So... what car do you guys drive when not flying?

[Flying Fox]

Picked up my new car on Saturday 10/10/2020.

Its awesome fun!

 

[ALH]

I’m looking to buy a used car for my new P Plate driver and her little sister who will be on her Ls soon.
Budget is under $10K. Must be Auto. I have been looking at Honda Jazz, Mitsubishi Mirage, Toyota Yaris. Preferring the Jazz over the other two from what I have seen.
Anyone have an opinion on these or any other makes/ models I should be looking at with that budget ?

You know how well my little Mazda 2 performed under pressure, so I’d be taking extra care and leaning towards a Mazda 3 for safety’s sake. Not a Yaris.

If your budget was a little higher, I have a Mazda CX-9 sitting unloved and unused here at the moment. Lol.

 

[Matt_01]

@Princess Fiona I wasn't going to post here however reading some the comments about the Mazda 3 will provide some input. About 4 weeks back MrsM picked up a new Mazda 3 sedan (astina variant). Initially I was not sure about her choice but didn't complain as it was around a third of the price as some of her previous cars.

I have only driven it once but I must say I am quite impressed with a number of the safety features, like if you do not break, the car sends an alarm and messages telling you to 'brake', in some cases (i think the cruise control was on) the car brakes down to a stop based on the distance to the car in front. It has all types of auto brake features, blind spot monitoring and other setting that are pretty useful driver aides. I am aware that some of these are not new to the market as previous Lexus's and other German brands had some these features 13 years ago, however the price was also significantly higher.

After MrsM having the car for a couple of weeks she has already mentioned that in 2-3 years I will need to buy another Mazda 3 for her and the current car will be used to teach MissM to drive and then she can have it.

 

[JohnM]

@Princess Fiona
I have only driven it once but I must say I am quite impressed with a number of the safety features, like if you do not break, the car sends an alarm and messages telling you to 'brake', in some cases (i think the cruise control was on) the car brakes down to a stop based on the distance to the car in front.

Terminology to look for is:

AEB - autonomous emergency braking.

Adaptive (or active) cruise control.

 

[Happy Dude]

One needs to be a wee bit careful with adaptive cruise control when the car in front enters a turning lane and slows down (or vice versa). There's also a loss of power when approaching a slower car (if you haven't changed lanes in time and the ACC kicks in), which affects your speed when then overtaking. Obviously you don't want jump into a lane with fast approaching traffic.

Not that these things are a detraction. It's a great feature.

 

[blackcat20]

One needs to be a wee bit careful with adaptive cruise control when the car in front enters a turning lane and slows down (or vice versa). There's also a loss of power when approaching a slower car (if you haven't changed lanes in time and the ACC kicks in), which affects your speed when then overtaking. Obviously you don't want jump into a lane with fast approaching traffic.

Not that these things are a detraction. It's a great feature.

Mine decided to brake after I'd changed lanes to avoid stopped traffic. Was very lucky not to wear the car coming up behind me at 80km/h (the same speed I was doing before the car decided it knew better).

Can also vote for a Mazda 3, I had mine for 11 years and it only ever once had a problem (which was my fault for ignoring the warning light). Otherwise it never skipped a beat.

 

[OZDUCK]

In was driving my rental Golf in Norway when there was bit of a bend on the motorway plus there was an off-ramp that went off at only a slight angle. The adaptive cruise control 'saw' the point of the crash barrier at the intersection of the two roads and suddenly washed about 50 kmh off my speed. Luckily there were very few cars on the road.

 

[Matt_01]

Terminology to look for is:

AEB - autonomous emergency braking.

Adaptive (or active) cruise control.

I was very tempted to put EBA (Mazda's name for AEB) to the test but as it was MrsM car and new I decided not to (ok so I chickened out) and reverted to the old fashion method or breaking myself. It would seem this is an evolution of the pre collision systems that used to apply overriding braking force if the vehicle suspected that a collision was unavailable. I can confirm the 2007 Lexus that system was very effective in pulling the car to a stop in a much shorter time frame than I expected and the pre tensioning seat belts kicking into action.

