Still have not developed a new set of car habits. It is amazingly disorienting. I have been driving the same car for nearly 10 years. Now nothing is where it's supposed to be. I have to think about putting on my sun glasses. I forget where the parking break is. I use the shifter like a granny who drives her car twice a week - with intense attention to my every move. At least I have quit activating the wind shield wipers every time I drive off or park the car. I will be glad when the new habits start to kick in. It's freakin' annoying to have to think about every little thing.
LOVING the seat warmer. Best luxury feature ever.
First actual car annoyance - the media player doesn't recognize playlists on the SD card reader. No biggie, it just means if you actually want a playlist it's a bit of a labor intensive process. As I was saying to some different people, if I am going to have a car annoyance, I'm glad it is just stereo related.
Meanwhile, upon realizing while reading my car's documentation that diesel engines are actualy substantively different from gasoline engines, I did some research and found that the internet was promising me that the high energy content of the fuel would result in a very sporty drive.
Holy crap, does it ever. A couple of days ago I made my first pushy lane change, sneaking in a hole in traffic becuase I couldn't bear to be behind the dump truck going 25 miles under the speed limit for one more second, and the responsiveness reminded me of that time, 20 years ago, that I test drove a Colt with a six-cylinder engine. There was no delay, no acceleration time it was just POW, I was exactly where I wanted to be like magic. And I say this as a woman who has been driving an eight cylinder engine for a decade. I actually pulled the documentation out to see if somehow I had bought a big engine. Nope. Well if that's what I can expect from diesel 1) I'm going to have to pay attention so I don't accidentally wreck before I learn to handle it, 2) I may become one of those people who refuses to drive a gasoline car ever again and 3) I have got to get a chance to try the S setting on the transmission... You will be glad to hear that I also got to panic test the breaks in traffic yesterday (unrelated, just usual DC traffic crap) and they are also fantastic.
Lifetime MPG on the car is now up to 32.9. I have had three trips of 40mpg or over. And my worst, stupidest trip that I make regularly - down to the town center for a hamburger and back - no highway speeds, all stop and go and traffic lights - clocks in at 32. It's possible that a hybrid would be better for my overall driving, but I'm ridiculously happy with this. Possibly becuse I think on the highway the Crown Vic got about 21mpg, and my regular driving won me about 17. The mini van before it was just as atrocious.
I still have not bought fuel. Car says there is still 150 miles in the tank, but it is not my intention to drive to fumes, only down to the top of the red zone on the fuel gage. I suspect that will carry me all the way to Saturday morning, which means a tank should be two weeks of regular driving. Pretty awesome.
So the first impression is made, and it is favorable. Now for the test of time - how will it hold up, what will I think a year from now, and will it blow a headgasket at 60k like the Saturn did? (CK thinks probably not, but hey, the Audi proved that Germans can produce a piece of shit car as easily as anybody else.) Oh, spekaing of Germans, the German guy in the neighborhood, who tut tutted when I was putting oil in the Crown Vic and who told me next time I should buy a German car was clearly beside himself with contained delight as he complimented my car purchase. :D Maybe it will improve the opinion of our immediate next door neighbor as well. (She hates me and called The Barbarian a "bad little girl." Good times.)
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