22,570 - Left in the dark again

I found it in the parking lot by the fence just where editor Mark 
Richardson said it would be. Good thing because with only a key and no 
remote, the new normal way to find a loaner car in a dark parking 
lot,  flashing the car lights,  was not an option.
Opening the driver's door with the key actually in the door lock (how 
retro), I climb into the drivers seat, find the ignition, and start 
the car. It was cold and dark and the windows were fogged up. I 
couldn't see any of the controls to turn on the heater fan and rear 
defroster. I fumbled with the overhead light and then tried hard to 
see the centre console. Finally the coin dropped. I actually had to 
turn the lights on MANUALLY before you could see the instruments and 
controls.
I haven't driven a car in the last ten years that didn't have auto 
lighting. How soon we forget.
Things went smoothly from there. The Accent reminded me of my first 
car, a 1968 Mini 1000. Less torque steer thou and probably more power, 
but none of that go-cart with a roof feel of the Mini. It also seemed 
a little twichy but still fun in a nostalgic row and rev kinda way.
When I got home I stopped and tried to back into the driveway. OK no 
you don't just bang it over to the left to select reverse. I know that 
because I tried it several times. Mercifully I was on a quiet 
residential street and up hill... I coasted backwards using gravity... 
and sheepishly pulld into the driveway driving forwards. Safely parked 
I again turn on the overhead light to inspect the shifter, and 
discover the collar that releases the gate to shift into reverse.
Next challenge, driving in daylight!

22,341 — Getting our kicks

The Boy looks at me with doubt in his eyes.

“I think we’re wasting our time,” he says.

We’ll see.

We’re standing in the driveway — The Boy (more a man than a boy, really) and me — on a cool, crisp, sunny Sunday. Soccer practice is set for 10 a.m. (thank you time change) and we’re about to head out.

There’s only one large problem. The gear. As coach of the U17 Darlington Bravehearts, I have three large bags of balls (10 balls in each), pinnies, pylons and two pug nets to haul to each practice.

“Why don’t we just take the minivan?” asks The Boy, logically.

Yes, we are a minivan family. It’s practically law (or it should be) that you require a minivan if you coach soccer. I have hauled up to six players at a time — balls and bags included — to games and practices.

I explain to The Boy the method behind my madness. Just how well would the Accent fare if pressed into soccer duty?

He still seems skeptical.

We lift up the hatch and The Boy folds down the rear seats. They don’t lie completely flat but it’s not so bad.

In goes the first ball bag. No problem.

Ditto the second.

Wow. It took the third one as well.

The rest of it is shoved into various nooks and crannies, the pug nets squeeze in flat atop the bags, and the hatch comes down.

GOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

22,153 — Cute and cuddly

“I like it, I think it’s cute.”

Cute?

“Yeah, cute.”

And with that, the missus gave her blessing to the Accent.

But didn’t you notice the car shake and all that road noise when you pushed the car past 120 km/h on the highway?

“No. Why would I? You’re not supposed to drive that fast anyway.”

Uh huh. But the Echo is nicer.

“Yeah, but the Accent costs less. And it’s all we really need to get around.”

So it’s cheap and it’s uh, cute. Anything else?

"No."

Uh, thanks. I think.

21,991 km — Dancing with the Devil ... again

This is not my first dance with an Accent. We have a history.

But last time, I was left all alone at the prom and all I got was a kiss-off.

I drove a new two-door hatch base-model — it didn’t even have air conditioning — from 2000-2004. It was fire engine red, it was ugly and it got me where I needed to go.

That’s about all I can say. It was by no means fabulous. The interior was cheap looking, the steering suspect, the car was loud and it shook at higher speeds. But it did its job, was inexpensive and I was happy.

For a while, anyway.

Then came the breakup, a messy affair.

I contacted Hyundai early in the fourth year of the lease, when at 58,000 km — 2,000 kilometres under distance but two months past the three-year warranty — the clutch went. That’s a mulligan in my book. And I have never had a clutch go before (or since).

The local dealership wouldn’t fix it without approval from Hyundai HQ and my telephone experience with “Richard,” some corporate customer service lackey made me resolute that Hyundai would never see my business again. He actually cackled out loud when I asked to speak to his superior.