Active cruise control also seems to have improved in recent years, from memory our Lexus, Audi and Merc would slow based on the car in front to around 40km/h then the driver had to take over. How old school.

 

[Matt_01]

I’m looking to buy a used car for my new P Plate driver and her little sister who will be on her Ls soon.
Budget is under $10K. Must be Auto. I have been looking at Honda Jazz, Mitsubishi Mirage, Toyota Yaris. Preferring the Jazz over the other two from what I have seen.
Anyone have an opinion on these or any other makes/ models I should be looking at with that budget ?

Just thinking about some of the cars we have owned as you have a budget in mind is year make or KMs an issue. The Lexus IS 2006 and onwards model was loaded with a lot of safety (for the time) and looking at carsales there are some that have between 60K-120K km on the clock and are priced between $10K-$15K. Most will be auto and will should come equipped with pre collision systems, reversing cameras, front and rear sensors, active cruise control, sunroof, memory leather seats etc. Unlike the European cars where everything seem to be an option the Japanese tend to base car basically the same on the different model are normally things like wheel size, heated/ cooled seats, better stereo systems and other such bongos.

I am most likely a bit biased as we have owned 3 in the past, essentially being part of the Toyota family they are pretty much bullet proof and cheap to run, well that was our experience. Although it is commonly known for those who may not know Lexus was originally Toyota acronym for Luxury Export US, the name just stuck.

 

[pauleg]

I picked up a new Honda HRV on 1st July. Being in lockdown Melbourne I have done a mighty 200 kilometres in 3.75 months!!!!! First service was to be one month or 1,000 KM!!!
From what little I can tell it looks good for me - so far.

 

[jakeseven7]

I was very tempted to put EBA (Mazda's name for AEB) to the test but as it was MrsM car and new I decided not to (ok so I chickened out) and reverted to the old fashion method or breaking myself. It would seem this is an evolution of the pre collision systems that used to apply overriding braking force if the vehicle suspected that a collision was unavailable. I can confirm the 2007 Lexus that system was very effective in pulling the car to a stop in a much shorter time frame than I expected and the pre tensioning seat belts kicking into action.

Active cruise control also seems to have improved in recent years, from memory our Lexus, Audi and Merc would slow based on the car in front to around 40km/h then the driver had to take over. How old school.

Our Audi (2019 model) active cruise control is good, but I personally would definitely not be letting a learner driver use it until I was confident in their attention and driving ability.

A couple of times it has 'over-reacted' and I've had to correct a decision its made which would have freaked out a less experienced driver.

 

[jb747]

I’m looking to buy a used car for my new P Plate driver and her little sister who will be on her Ls soon.

Whatever you buy, ensure that she gets some decent driver training. That's worth far more than any of the various acronyms that cars come with. Some of the insurance companies may even offer it for free, for new drivers. AAMI did when my son got his licence. It isn't about skid control, etc. But, it will probably show them just how tenuous their control of any vehicle is. ABS is almost universally fitted, but there are drivers who don't know what it really does, and some even get a fright and take their foot of the pedal if it activates. AEB is nice, but it won't stop you from running into something, though it might be a little slower. A driver training day will ensure she sees most of these systems in operation, for better or worse.

Post automatically merged: Oct 21, 2020

Our Audi (2019 model) active cruise control is good, but I personally would definitely not be letting a learner driver use it until I was confident in their attention and driving ability.

Agreed. Actually I think it would be an appalling system to put in any new driver's car, virtually guaranteeing limited attention.

 

[kelvedon]

The Mazda 3 is a very reliable car and the previous models sold very well. In 2019 they introduced the BN series and moved it up market loading it with features because they couldn’t or wouldn’t complete with the koreans at the lower price point.
The result is a very well equipped car but the price rise has savaged it sales numbers.

