give me the other key in 3 to 4 months.

They wouldn't even let me order it. I had to watch the website to see when they were available; I had a very helpful sales guy who kept me in touch with what was happening. When finally I could "order" it took about a month or so to come in. The sales guy told me that he has no idea when he'll get another, Everyone apparently wants hybrids these days.

I haven't driven it all that much, just from the dealer to my home, about 10 miles. I had a bout of insomnia, last night - I often do - and didn't want to wreck it on the first day. I figured out the cruise control and spacing pretty quickly. It's so far very quiet and smooth.

I'm taking for a two hour drive tomorrow to see the FDR museum and national historic park.

Thanks for the offer. I may take you up on it.

[4dog]

12. Check out the Eveready diner in Hyde Park

evereadydiner.com