new car shopping (Micra vs. Fit, Civic, Mazda 3, Spark, Sonic, Corolla, Yaris)

Just joined the forum. I am in the market for a new car. Been reading and researching a lot of cars over the last month. I want to buy a new car by end of August at the latest.

In the course of my search i came across some topics that scared me off most new cars. Whether its a sky is falling thing or something to it i am not sure. What am i talking about? Most new cars now have GDI (Gas Direct Injection) that are reported to have major carbon build up on the back side of the intake valves. This happens in cars with not many KM on them. The solution Ford says is they have to replace the head. So i am narrowing my search to cars that use port injection or better multi point port injection.

most of the cars i am looking at are everything from the Honda Fit and Civic. To Mazda 3. to Chevy Spark / Sonic / Cruze.
Toyota Yaris and Corolla.

Most of those are disqualified due to either CVT or GDI. I also am considering the NIssan Versa Note and Micra thus why i am here. The Micra was one of the first cars i looked at.

The Spark was a cool car i had strongly considered. It is MPFI but is a CVT. The main reason for hesitation for this car is the long term reliability. I want to keep the car for a long time but i have doubts this car will last 10yrs and 100k km.

but i turned away from the Micra idea and thought i would go with Mazda 3 or Civic. But after reading some of the threads here i am back to the Micra. The other cars would be nice for sure but i think they are too much car for me. It would just be me most of the times and just for shopping and driving on rainy days or cold days (no commuting) over winter. I have a Honda NC750X motorcycle i ride on warm weekend days.

For the last month or so i have been using some of the car share services. (Car2Go and EVO) and the power of those cars are ok for what i do so is why i am back to the Micra. Would probably go with the SR trim.

My main concern originally with the Micra (and the Yaris) was the 4 speed auto. For a city car i want auto. shifting sux in traffic.
But from reading here the auto does not see as bad. Next month i will take the std and auto out on a test drive. My main concern with the auto was what the hwy RPM would have been. I am no speed demon and it looks like the Micra auto can do my normal cruise speed ok. 120ish KPH.

The other quandary i have now is if i should wait for a restyled 2017. The new ones sure look cool. But if they went to GDI i would stay with a 2016.

At 120kmh I'm doing about 3000RPM. Somtimes if I'm not careful I'll find myself pushing 140. The car can can cruise no problem.

Hi Micra-naut, welcome to the forum! I wouldn't worry GDI, new economic value cars are pretty much made to last. I drove my old civic for about 10 years and all I replace was the transmission, which was common for the civic. My mechanic brought it and he is driving my civic as a daily now, heh.

Unless you are planning to buy upper-middle type car, like C300, A3, A4, or 3 series, I wouldn't worry about carbon buildup. My new Micra is fine, not the prefect mileage gas saving, decent comfort, get me from point A to point B.

You live in Vancouver, why don't you visit Richmond automall and see what car you like in your budget. New civic, madza3, or corolla with power window and air are pretty much $25k with tax. Micra, Fit, Echo, and Spark (with power window and air con) are about $18k to $20k. For SR trim, I think you will be looking at $27k with tax. If you can, try Fraser Valley auto mall in Abbordford, you maybe able to get a better deal over there. I brought my Micra in Surrey Nissan and I could recommend my sales guy for you too.

To be honest, if you are not in a hurry, try waiting till fall after September when everyone is back to school/work, or maybe wait till winter, or you can wait for 2017 redesign Micra.

When I say newer cars are made to last, trying asking forum member MetroMPG, I think he is the crazy dude that turn ignition off/on during traffic light. If MetroMPG is abusing his Micra's ignition switch and his Micra has no issues, I am sure your regular car will be fine.

thanks gang. yes i am in Vancouver and i did go to the Richmond Auto Mall in May. That is where i looked at the Micra.
In July i am going to visit the North Shore Automall for some test drives. They seem to have just about every auto maker there in one spot. (Nissan. Chevy. Mazda. Ford. Toyota. Hyundai.

I am in no hurry to buy. But i do want a car by very latest October. I actually started to look at Hyundai. The Accent looks really good. There are a ton of features in the car and it is going for a really good price. It is cheaper than a Mirca SR. Was looking online at the 2016 Accent GL auto. The feature list is long and it has a 6 speed auto. The Hyundai warranty is excellent as well. And for the same price as a Mirca SR i can get the top of the line GLS auto.

looks like i have more research to do.

