The other day I mused about Volvo V60s and other cars I might be interested in to replace my Cruze. The short list was Mustang GT350, Camaro SS 1LE, ATS 2.0T, V60 CC, Colorado, and some generic econobox (Gen 2 Cruze, Civic, Corolla, etc.).
Well, I’ve given it some thought and come up with some more contenders. In no particular order, here are other things I would consider:
Chevy Volt: It’s all electric range is perfect for my daily commute, but I often drive enough on the weekends that an cheap EV (Bolt, Leaf) would be pushing it. The Volt would be a perfect compromise in that regard. Cost of entry is pretty low, and recurring costs are very low. It’s, for my usage case, the logical end of the “buy a generic econobox” line of thinking. It’s also pretty unexciting. But my neighbor does love his.
Toyobaru: I wanted one of these when they were first announced, but in an unexpected twist the Slobalt got totaled and I needed a car mere months before these hit the market, so I wound up with the Snuze. This could be a chance to reclaim that lost opportunity. The pros are that they are cheap, and feel like a better value proposition in terms of real, daily usable performance vs a Camaro or Mustang. I’m not sure what the cons are, maybe that it’s not actually a pony car? Also I’d probably want to mod the hell out of it. Or there’s a new one coming out soonish. Maybe I should wait for that?
Now, onto a tangentially related subject since I mentioned modding. How much or little would I modify my DD? Sometimes I pick a car because I think its perfect. For example, I don’t think think I’d do anything at all to a GT350, nor to the Camaro, at least not for several years. I think either would keep me happy for a long time even at stock levels. But what about something like the ATS? I’d want to do a tune, for sure, and if I’m going to do that, why not a downpipe and maybe intercooler. You know, some basic performance mods to open up what’s already there?
Then there’s the Volvo V60 CC. What caught my eye on that car was the “rally stance”, and boy would I want to lean into that, hard. I’m already envisioning one with some multi-spoke 17" wheels in a contrasting color, a slightly chunkier tire to give it that gravel look. And then lights and moose stickers! Can’t forget about performance though, so it needs a tune and cat back, maybe a bigger intercooler, and some suspension bits like a bigger rear swaybar to dial out some of the (apparently massive) understeer. Perfekt! (that’s Swedish for perfect)
And then we come to the truck. I said it before, but I’m not a huge truck guy. I’d have to make it bearable. But how? Well, one idea is to make a little street truck out of it! Does anyone even do that anymore? I hate how the ass end sits up so high in the air - it looks like a duck about to mate. But the only way to lower it is a flip kit which puts the leaf springs under the axle and drops it 4". So then I’d have to drop the front 3" to get it level. Since we’re going low, might as well get some bigger rims off a Suburban or Escalade or something (they all use GMs 6 lug pattern). I’d lose some utility, but it might be kind of cool.
Another interesting thing is these trucks use the 2.5L Ecotec in a RWD configuration. It may be possible to swap in a RWD 2.0L turbo Ecotec out of a Camaro or Cadillac. It couldn’t be that hard...
The opposite tack is raise the front end to get it level. This, then, gets me thinking about 2wd Pre-runners... so fender flares, wide wheels and tires, trim down the front bumper. But at this point I’m coming into something like a much less capable ZR2. So then I thought why not get a ZR2? But a used one is Camaro SS money, and if I’m spending that kind of coin, I think I just want the Camaro, usefulness be damned.
Then I think about all this and go “maybe I shouldn’t get something I’m going to mess with.” I’ve got the 240 wagon to mess with, and I barely have time to do that as is, when am I going to do all this stuff to my main car? I just need to be an adult and get a reliable daily driver. I should probably just stop all this nonsense and get something sensible like an Accord. But they do make that 2.0 sport turbo variant with the Type R engine...
Save me from myself Oppo!!!