 

[Buzzard]

I've owned many Mazda vehicles during my life and always thought of them as a quality vehicle.
They may have had a couple of duds (RX-5 comes to mind) but the quality was still tops.

 

[JessicaTam]

Whatever you buy, ensure that she gets some decent driver training.

This times a million.

All parents do when teaching their children is pass on their bad habits. I didn't realise how bad my driving was until I was taught professionally for work. I then became a driving instructor myself to pass on those skills.

 

[blackcat20]

I was very tempted to put EBA (Mazda's name for AEB) to the test but as it was MrsM car and new I decided not to (ok so I chickened out) and reverted to the old fashion method or breaking myself. It would seem this is an evolution of the pre collision systems that used to apply overriding braking force if the vehicle suspected that a collision was unavailable. I can confirm the 2007 Lexus that system was very effective in pulling the car to a stop in a much shorter time frame than I expected and the pre tensioning seat belts kicking into action.

Active cruise control also seems to have improved in recent years, from memory our Lexus, Audi and Merc would slow based on the car in front to around 40km/h then the driver had to take over. How old school.

The Mazda will slow right to a stop on adaptive cruise. I’ve tested it out but generally I prefer to slow down a bit quicker than it does.

 

[Matt_01]

Our Audi (2019 model) active cruise control is good, but I personally would definitely not be letting a learner driver use it until I was confident in their attention and driving ability.

A couple of times it has 'over-reacted' and I've had to correct a decision its made which would have freaked out a less experienced driver.

We have cars (now and in the past) with all the modern features but I am still old school. I agree with your first comment, I learnt to drive as 12yo-13yo in a paddock basher, this was the way I was planning to teach MissM to drive but we do not own property, the in-laws do. I am happy for my 'un-environmentally diesel 4x4 dual cab' to take a few knocks if it teachers MissM to control a 1.5t-2t road weapon.

As for you second comment I also agree it was the main reason I 'chickened out' on testing the Mazda EBA function, I just did not trust the vehicle at the speed it was coming up on the vehicle in front.

Also @jb747 and @JessicaTam 100% agree with driver training. In a previous life I thought I was a good driver, 25 years back when still in the ARA I had the opportunity to take part in a RACT driving day. We drove a number of different cars, 4x4's and trucks on some odd looking device with dolly wheels that reduced main wheel traction. After the days training course I was re evaluating my driving abilities.

 

[DeKa]

I was very tempted to put EBA (Mazda's name for AEB)

I don’t believe that’s correct. EBA is Emergency Brake Assist. It’s been around a long time and is based on the ABS braking system. If it detects a high braking rate it will apply maximum braking in case you didn’t push hard enough on the pedal.
seehttps://www.mazda.com/en/innovation/technology/safety/active_safety/bk_ebd/

Mazda seem to call AEB two things
Smart City Brake Support is AEB which works at “city speeds” whatever that is

Smart Brake Support is AEB which works at up to 80km/h

the industry needs to sort out a consistent name for this.

I think we’re all on the same page though - don’t put your kids in an old car without these technologies.

 

[JohnM]

I then became a driving instructor myself to pass on those skills.

Was that before or after I drove the Troopy with you as pax out to Steep Point?...

 

[Brissy1]

I don’t believe that’s correct. EBA is Emergency Brake Assist. It’s been around a long time and is based on the ABS braking system. If it detects a high braking rate it will apply maximum braking in case you didn’t push hard enough on the pedal.
seehttps://www.mazda.com/en/innovation/technology/safety/active_safety/bk_ebd/

Mazda seem to call AEB two things
Smart City Brake Support is AEB which works at “city speeds” whatever that is

Smart Brake Support is AEB which works at up to 80km/h

the industry needs to sort out a consistent name for this.

I think we’re all on the same page though - don’t put your kids in an old car without these technologies.

Yes EBA is completely different to AEB. And there's more to it/more variation in AEBs than I thought, carsguide has a write-up, AEB or auto emergency braking: Not all systems are created equal