"ray" <spammers@do.not.reply.com> wrote in message
news:chntu3hfdurfdf3vmgsff9d376ue15ji7r@4ax.com...
>I currently own a 2000 Toyota Avalon XLS and am looking for new wheels
> (and the rest of the car to go with it). I have been happy with Ava
> and looked at the new Toyota Avalon, Camry, and the Honda Accord. I
> haven't looked at the Lexus ES350 yet because the dealership is about
> a 2 hour drive from here. The reviews look good.
>
> My initial conclusion is they all look good. The Toyota / Lexus are
> somewhat quieter and smoother, the Honda probably more reliable.
>
> I hear that Toyota quality and reliability is slipping and the 6 speed
> transmission used in all the cars that I am considering has problems.
> How serious are they? The Lexus seems nice but I am being told that
> it must be taken to the Lexus dealer for warranty repairs, a 4 hour
> drive round trip. Is this true, or can the local Toyota dealer handle
> it?
>
> I considered the Acura TL, but it does not come with cloth seats. The
> Honda dealer was pushing the Nissan Altima. I don't think they are as
> reliable as the Toyota. I recently rented Nissan Sentra for 2 months
> in Hawaii. In 2 months due to failures we drove 3 different ones and
> were not impressed. Any other suggestions for a nicer car that comes
> with cloth seats?


Funny, I went through the exact same drill last year when replacing my '00
Avalon...

I didn't like the new Avalon (so much plastic and shiny stuff on them looked
like they were designed by a 20-something engineer on drugs), same reaction
to the Solara convertible, just couldn't get comfortable in the Camry seats,
liked the Acura TL but damned if I'll put premium gas in one of those beasts
and the price was higher than I wanted to spend on my ride--- so I ended up
getting an Accord V6 EX-L--- by default really. Kinda settled for it when I
bought it.

But after driving it for several months, I've really come to like and
appreciate this car. It handles great ("corners like it's on rails"), has
plenty of power, is fun to drive, the shape of the seats exactly match the
shape of my ass, didn't care about the sunroof and XM radio-- but have come
to really enjoy them, has had zero assembly defects--- and I just got back
from a 650 mile trip and got 33.4 MPG!!