[chevelle]

Originally Posted by vineethvazhayil

I thank my lucky stars - In our Infiniti M, we don't use a cd player at all. ! Being a newer car, there are enough other media options to never have to use a cd player.

Good for you. Trust me, you are better off using USB or AUX. They should just remove CD players from ICE. Have to give Honda India props for doing that.

Originally Posted by NinadJoshi

Wow, looks like there's a myriad of FM transmitters available now...back in my younger days I had just a few handful to choose from And yes, the Bose CD players in Nissan cars suck. I'd rather have a crappy unbranded cd player than a dead Bose in the car. Do present day Nissan/Infi's still come with Bose's?

Yes, you can get cheap ones for like $3. I used that one too but it came with crappy SQ. This one is better. Yes, they still come with Bose. The 2013 G37 loaner vehicle i had last week had Bose in it.

Originally Posted by DexterMorgan

Nissan still comes with Bose. Not sure about Infinity.
How does Bose sound quality compares to other branded audios like Fender (VW), JBL (Toyota) or Infinity (Hyundai i guess ??) etc?

O.T.- I recently purchased Bose on ear headphones from Costco as they were on deal. Returned it after 2 weeks as the right speaker conked off and also, they were hurting my ears on prolonged use. Huh, So much for a brand name

Sorry to nitpick but it is Infiniti for cars and Hyundai uses Infinity sound system.

I have heard Lexicon in Genesis sedan. It is good but as far as bass is concerned, i prefer the Bose of G35. Overall sound stage in Genesis was too forward focused so when i was seated at the back, it didn't sound good. In G35, it is total surround with front and back speakers providing good effect.

I have heard Shaker audio system in GT500. It does manage to shake the car but the bass is a bit bloated. Not punchy but then probably the source could be weak even though it was XM Radio which usually is HD. Overall, for a coupe, it was very good. But then, stock system of Corvette impressed me owing to it having sub woofers in door. May be i am a novice in terms of car audio.

And i agree, i had Bose IEMs too. Returned it in 10 days. Horrible quality, poor sound and not at all comfortable.

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by DexterMorgan

Nissan still comes with Bose. Not sure about Infinity.

How does Bose sound quality compares to other branded audios like Fender (VW), JBL (Toyota) or Infinity (Hyundai i guess ??) etc?

Infiniti still comes with Bose. Bose also is present on Chevy's, Mazdas etc. I think some of the bose premium audio systems are just over rated.
Acura's ELSS (Panasonic based) systems are pretty cool. I also think Mark Levinson (Lexus), Harman Kardonn (Audi) etc. are supremely good systems. But the premium audio itself is a 3-4k$ option on those. So you get what you pay for, is the summary.

Amongst the economy brands, I think the Fender systems are pretty good, but Fender just tunes the systems, the actual manufacturer is Panasonic or someone else.

Of course, true audiophiles discard OEM systems, no matter what they are and do their own setup. Me, I'm happy with the OEM bose 14 speakers on the Infiniti. I would love to upgrade the Subaru, but then that is not priority.

[NinadJoshi]

DVD-Audio on Acura's ELS-Surround is something in a different league altogether. Never heard anything like it elsewhere. Unfortunately the DVD-A industry is dud and never really got adapted in automobile audio, but fortunately there are enough software converters available that can up-convert normal audio into DVD-A.

[kraft.wagen]

Another Car question
My cousin is looking to buy a new car, his budget was around $20k and had Civic in mind. I somehow convinced him out of Civic(I'm not a huge fan) and raised his budget to $25k. Currently I suggested him to go for Sonata 2L Turbo or Mazda 6.
Are there any better choices that he needs to consider? He was interested in Honda too, but like I said am not a huge Honda fan so didn't have much to say. Please pour in your thoughts

He is fairly new to driving, got his license couple of months ago and has never drove in India.

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Another Car question
My cousin is looking to buy a new car, his budget was around $20k and had Civic in mind. I somehow convinced him out of Civic(I'm not a huge fan) and raised his budget to $25k. Currently I suggested him to go for Sonata 2L Turbo or Mazda 6.
Are there any better choices that he needs to consider? He was interested in Honda too, but like I said am not a huge Honda fan so didn't have much to say. Please pour in your thoughts

He is fairly new to driving, got his license couple of months ago and has never drove in India.

There are a lot of choices - If he is looking for a family sedan - there are the Ford Fusions/Nissan Altimas/Kia Optimas of the world.
He can get the 2013 Dodge Charger for 25k$. There are huge discounts on that. Also the Mustang and other pony car v6 models can be had for 25k$. There are also all the hot hatches for that price range.

If he is a 2 person family or single, he can even consider the FR-S/BR-Z.

If he is ok with a used car, then there is a whole another world of cars opening up.

Choices are limitless - I think your question needs more input conditions !

[kraft.wagen]

haha ya VV choices are abundant and always leads to perplexity

He is not looking for a sports car or coupe, he is single but his parents will be joining him in a few months so he prefers a family sedan.
I did think of the charger, but considering his driving experience I didn't suggest him that.
No used, looking for only New cars, he just graduated and got a job, so he doesn't want to spend too much on maintenance in near future so no used cars and prefer cars with low maintenance costs.
As he wants to hang on to the car for a long time, hence I picked Sonata/Mazda 6 as they are what I think good VFM. But yea like you said Fusion is a nice car to be considered.

