For those of you that remember Jared's commute in Phoenix, it was NOT pretty. His 2001 Nissan Maxima had 180,000 miles on it -- most of which were from his daily commute from Gilbert, AZ to Phoenix, AZ. While it still ran great, it was beginning to show its age a little bit. It need about $2000 worth of work and when a vehicle with that many miles on it needs some significant work, it makes you re-evaluate things. You could spend the money and get many miles/years out of the car, or you could spend the money and never get it back. That being said, Jared decided to look at car options.
Now that we live in Western Washington, our priorities with respect to cars have changed a little bit. First of all, AWD or 4WD is helpful. There can be lots of snow from November through March, and when you mix that with the hills, narrow roads, and the lack of snow plowing, it only makes good sense. In addition, a little higher clearance is good. The roads here aren't nearly as smooth and nice as the roads in Phoenix, and you never know what you might run across while driving. Lastly, a good turning radius is imperative. The parking lots are small and the parking slots are tightly packed in the parking lots.
That being said, Jared's main objective was to get something that not everyone else has. So after a lot of research, he decided on getting a 2011 Nissan Juke. As you can see in the pictures below, it is metallic gray and a 4-door.
The interior looks pretty snazzy as well; it is a 4-cylinder, but it is a turbo-charged engine. We were amazed at the zippy-ness of it on the roads. It also has different driving modes, so you can drive it in a normal, sport, or eco -- which ever meets your overall objective. It has a automatic transmission, but you have the option of putting it in manual (like Kristina's 350Z).
Here's a shot with the backseats folded down (how we will have it most of the time). It is pretty spacious for such a small overall volume.
And finally, here's a shot of Jared with his new ride!
