So Vanessa turned 10000 miles last week. A little over a month shy of when I first got her at the Vallejo Hyundai dealership. I wasn’t even planning on getting a Hyundai, I had my eyes set on a Mitsubishi Outlander Plug In hybrid. I had test drove one a few months ago and apart for the tiny steering wheel, I was almost set on buying one. Just trying to decide if I would go up a model to get the fast charging or not. The fact that the nearest dealer was in San Francisco was an issue, but I wanted to go back to Mitsubishi since I missed my Lancer.
Anyway, I don’t even remember how Hyundai came into the picture, but I thought I would go and just take a look at one for shits & giggles. Dealing with the salesman was annoying, but I was impressed with the test drive, the internet rate was…not criminal. And the dealer got Honda to pay me $500 when I turned in my lease.
So Vanessa is great for the most part. The plug-in feature has been great, esp since I live so close to work and charging is free. Even if I was still commuting from Vacaville, plugging in would help save gas. I’ve gone 1.5 months without having to gas up. Even if I have to goto SF for work, by time I’m done, I’ve used less than a gallon of gas round trip. And she can be pretty zippy when she needs to be. It’s also nice sitting a little higher in traffic compared to my previous cars. The app is nice where I can warm up or cool the inside before I step out the house or work. Vanessa is roomy in the back seats and trunk space. Having SiriusXM is nice when I’m driving in the back roads and don’t have cell coverage for Apple CarPlay.
But with the good, there are some bad notes. Like the fact that I broke the chain and got her in black instead of keeping with tradition and getting a blue color. I thought I was breaking out of my comfort zone but did not realize just how many SUV are black and look the same. The 1st three months I kept on trying to open doors to the wrong car because they all look the same. Vanessa is def a basic bitch compared to her ancestors.
What else? The app is good, when you have cell phone coverage. Locking myself out of Vanessa and I couldn’t remote open because I didn’t have cell signal. With my boss, it was def an embarrassing moment. Finding charging options are still tricky, even in the Bay Area; I am insanely jealous of the Tesla charging stations and wish I could use them. I have 4-5 charging apps that I have to cycle through depending on where I can charge. The Vallejo Hyundai dealer is another sore spot. Misinformation about what Vanessa can and can’t do, ignoring my phone calls, and totally fucking up my financing among other things. At this point, I goto Santa Rosa for service. Even though it is out of the way for me, the service is 10x better. A few other minor things, like why have wireless phone charging, but not have wireless CarPlay/Andriod Auto?
But all in all it’s been a great first year with Vanessa. She been able to handle the day to day and also the longer trips. She def put on the miles when Debbie/Noah were here in the summer. She can handle trips up/down the coast and up 121 from Napa through Berryessa to Vacaville/Winters. I do think I need to get her some exterior accessories to make her a bit less basic and to differentiate her from the other SUVs. Hopefully smooth sailing for Vanessa in our 2nd year of being together.
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