Well, we’ve reached the end of another week, so you know what that means: It’s time for a runoff! Today, I’m giving you a scenario to work from, as I sometimes do, but it’s pretty straightforward. I’ll explain as soon as we get done going through yesterday’s results.
This is a day I never thought would come, and I didn’t even stack the deck to achieve it. A Chrysler has beaten a Toyota fair and square in a Shitbox Showdown! Granted, the Sebring is in considerably better cosmetic shape, has much lower miles, and is being sold by a private party rather than a dealership, but still. There’s nothing really wrong with the Solara, and yet, it lost. This makes me happier than it probably should.
Obviously, between these two, I’m going for the Sebring. It’s easier to work on, not having a transverse V6 engine, and it has almost a third as many miles on it. And it doesn’t look like someone left it out in the sun too long and it melted. Toyotas are generally a safe bet, but that doesn’t mean other cars aren’t sometimes a better deal.
All right, now that we have our quartet in place, here’s the scenario: Your mother-in-law is coming to visit, and you have to pick her up at the airport. But your car is out of commission. It’s in the shop, or something. What, I have to spell the whole thing out for you? Anyway, your neighbor has offered to lend you one of his seventeen cars. These four are the only ones that run, though, so you’ll have to choose from them. For the purposes of this exercise, let’s say the Ford pickup’s brakes have been repaired, and the Dodge Intrepid still has all the Batman stuff on it.
1996 Dodge Intrepid
The case for it: It’s a comfortable ride, and it has good air conditioning. It also has a nice big trunk, and you know she never packs light.
The case against it: She could be more of a Marvel fan than a DC fan. You’ve never asked.
1978 Ford F-150 SuperCab
The case for it: She’ll have no trouble spotting it at the curb.
The case against it: Everything else.
2009 Ford Fusion S
The case for it: It’s simple and straightforward, so she won’t complain about you “throwing your money around.”
The case against it: It’s nigh on invisible in traffic, which means there’s a good chance she’ll accidentally get in the wrong car. I’ll leave it up to you whether or not that would be a bad thing. (I kid, I kid…)
2004 Chrysler Sebring convertible
The case for it: It might make her feel special pulling up to the house with the top down.
The case against it: She might hate all the wind with the top down, and if you have to leave it up, you might as well be driving the Intrepid.
So yeah, kind of a low-effort Friday this week. I’ll make it up to you next week, though; I’ve got a couple of ideas cooking. In the meantime, you’ve got someone to pick up at the airport. Which car are you taking?
I actually like the Intrepid the most out of these,but my mother-in-law is dead,so I am putting her in the truck bed.