Be wary of the accent.. It shares the KIA's GDI engine. Not a bad engine but anticipate extra charges when servicing for fuel inection and valve cleaning. As far as I know there aren't any problems with Hyundai GDI's, but my brother in law has a rio (Accent cousin) from Kia and every 3rd oil change he gets railed with a few hundred dollar oil change because they have to do maintenance on the fuel system due to the gdi.

Source:

https://www.hyundaicanada.com/Pages/...accent%20sedan

thank you Howie. that kind of affirms my concern about GDI and now i am going to avoid it. So that narrows my car choice down to just a few.
Things are turning better finance wise so i may be looking higher end. A 2016 Honda Civic EX-L is looking mighty nice and it is back on the list again.
I had considered a FIT but dropped it due to one, GDI and two it not that quiet a ride. I had been considering the Mazda 3 and i like that it has a real transmission but has GDI. The Civic 2.0L engine is multi-point injection. Just have to check the manufacture date. Ones made btwn Nov 15 - Feb 16 could blow up due to a wrist pin flaw on piston.

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Originally Posted by Vapor

At 120kmh I'm doing about 3000RPM. Somtimes if I'm not careful I'll find myself pushing 140. The car can can cruise no problem.

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On one of the rare occasions I actually had my Micra on the highway on a trip to Kingston, I too found myself going 140km/h. Seems like a sweet spot for the Micra however illegal ;)

personally, i think your worries re: DI (i dont think ive seen it referred to as GDI) is overblown. it is "new" technology that isn't very new anymore....and it's superior to what came before, in terms of fuel efficiency.

and speaking of, may i ask why you are going for an SR trim as opposed to SV or S? at the SR price point, i'd rather steer you towards compact cars, as opposed to subcompacts, unless your mind is really set on it. just financially speaking of course.

and keep in mind, while i love my micra, if you are looking for auto tranny....it only comes in 4speed auto. reliable? oh yes. but it is antiquated tranny tech by today's standard. mazda3 in contrast, has a 6 speed (both manual or auto) and is well regarded as being more driver-focused than competing econoboxes.

the fit is king when it comes to interior volume. if you can get over the looks (which arent too bad), it's a great option, arguably one of the best.....but you are gonna get a CVT, just fyi.

and finally the civic.....excellent choice, but it's so much bigger and so much heavier/expensive than a mid trim Micra. one of my reasons for loving micras are cuz they are so small and nimble.

think carefully about your budget, and your true needs and wants....and dont worry too much about DI, all these japanese cars are rather reliable.

^ Second to this. Yes, there is nothing wrong with the GDI system. It does cause a little more build up on the valves and such, but as long as you follow the maintenance schedule, it can be just fine. Its just something to consider if youre being very frugal, the GDI's cost a little more to maintain then the "standard injection" engines. Pennies over the life of the car really. It only becomes an issue if you dont maintain the system.

As for the honda's blowing wrist pins.. Well. Heh.. Some certain micras were known to have a knock in the motor. Some. Just like 2.7 chryslers blowing motors, ford focuses eating trannies, 1.8 VW's blowing water pumps etc...

What im getting at is, any manufacturer can have a glitch. It's happened to us. Its happened to almost every manufacturer known. The big thing is making sure your warranty covers any headaches. Just about all of them are good up to 100,000km. Some are even further.

Further to what Micropolis is saying, you can get an SR if you like the extra bits. Its a matter of what you want for the money. When you test drive it... does it talk to you? For example, my wifes VW jetta. Gorgeous car. Heated seats, back up cam, phone hookup, you name it. The drive tho? Souless. It has zero personality.

I like the micra for its handling and its price point. Its cheap and is a really fun little car in the corners. Its not a fast car, but its cheap thrills for me. The micra is a zippy little thing. Like a young kid. It wants to play. You poke the gas, it gives you a response. Turn her into the corner and it leans a little and goes like hot snot.

I have lots of experience with Direct Injection and Sequential Multiport Injection. All things being equal, Direct injection is more efficient and produces more power. It is more costly to produce and repair and the injector nozzles live in a far more hostile environment. Also the intake tract doesn't benefit from fuel wash down every power-cycle. This results in a surprising amount of build up in an aggressively driven DI car after relatively few kms. This build up can really strip away the performance advantages DI holds over SMI.

The simplest way to reduce the build up is to use a catch bottle, this can really help. Higher rpm engine braking will still pull oil past the intake guides. Any way you slice it, DI needs a bit more care to keep it's edge over SMI.

As far as I'm concerned, both are great systems and I'm happy with either!:cool: