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9:49am on Sunday, 23rd February, 2025:
Anecdote
We ordered a new car yesterday. We went with the MG ZS Hybrid+ Trophy.
Although I would have preferred a plug-in hybrid, all but one were too expensive for what you get for your money. The exception was the MG HS, but I got travel sick after driving that for ten minutes so it was off the shortlist.
The Toyota Yaris Cross was a realistic option, but there wasn't enough room in back seats for our liking and I didn't like the steering (which seemed to work on a geometric scale: the more degrees of steering-wheel turn you gave it, the more each degree translated into degrees of road-wheel turn). That could have just been the test drive car, although the steering wheel felt too small anyway. The car was very good, but cost 40% more than the MG ZS Hybrid+ and wasn't 40% better.
Although it didn't factor into our decision, we didn't like the Toyota salesman. His name was Richard, and although for obvious reasons I hesitate to say this, he came across as more of a dick. The MG salesman was far more personable, likeable and informative. He was also honest; the Toyota guy might have been honest as well, but he didn't say anything bad about the Yaris Cross so it was hard to tell (the MG chap expressed some reservations about certain aspects of the ZS, particularly when going up a long hill with a low battery charge).
We could have had the car in slate grey pretty well immediately, but my wife wanted it in red (it is a nice red) so we have to wait until April before it arrives. The vehicle registration tax more than doubles at the start of April, so this decision cost us another couple of hundred quid. Our car is currently on a container ship between here and China, whereas with the Yaris Cross it would have been on a container ship between here and Japan.
It took an hour and three-quarters to complete the purchase. Some of that was related to the fact that we were trading in our old car, for which we received a whopping £750. If we'd paid Ford £1,700 to replace the cam belt and paid a body shop £500 to get dents undented and a bumper replaced, we could have got £1,250 for it. I therefore don't regard £750 as too much of a rip-off. I once traded in a Citroën and got less money for it than I'd just paid to replace its tyres, so had learned that lesson.
Hmm...
E33 JAB (Ford)
G115 JOK (Peugeot)
K930 YAV (Citroën)
T323 JVX (Rover)
EK07 SKJ (Ford)
Hey, I remember the registation numbers of all our previous cars. That's reassuring. Oh, wait, my father-in-law gave us a T-registration Vauxhall before we got the Ford XR2, and it'll take me awhile to dredge up that one's registration number. Damn.
One thing I liked about MG's approach was that they only had two versions of the ZS: the SE and the Trophy. The SE ("standard edition"?) is the basic car, along with a set of useful add-ons. The Trophy is the basic car with all possible add-ons. Unlike most other brands, where you have to pick and choose between assorted "packages" that add to the price (heated seats, four-camera display, sound system, faux-leather interior, forward-pointing machine guns, ...), you either get most or all of them. The only configuration decision you have to make is what colour you want it in.
I wish more MMORPGs took this approach: you get a bunch of stuff for free and everything for a subscription (or "battle pass" as they're now known). Sadly, deveelopers can't resist selling extras, which unlevels the playing field even among paying customers. Car manufacturers aren't quite at the level of "oh, you wanted tyres on all four of your wheels?" but that's where we are with many MMOs.
We don't know whether my wife will drive our new car or not. She has no way of knowing whether she'll get along with it until she tries it on a completely empty road with no prospect of encountering other vehicles. I'll try to warn you when she's about to try, in case she doesn't like it.
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