choosing a car

Picking a car is extremely important for a teenager. It gets you everywhere you want to or need to go. It gets you to work, to the movies, to restaurants, to a friend’s house, etc. It isn’t easy to choose a car, though. You have to consider how it looks, safety, and performance. It is hard to find a good balance of these elements so I chose three different cars from three different categories (sports car, luxury car, family car) to find the best. The three cars I have selected to choose from are the Honda Odyssey, Lexus IS, and Mazda RX-8.

First off, I’ll start with the Honda Odyssey. The Odyssey is a mini-van and is one of the best family cars out there.  It comes in nine different colors and is priced at 26,355. It has 244 horsepower with a V-6 engine (Honda Webpage). The Odyssey delivers one of the best combinations of power, handling, and interior versatility in its class.

Safety is by far the best feature of the Honda Odyssey. “U.S News” gives it 9.9 out of 10 on safety and got 5 stars from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Honda makes sure that their cars are as safe as possible.  Anti-lock braking system (ABS) with Brake Assist is just one of the many features that make it safe. Other features include Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA) with traction control, Advanced Compatibility Engineering, front 3-point seat belts with automatic tensioning devices, and front side airbags (Honda Webpage) which all help protect the people inside. The Odyssey is one of the safest cars out there.

Performance is a feature that is often overlooked in the Odyssey. “U.S. News gives it a 9.4 on performance and many reviewers say it is powerful, fuel efficient, and handles extremely well (Honda Webpage).  It has a 244-hp, 3.5-liter, 24-valve SOHC VTEC V-6 engine, Tire Pressure Monitoring System Vehicle Stability Assist, and Michelin PAX System which allow you to run on a flat tire for up to 125 miles. These components make this car perform extremely well.

Many people like to make fun of vans because of their unfashionable exterior. The Odyssey may not look so cool on the outside but has many nice features on the inside. In “U.S. News” viewers said The Odyssey’s exterior is not very stylish and gave it a 6.7.However, viewers were very impressed by the interior and scored it at 9.1(U.S. News Rankings and Reviews). Bluetooth Hands Free Link Technology, passenger’s seat with 4-way power adjustment, Honda Satellite-Linked Navigation System with voice recognition, and Honda DVD Rear Entertainment System (Honda Webpage) make its interior look more like a luxury car than a van. Although it’s exterior lacks some style the interior more than makes up for it.

The next car I will analyze is the Lexus IS. The Lexus is a luxury sedan and starts at $31,155. It has a 302 horsepower engine and comes in nine different colors (Lexus Webpage). The Lexus provides great safety, performance, and style.

Safety is one of the Lexus’s best features. It earned four out of five stars on the crash safety test and earned 8.4 out of 10 from “U.S. News” (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews). It offers Pre-Collision System (PCS), Daytime Running Lights, Reinforced Body, Direct Tire Pressure Monitor, and vehicle stability. These features make the Lexus one of the safest luxury cars on the market.

The Lexus also got high reviews on performance. “U.S. News” gave it an 8.3 in this area and viewers said that the IS offered them an amazing driving experience (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews) A few performance features that the Lexus offers are Performance Brakes, Four-Wheel Disc Brakes, a V6 Engine, and All-Wheel Drive (http://www.lexus.com/models/IS/features/performance.html). The Lexus can perform better than most other sports cars out there.

Surprisingly, “U.S. News” gave the Lexus an 8.2 on the exterior and a 7.2 on the interior (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews) I completely disagree with this. I think the IS looks very sleek and even has turn signals in the side mirrors (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews) On the inside, it has Satellite Radio, a Backup Camera, Push-Button Start system, and Heated/Ventilated Front Seats (Lexus Webpage). I think the Lexus deserves a lot more credit on its exterior/interior than what “U.S.” News gives it.

The final car I will evaluate is the Mazda RX-8. This sports car is mainly known for its performance with a 197 hp and very affordable price at $24,470 (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews) “Autos” gives it a 4.3 out of 5 from the experts, but reviewers only gave the resale value a 2.0 (Autos). The RX-8 is on e of the safest, best performing, and most stylish sports car.

            The RX-8 is extremely underrated in safety. It earned four stars on the driver protection test and five stars on front-passenger protection (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews). “U.S. News” gave it an 8.7 which is by far its best rating (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews).  Active safety restraints, DCS/TCS systems, and side impact protection (Mazda Webpage) are the features that make the RX-8 an extremely safe sports car.

            Performance is a characteristic that the Mazda is especially known for. This trait earned it an 8.5 from “U.S. News” although test drivers didn’t like its lack of power and speed, (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews) but an agile engine, unique renesis rotary engine, good weight distribution, and limited-slip differential make up for it. The RX-8 is also extremely easy to handle and performs extremely well overall.

            Style is also one property that does not go well with this car. “U.S. News” gave it a 7.6 on exterior and an 8.0 on its exterior (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews). I agree with these ratings. I think the RX-8 is very flashy and is way too small. Although this doesn’t mean that it has a few good features. Bluetooth technology, navigation systems, and audio systems are just some of them (Mazda Webpage). These components are not enough though to make up for the rest of it and is its worst feature by far.

            The Honda Odyssey, the Lexus IS, and the Mazda RX all got very high reviews from viewers. Overall, the RX-8 got the lowest scores from “U.S. News” so ill have to make it between the Honda Odyssey and the Lexus IS. The Odyssey easily beats the IS in safety because of all the safety features that are put into it. The Lexus may have more horsepower and speed than the Honda, but according to “U.S. News”, the Honda has better handling than any other car (U.S. News Rankings and Reviews). The Lexus clearly has a better exterior, but the Honda has way too many components in the interior and beats it in that area. With all that considered, I would choose the Honda Odyssey.  Its safety and interior are too good to overlook. This was very tough to decide but I think I made the right choice.