Hello all, I need some opinions. I've watched and read just about every review on these vehicles and drove them and I just can't choose. I currently drive a 2007 BMW 328i convertible, and it's my cream car. But it's almost out of warranty, and I have a dog, and I drive a lot so it doesn’t really work for me anymore. I’ve actually been thinking about a hybrid for a while, and eagerly waiting for Ford C-Max and 2013 Ford Fusion hybrids to come out. Well they finally have and I test drove both as of yesterday (the C-Max 2 weeks ago). The Ford C-Max basically has everything I need in a car, but not everything I want. It’s practical, can fit a lot of cargo both behind the rear seats and with sits folded down, I love the hands free lift gate in the back, perfect for putting in beach chairs when I take my dog to the beach and all the hands are full. It’s obviously very economical at 47MPG across the board. It’s actually smaller in person then it looks in pictures, but not too small, it’d fit perfect in my 1 car garage. And my mom would love to get it from me in a few years when her car dies especially with the park-assist option. So that’s all good, BUT it’s kinda ugly looking on the styling and I’m a 32 year old single male. The rear doors don’t open very wide so my dog would actually have a little trouble jumping in. No HID headlights, LED tail lights or larger wheels are offered. No adaptive cruise control, lane departure assist or other technologies available in the Fusion are offered. And it’s basically the same price as the Fusion Hybrid configured the way I want. The 2013 Fusion Hybrid is an amazing car, whisper quiet even at highway speeds, felt a little faster to me than the C-Max though I can’t back that up with any data, they have exactly the same engine, so it was probably just how it felt. It has a longer and I think a little wider wheel base especially with available 18” wheels, it just felt nice to drive. Also looks very sharp inside and out, felt almost luxurious. Doors open wider so easier for the dog to jump in. More appropriate for a guy like me, BUT the biggest problem is the trunk. The battery takes up a lot of useful space, and I don’t think it can even fit one medium or large size suitcase. I measured all the dimensions and it basically can’t fit much at all because of where the battery goes. It does have a ton of great features from nicer HID headlights and LED tail lights to adaptive cruise control and several other great safety features as well as park-assist. But I really need a trunk I can fit something in. So as much as I think a hybrid would be perfect for me with as much city driving as I do and I’d save about $150 a month on gas vs a BMW. But, I do love my BMW. The best alternative available for me right now is a BMW X1. Unfortunately configured the way I want it’ll be more like $35-37k, but if I take it as Base model it’d be about the same price as the SEL C-Max or Fusion Hybrid with the add-ons I want. It’s also practical, fun to drive, and looks good. But at the lower price I only get crappy headlights, nothing useful inside, and I have to put premium fuel in it just to get 24 city and 33 highway. So I get the practical and add the fun/sexy but lose economical. Lastly, I think a perfect car for me would be the 3-series GT that has not been officially announced yet, but there are some spy photos floating around and it’s supposed to be arriving in 2013, though probably towards the end. And just looking at the pricing of other 3-series, it’ll probably start in the high $30s, which would be a little too expensive for me. So can someone help me choose? Go for practical and efficient and give up sexy? Go for fairly sexy and efficient and suffer with no trunk? Go for practical and sexy but not efficient? Or just pay to get my car serviced, get a new set of tires and risk the future repairs but keep it till something else comes on the market? Lastly I should probably add that I would also consider the VW Passat Diesel and Jetta Diesel (maybe even wagon) but I'd rather not.