Goodbye Hyundai, hello Toyota. I leased a 2004 Echo — spent the extra coin on some bells and whistles — and have been exceedingly happy ever since. This is a relationship that works.

And now, here we are again. The Accent has come back into my life, trying to make it up to me, seduce me, convince me that it will be different this time.

We’ll see.

21,829 km — The fast and the furious

I am cursed in this car.

There I am, happily heading home, having made the correct choice in avoiding the DVP today. Along Lakeshore, up Woodbine, a short stretch of O’Connor and east onto St. Clair. I’m kicking GO Transit butt, and starting to warm up to the Accent.

And then ... it all comes to a screeching halt.

I am pulled over for speeding. I’m clocked doing 66 km/h in a 50. Adding to my misery, the Toronto police officer discovers that there’s something improper with the insurance (can somebody look into this, Mark?). The cop knocks it down to 60 in a 50, decides to ignore the faulty insurance (whew!) and I am soon back on the road, with a shiny yellow $40 ticket ($25 for speeding, and $15 in various surcharges) tossed angrily into the back seat.

Yeah, it’s my fault. Yeah, the Accent only does what I make it do. Yeah, I’m an idiot.
But still ...

This car. This Accent. I swear, it does NOT like me.

Suddenly, GO Transit is starting to look pretty good again.

21,621 km — Plain trains and automobile

My GO Transit trip ended 11 minutes behind schedule this morning.

It was the fourth time in the past nine trips that GO fell short of expectations.

So it was with giddiness and glee that I accepted the keys to the Accent this afternoon.

No more GO for me. No sir. I was gonna ride home in style, in comfort and on time.

I slipped behind the wheel at 4:40 p.m. and pulled away from One Yonge knowing that rush-hour traffic awaited me on the DVP. No matter. Yeah, it was gonna take me a little longer, but how bad could it possibly be?

Turns out it was stop and go. Mostly stop.

At 5:20, I was still on the DVP, inching my way to the 401. Frustrated, I began to curse the car, blaming it for my predicament.

After all, had I taken the 4:53 express train east to Oshawa, I would now be a mere 3 minutes from arrival in Ajax.

At 5:37, I was moving slowly along the highway just past Brimley. The GO Train was pulling into the Oshawa station, my destination.

Gawd, how I hate this car.

The Accent and I were not off to a good start. On the plus side, I did notice through all my bumper-to-bumper driving that shifting gears — and I shifted ‘em a lot, mostly the low ones — was a smooth, seamless process.

Additionally, the snappy, compact vehicle was more than game when it came to darting from lane to lane in a stupid attempt to get that extra inch ahead of the pack.

And when I finally drove past the Oshawa GO station on the way to Newcastle at 6:05 p.m. — 28 minutes after the train’s arrival — I did note that it was raining hard. The walk to my car would’ve been nasty. Instead, I was high and dry.

Hate is such a harsh word. Maybe, after a sound night’s sleep, the Accent and I will try again.

After all, it’s not as if GO has captured my heart.

21,143 Kms - Accent on Port Colborne

Roadtrip!

Or maybe not.

I was heading for the border yesterday, directions in hand for Rochester, N.Y., all set to rendezvous with Canadian band Great Big Sea for an interview on board their tour bus, when their manager called to say the boys were stranded in Newfoundland due to weather. Their 8 p.m. concert was in doubt; our interview was definitely off, so I pulled a U-turn (easily done in the Accent) and headed back home to contemplate Plan B.

Vancouver Daughter’s emailed suggestion of “Drive here!” was not without its merits, a cross-Canada solo drive is something I’ve been contemplating. But, I’d always pictured flying back to Ontario once I’d made it to the coast and I’m not sure whoever’s next in line to drive the Accent would appreciate hearing that , sure, they could pick up the car – in beautiful British Columbia.

So, for now I guess I’ll keep it local, which despite all the road trips already taken in this vehicle, is really how I picture this car being used anyway. 

To that end I enlisted Eldest Son – at 22 years of age, I figure he fits the car’s intended demographic. (That said, I did spy a light blue four-door Accent parked at the mall today and judging by the baby seat in back and the lovely, flowered steering wheel cover that perfectly matched the paint job, I assumed it belonged to a young mom.)

