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Boss no longer my daily driver...Don't laugh until you drive one...

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I'm not lucky enough to be able to track my 2013 Boss but I love driving in general. I've been using my Boss as my DD and averaging 16MPG just driving to and from work and the occasional drive to run errands was starting to dig into the wallet and add too many miles. I plan on keeping her for a real long time so I want to take care of her.

My wife doesn't have a car as she has a company car that we can use for most personal use. But it always has a ladder in it and I can't drive it. It's a Malibu so I would never want to drive it anyway ;)

We just eloped and got married in NYC and went to the Super Bowl. Greatest wife ever, as it was her idea. Long story short, we got married a year before we planned. So our family plans are now moved up. Plan to try and have our first kid a year from now plus the 9 months after that.

So I've been looking for a while for what can be a good family car, that gets decent gas milage, doesn't break the bank, but is still fun to drive...driving is too important to me. Well the search wasn't easy. All the fun cars were either too expensive or had MPG not much better than the Boss. Went to the auto show in Austin a couple of weeks ago and stumbled across an unlikely candidate.

Just leased a 2014 Nismo Juke RS. It's not just a car with Nismo badges.Nissan spent time to improve performance, handling, aerodynamics, etc. Yes this is the ugly duckling that grows on you the more you look at it. I hope to net on average 27-30 MPG, it's a hatchback which we narrowed down as our platform of choice, was only $24K after some dealing, and it's a turbocharged blast to drive. It handles great, the turbo spools quickly, it's just a lot of fun. Just drove it home from the dealership so I haven't gotten to put it through its paces just yet.

It comes in an AWD automatic (no manual 6 speed on the AWD). Which I test drove in the base Nismo 197HP trim yesterday. It was fun and nimble but I really could not experience the turbos. After reading the reviews the CVT tranny sucks the life out of the car. It was peppy, but nothing that could make me smile like the Boss. But it was still the best candidate to meet all of our needs. FYI...We were looking at automatics because the wifey can't drive stick.

Well, we have a friend who sells cars at a Nissan dealership in San Antonio. And they had just gotten in the new Nismo RS trim which pumps out 217HP, slightly more tuned suspension, and several other performance upgrades, the most noticeable are the Recaro seats. I love the seats in my Boss, but I'll be honest, I think I love these seats more.

Well the RS trim is extremely rare in an automatic but I wanted to drive one to compare even though they only had one with the 6-speed. I wasn't expecting a huge difference in driving experience, but I was shocked. As soon as I drove it out of the lot I was grinning. I don't know if it was the added 20HP or the gearbox or both, but the car was a different animal. I was hooked.

I had already been trying to convince the wife to learn how to drive stick for this very reason. I will always want our second car to be a stick, no matter what. Well after she saw how much fun I had on the test drive, we talked and she was willing to learn. We have a good 16-20 months before we plan to have our first child to practice. Did I mention best wife ever? I'm so lucky.

Anyway, I can't wait to really get to know this car. I love that it's unique like my Boss and you don't see too many. The hard part it's a lease, so unless I plan to buy, I have to avoid the urge to modify. I highly suggest if any of you are looking for a fun but semi green and economical choice, go test drive a Nismo Juke. Even the base versions have a small cult following.

Or if you just love cars and don't believe me in how fun this hatch can be, and you're board some weekend...go test drive one and let me know what you think.

Just thought I'd share. Sad that I won't be driving the Boss as much, but will save me in the long grand scheme of things.
 
302BOB said:
The Boss is the Boss! You know what you got but you know what need..tough decision..

No tough decision really other than what's was the best vehicle to meet price, Eco, and gun factor. I bought the Boss with no issue of using it as a DD. Didn't take long to realize how special she was and that this was a car I wanted to keep for a long time. I knew I would need a "family" friendly vehicle at some point. Pulling the trigger now helps me to address both and fits into my timeline.

39 month lease on the Juke.
Try to get pregnant with our first child say May 2015.
Have first child, February 2016.
Wait 6-9 months and probably try for child #2.
Have 2nd child, August 2017.
My lease is set to end August 2017.
Chances are we will want a bigger car for two kids & I would have already picked out my next family car.
Hopefully will have some equity vs. the residual if all goes well.
I will have added only 15-18K miles onto the Boss over those 39 months vs 36K-45K.
Win, win...simple math ;)
 

dmichaels

Papa Smurf
547
30
CT
Sure beats my wife's choice of car... Smart car. 5 years we've had it... Only upside is that it's mileage offsets the mileage I get in the mustang so I figure my household nets about 28-30 mpg average :)
 
Great story about your wife and you and enjoy your Juke.

See the wacky car photo thread for the latest Smart Car all terrain vehicle. :)
 
DMichaels said:
Sure beats my wife's choice of car... Smart car. 5 years we've had it... Only upside is that it's mileage offsets the mileage I get in the mustang so I figure my household nets about 28-30 mpg average :)

Lol...I'm still trying to figure out the purpose of the Smart car here in the states. Their electric version I get. I hope to net the same MPG ;)
 
NFSBOSS said:
Great story about your wife and you and enjoy your Juke.

See the wacky car photo thread for the latest Smart Car all terrain vehicle. :)

Thanks...She's the best. Super lucky. I told her on our first date that I love cars and will always drive a nice car even when I'm old and gray. My ex didn't understand so I made sure I hot it out there and she didn't run away :)
 

Grant 302

basic and well known psychic
Darth Boss said:
No tough decision really other than what's was the best vehicle to meet price, Eco, and gun factor. I bought the Boss with no issue of using it as a DD. Didn't take long to realize how special she was and that this was a car I wanted to keep for a long time. I knew I would need a "family" friendly vehicle at some point. Pulling the trigger now helps me to address both and fits into my timeline.

39 month lease on the Juke.
Try to get pregnant with our first child say May 2015.
Have first child, February 2016.
Wait 6-9 months and probably try for child #2.
Have 2nd child, August 2017.
My lease is set to end August 2017.
Chances are we will want a bigger car for two kids & I would have already picked out my next family car.
Hopefully will have some equity vs. the residual if all goes well.
I will have added only 15-18K miles onto the Boss over those 39 months vs 36K-45K.
Win, win...simple math ;)

Wouldn't laugh about your new ride, but I did chuckle at your baby timing math! ;D

Babies arrive when they arrive...and I say that expecting my third daughter very soon!
 
WinterSucks said:
Ditto. 2 boys one year apart 8)

Lol...yeah I know. But as an engineer I still map it out, as a marketeer I'm very optimistic, as a realist I know hitting the dates is highly unlikely.

There are also witches involved. My wife and her sister and sister in law when they were younger saw a brujeria (Hispanic witch) who predicted the number of kids and sex they would have.

Sister has one boy as predicted, they haven't been able to have another even though they want to. Ok, that's predictable, 50/50 right.

Well, her Sister in law was predicted to have 3 boys and 1 girl (they now have 23 year old boy, just graduated from college, 18 yr old just graduated from highschool, then a 7 yr old which was supposed to be their last, and the oops child 2 years later with their now 5 year old daughter). That's impressive.

The prediction for my wife Sara, is one boy. She wants two kids, boy and girl. I want one girl at least. We shall see if witches are real. So far we are believers.
 

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