Car Review: Nissan Versa Hatchback

The Nissan Versa Found here: http://www.nissanusa.com/versa-hatchback/?next=Versa_Sedan.VLP.Versa_Hatchback.VLP

I took this car on a rather long trip:
It was about 600 miles. The weather was cold, with some rain and some snow.
I had the car for a week.

Ok, so first off I have a confession to make. I wanted to hate this car. You see I want american cars to be better than the little cheap foreign jobs, so that's what I wanted to happen.
It didn't. A few weeks ago I had a Chevy Aveo, and well you saw how that went. UGH...
This time around I was given it's competitor from Nissan, and well....

First off it's small right? Not so fast... it actually had ample room front and back, as well as plenty of space for my luggage, ect...

It also didn't feel cramped... I'm not sure if this is the headroom talking or not, I'm a little short for that to matter most of the time, but I have to say I didn't feel like it was a tinny tiny car.

The right rear seat does fold down, I was just being lazy, and the front seat was all the way back, so the headrests were arguing.

It is a bit of a downer that the seats don't fold truly "flat".









You can see the extra headroom I'm talking about here on the right -->
Now, on the down side... the lines of this car are or at least seem to me, to be a little feminine. At least at first glance, I think it's the front and rear styling that does it, while the sharp angle on the rear doors may offset it some, you have to be looking for that to notice it.

 The hatch has an electronic "button" rather than a handle, which adds a nice upscale feel, and is self assist... most of the time, however in the cold, it did need some pushing, this is obviously due to excessive use from being a rental car.

 Nothing special from the front, but nothing bad either.


The Versa is rated as 28-34 MPG. My drive was mostly highway, with two days of in town buzzing around, and I got 30 on the money.
I wanted it to do better, which tells me I had started to like it. This is one reason I wouldn't buy this car, for now... 30MPG just doesn't qualify as a reason to buy a "little" car anymore.
You can get a Chrysler 300 with that!

 The power plant is a little one, however it is geared well for buzzing around town, with no scary lag between mashing the pedal and getting out of the way. At highway speeds it did feel a little exhausted, however nothing that was "out of the ordinary". What I found odd, was the nagging feeling that it was missing one more gear... I was usually sitting around 3000 RPM at highway speeds. While this added to a sporty feel with better throttle response, I couldn't help but wonder about wear and tear, and the over all MPG that was lost in the end.

 One other issue that would give me pause on this little car is the driving position... it's... just wrong.

The steering wheel is tilt, but from too low, your choices are uncomfortable or more uncomfortable... and don't get me started on what that means in an airbag deployment...

Also, it really would benefit from a right side arm rest... you just have no where for that right arm to go....

As a plus, the "elbow pad" on the door is AMAZING, it's soft and feels great... but with the wheel at such a crazy angle, you can't really use it for your elbow...

So over all I wanted to hate it, wound up liking it, and would consider one if I was looking for a cheap, little buzzer car. It's well appointed, well thought out, sans the driving position, and that pesky missing gear...

I'm going with 3.5 out of 5 on this one. As I would have one if I was collecting cars.

Chevy Aveo Review

In a world where people give a shit what I think... some may like to hear about my thoughts on some of the rental cars I have driven for work. Well... Allow me:


The Chevy Aveo Found here: http://www.chevrolet.com/aveo/

So not having done this before, but enjoying cars here we go:

I took this car on a rather long trip:
It was about 300 miles one way. The weather was cold, windy, but clear.

So first off, it's small right? RIGHT. My Suitcase and tool box weren't able to share the trunk. Not for lack of space in the trunk, but due to the restrictive opening on both the back, and from the slide through when the rear seats are down.

Next, it's slow right? RIGHT. Terrible pick up, peppy only in first gear, so when your in the middle of the intersection trying to get out of the way, and it shifts into second... you all but STOP before getting out of the way. Also, be prepared to have any fissures in the pavement dictate your direction. I was regularly pushed around by cracks in the pavement. Don't even get me started on the wind. This car was exhausting to drive. I was constantly forced to course correct.

It's got some options right? WRONG. Terribly appointed as well, the interior puts me in mind of really cheap Fischer-Price type plastics, which are ok for TOYS. Also most of the items you actually use feel like you will break them eventually. It did have cruse, which was a HUGE plus on this trip. However in heavy wind the car felt so unstable that I didn't use it most of the time.

OK, one "neat" feature is this, when you either pull up or push down the drivers lock tab, they all lock or unlock.
My biggest complaint however is this:
I would prefer that Chevy pulled out the front seats and bolted in an old crappy wooden park bench... it would have been more comfortable. I'm only in my 30's... so I should not be shifting in my seat from pain and annoyance in only a matter of an hour or so.

It gets great gas mileage right? WRONG. In this day and age a car that asks you to put up with this kind of crap ought to really help you out in the gas dept... not so here. I was able to get around 30MPG... NOT amazing for a car this small.

As far as looks go, well it looks like your getting suckered into buying a crappy car because your broke. I'd buy used before I bought this new.

The price is low however. But once again, I wouldn't buy one...

 So over all I would have to say it's one out of five. It only gets the one because it didn't breakdown.

Less is more

So Trying something new...
Less is more.
Lunch:

Rainbow Roll

From:

http://maps.google.com/maps/place?hl=en&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=sushi+in+wausau,+wi&fb=1&gl=us&hq=sushi&hnear=0x8800279df8284883:0x3295ad8e8e88b5c,Wausau,+WI&cid=14402886025290193217

Great food, ok service. 

Opportunity.

Yesterday's sermon was about watching for opportunity. To present itself. I'm reasonably sure this entire week is one giant opportunity. I've been selected as a key player in a HUGE change taking place where I work. Now all I have to do is not drop the ball!

Country Inn & Suites Monona, WI 25-29Apr11

Last weeks Room was here:
http://www.countryinns.com/madison-hotel-wi-53716/wimonona


Here's a walk through of the room:



Only a few -'s

• TV's could use updating
• There was a concerning stain on one of the chairs... ugh...

Now for the +'s

• Great internet speeds! Thanks to Charter Communications as the provider.
• Good breakfast, plenty of variety.
• Quiet rooms.
• Decent pool area.
• OK Gym area, could use dumbbells though.

My humble dinner.

Where from here?

Work is interesting to say the least these days.

I find myself in the midst of a corporate fad, and I feel as though I'm the only one who sees it as such.

I am a facilitator, trainer, speaker, whatever term you choose to use. The bare bones of it is, I get up in front of people and use all means available to help them understand something that they either didn't, or had never been exposed to prior to being in the room.

As I work in a highly technical field, I like to focus on the guts of the matter, and I am also enjoying our mixing of "soft skills" (communicating with our customers better, and having an actual relationship with them).

However, I'm seeing a somewhat disturbing new trend.