Originally Posted by vineethvazhayil

There are a lot of choices - If he is looking for a family sedan - there are the Ford Fusions/Nissan Altimas/Kia Optimas of the world.
He can get the 2013 Dodge Charger for 25k$. There are huge discounts on that. Also the Mustang and other pony car v6 models can be had for 25k$. There are also all the hot hatches for that price range.

If he is a 2 person family or single, he can even consider the FR-S/BR-Z.

If he is ok with a used car, then there is a whole another world of cars opening up.

Choices are limitless - I think your question needs more input conditions !

[rajushank84]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Another Car question
My cousin is looking to buy a new car, his budget was around $20k and had Civic in mind. I somehow convinced him out of Civic(I'm not a huge fan) and raised his budget to $25k. Currently I suggested him to go for Sonata 2L Turbo or Mazda 6.
Are there any better choices that he needs to consider? He was interested in Honda too, but like I said am not a huge Honda fan so didn't have much to say. Please pour in your thoughts

He is fairly new to driving, got his license couple of months ago and has never drove in India.

Used G37 would be my pick in that budget.

If it absolutely has to be new, then I would check out the new Mazda 6 (IMHO the driving feel of Mazdas is way too good to be mentioned in the same sentence as Hyundai and yes I've driven the new Sonata). Other than the Mazda6, interesting cars are the new Fusion, Jetta GLI (maybe out of budget tho), base model GTI. The WRX is another option.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Another Car question
My cousin is looking to buy a new car, his budget was around $20k and had Civic in mind. I somehow convinced him out of Civic(I'm not a huge fan) and raised his budget to $25k. Currently I suggested him to go for Sonata 2L Turbo or Mazda 6.
Are there any better choices that he needs to consider? He was interested in Honda too, but like I said am not a huge Honda fan so didn't have much to say. Please pour in your thoughts

He is fairly new to driving, got his license couple of months ago and has never drove in India.

Cannot go wrong with Accord, Camry, Mazda6, Fusion and Altima in no particular order. He should test drive back to back and make a decision. For a family sedan, an accord sport makes a lot of sense followed by Mazda6 and Fusion IMHO. If seat comfort is top priority - Altima is a very good option.

I have to say this though. I am seeing lots of Fusion and Accords on the road now. Not many new Mazda6 - Probably production constraint as well as sales not as good as others.

[mohit]

I'll second Chevelle. The new accord makes a lot of sense. Its smaller than the outgoing model (aka Big Boat - Sorry Techno! ) and looks pretty sharp.

Mazda 6 is nice too and actually might appeal to him more than the accord as its not as sedate looking.

[kraft.wagen]

Originally Posted by rajushank84

Used G37 would be my pick in that budget.
... base model GTI. The WRX is another option.

Didn';t really opt for Subaru since he will be in TX and he just needs a transport. Ya Jetta 2.5 SEL with navigation and sunroof package sells at 23-25k in CA.

Originally Posted by chevelle

Cannot go wrong with Accord, Camry, Mazda6, Fusion and Altima in no particular order.

Originally Posted by mohit

Mazda 6 is nice too and actually might appeal to him more than the accord as its not as sedate looking.

Thanks guys will surely tell him to TD both Accord and Mazda6. Yea I think I kinda swayed him away from Honda and now he really likes the looks of the Mazda 6

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Ya Jetta 2.5 SEL with navigation and sunroof package sells at 23-25k in CA.

Thanks guys will surely tell him to TD both Accord and Mazda6. Yea I think I kinda swayed him away from Honda and now he really likes the looks of the Mazda 6

Daylight robbery for Jetta.

Tell him to test Accord Sport and not other versions. It has more power, handles great, comes with goodies.

Mazda6 looks great and drives great. If it was my money, it had be either of these two and finally it would come down to which offers better price.

[ToroRosso]

Originally Posted by kraft.wagen

Thanks guys will surely tell him to TD both Accord and Mazda6. Yea I think I kinda swayed him away from Honda and now he really likes the looks of the Mazda 6

You should definitely have Fusion in the list as well.

IMHO Both Fusion/Mazda 6 handles very similarly.

[NinadJoshi]

Haven't driven the new Mazda6 yet but that is a good looking car for sure. If it drives as well as it looks, then we have a winner.
Just a word of caution, though, being in the first production year of the new generation, the Mazda6 may come with it's share of niggles.

[DexterMorgan]

Test drove Accord Sport with manual. What a car! Nicely equipped too.
For 21k $ , that would be my pick.

Mazda 6 is gorgeous especially in red but isn't as punchy to drive as Accord Sport. Though interior feels way nicer and plush than Accord.

I would choose between either Accord Sport or Fusion SE 1.6 ecoboost depending on the deal offered.

[kraft.wagen]

Originally Posted by chevelle

Daylight robbery for Jetta.

Tell him to test Accord Sport and not other versions. It has more power, handles great, comes with goodies.

Mazda6 looks great and drives great. If it was my money, it had be either of these two and finally it would come down to which offers better price.

Is Accord Sport the V6? If it isn't do you still suggest that Accord is better?
Ya true I didn't pick any V6, but its me again trying to want more for less from a Honda

Originally Posted by ToroRosso

You should definitely have Fusion in the list as well.

IMHO Both Fusion/Mazda 6 handles very similarly.

Indeed I simply love the looks of Fusion. But its going to be a task to convince him into Ford
I have suggested him to rent these cars and drive them around for a day and see which he is most comfortable with.