Taking the Accent for a spin down a couple of country roads to the big town of Wainfleet, Eldest Son opined that: the gearshift was easy to manoeuvre but required faster shifting than Dad’s Jeep TJ, the reverse ring was weird, the interior, both front and back, was quite roomy, the quick release step-on lever for moving the passenger seat forward was a good thing, and the Tango Red colour was “too girly.” 

Though I suspect that if gifted the keys, he wouldn’t have a problem with the paint job.

20,976 km - Accent on Niagara

I took the bus from Niagara to the hallowed halls at One Yonge today.

It’s been a long time since I’ve travelled down the highway in a coach bus, which is probably why , while I was en route Husband took great delight in texting me the lyrics to The Guess Who’s Bus Rider.

Hopped off the bus and hoofed it over to the Star (“Places to go, important people to meet”) where the Wheels bosses handed over the keys to the Accent and I turned right ‘round again and headed back to Niagara.

Made it back home in time to drive Youngest Son to hockey practice. While the Accent’s hatchback does have a fair bit of room, for easier access we flipped down half the back seat –- always a nice feature.

For the record though, the kid’s hockey sticks did not fit sideways in this car. And there’s always the small issue of odour when stowing hockey equipment in a hatchback -- the stink tends to permeate the entire car, which is why I prefer to use the pickup truck for hauling hockey players.

Youngest Son was immediately annoyed by the way-too-cheery seatbelt chime, and I agree, the thing goes on about three ding-dongs too long. Hey, it’s those little things that’ll drive ya nuts. And speaking of which... I have never ever bought a steering wheel cover before but that cold, hard, moulded plastic is just begging for one.

Okay, so, when I first stepped on the gas and shifted through the gears, I figured the little growl the car let out made it sound kind of sporty. “Sporty,” as in the “20-year-old driver zipping around town” definition of the word, which fits because this is a cute, little $10,000 car that I picture being driven by someone young and single.

But obviously I am neither, and granted I am a bit spoiled by my regular ride, but I’m not sure I can tolerate the loud, steady drone that envelopes the Accent once you hit the higher highway speeds.

Good gas mileage is one thing, but there’s also something to be said for a quiet ride.

20,464 km -- Wrap-up

Back home in the Shwa-de-vivre, the Accent took on 30.328 L having covered 508.5 km for 5.97 L / 100 km. All highway, mostly with the air conditioning on at a constant 110 km/h.

Our Mission to Motown covered one week and 2,203 kilometres and overall, I’d have to give the Accent two thumbs up – it’s a lot of car for ten grand.

It’s no ‘92 Cavalier but I could live with one very easily.

19,990 km -- Heading home

Time to point the bow of the ship for home. Did you know that Detroit is the only major US city where you can look due south and see Canada?

Crossed the border again at Port Huron / Sarnia and it was a pleasant, two minute experience except…why do we still have to pay to cross a bridge that’s got to be 50 years old?

And why is it $1.50 in US funds or $2.00 Canadian? Do we have “ATM, press here” stamped on our foreheads?

The Detroit area has lots of Tim Horton franchises and it’s interesting to note that when you order a “medium,” it comes in a cup that’s a “large” up here.

Droning home on the 401, we noted a number of very favourable impressions of our time with the Accent. The driver’s seat has a fold-down armrest on the right side – nice.

I’m six-three and found more than enough adjustments on the driver’s seat to make me comfortable and there was ample headroom too.

The radio allows 18 preset FM and six AM stations and even though we were well east of London, Ontario, it was pulling in the Detroit oldies FM station cleanly. The built-in single CD player is handy but there’s no cassette or 8-track capability.

Madame, who usually maxes out in a car after two hours, thought the passenger accommodations of the Accent were well above average and I received nary a complaint during our week away.

The tight turning radius was much appreciated when tracking down destinations we weren’t familiar with. Lots of three-point and “U” turns in close quarters and the Accent proved very manoeuvrable.

The Accent’s “sweet spot” on the highway seemed to be about 110 km/h. Any faster and it sounded busy and loud.

After two or three hours straight on the freeway, cruise control would be really nice as my right foot got cramped.

All the controls were very light and the gearshift was slick and smooth. I felt the Accent was a bit undergeared as first is a real stump-puller and you can burble around town at 60 km/h in top gear.