Searching through the local Car Finder had become pretty much a weekly habit for the past couple of years or so, since my intention of thinking about buying a car (a secondhand vehicle was what I was originally planning on getting) first cropped up. I buy a copy of said "magazine"(which comes out every week), in the hopes that I'll find myself a good-enough second-hand car that I could purchase. I actually wanted to buy a 1996 BMW 316i or 1989/1990 BMW 520, but, in the end, I realized that maintenance would really put a huge hole in my wallet. So then, I thought about getting a 1991 Mitsubishi Gallant GTI Super Saloon instead.
But about a couple of months ago, I saw a picture, in a techie magazine I buy every month, of the new 2009 Honda City. I've never been a huge of the old City models, but the new one was a total beauty! And it sparked my interest like no other car has, and revved up my desire again to buy a brand new car!
So, I did a little investigating and checked out the new City via Honda Philippines' website; checked out its specs, interior, price, etc. I was a little dismayed about the fact that the 1.5 E variant, the "fastest" of the City variants, only came in automatic (transmission), and I was never really a huge fan of AT vehicles (though I have driven cars and such that were "automatic trannies"). I'm more of a manual-transmission-kind-of-driver. So I decided to check out the 2009 Honda Civic (which, when it first came out, I SO wanted -- unfortunately, it was quite pricey), and my interest towards said car once again came to life. Plus, there was some good news : Honda was offering, only for this month of April, discounts of about 35 grand (on Civics, the Accord and CR-V)! Which made me curious even more. I (eventually) found out that the reason why Honda was offering discounts (specifically for the Civic) was because they were in the process of getting rid of or phasing out the current line (of Civics), as a new 2009 model (of the Civic, with very, very minor changes) was about to come out, and that they wouldn't release it to the public until they had gotten rid of every remaining vehicles of the current line. But, what the heck, right? 35 thousand is 35 thousand! And so, finally, last Saturday, I went to the Honda dealer in Libis, near Eastwood City, to test-drive a Civic, make inquiries, etc.
And, oh yeah -- the bank I've been going to for over ten years has also been bugging me to get a car loan from them and had assured me that I would get approved (which is the other reason why I was leaning towards buying a brand new car, as opposed to getting a secondhand vehicle).
Anyway, test-driving that baby (the Civic I mean) was, to quote a word often used in the movie "Dude, Where's My Car?", sweeet! Even though it was an AT that I drove, the '09 Civic still floored me with its smooth ride...! I also got to test-drive the new City, and that car was also great to drive! The 1.5 E variant was a five-speed automatic transmission car, with paddle-switches "within" the steering wheel (to shift gears) that gave you that "F1 feel" to it. But, of course, as terrific as it was to also drive the City, it was nothing compared to the Civic! Even before getting to test-drive the new City, I was already pretty much dead-set on getting the Civic. Even more so now after I got to drive the City.
The new Honda Jazz also looked terrific, by the way. I wanted to take it for a spin (as well as the Accord and CR-V), but, unfortunately, there was no longer any time left to do so.
After the whole test-driving thing was over and done with, I talked to Henry, the sales agent, made inquiries (about the monthly fee, down payment, etc), and paid a reservation fee of 5 thousand pesos, to get the "ball rolling". All I needed was to deal with Metrobank come Monday. Which proved to be a bit frustrating and quite a letdown. Like I mentioned above, they told and assured me that I would be approved for a car loan, hands down. Unfortunately, on the first round of procuring the car loan, I was encountering some red tape. Day two : it actually came to the point where I was on the verge of getting in-house financing through Honda instead. When I told them that, they scrambled to get my car loan approved!
So, after what seemed to be a torturous four days, I finally got my brand, spankin' new 2009 Honda Civic! I wanted a black one, but the remaining (it was, literally, the last car of the variant) 1.8 V (the "cheaper" one of the other variants, the 1.8 S and 2.0 SL) only came in bluish silver. But, what the heck -- I got a brand new car, babeee!!
'Nuff said.
