Link to detailed stats, and other banter
Dealership day had come. Three test drives were booked.
The first location was an Isami dealership located within the Calgary Auto Mall off Deerfoot. A teal Vireo sat right in front of the showroom. Sarah loved the look of it, it was very very striking. Sitting in the Vireo was nice as well, with its heated leatherette seats and soft-touch elements. The infotainment was laid out well, but its sound quality was rather average. There wasn’t much room for her friends either, with only four seats and cramped back seat space. The salesman lent over the key fob and a test drive was underway.
The Vireo was a bit on the stiffer side, with a noticeable amount of bumps felt on the alleyway leading up to the main road. Merging onto the highway was smooth, yet a bit on the slower side. Wind noise was noticeable. The dual clutch transmission was rather smooth, surprisingly enough. Sarah took the off-ramp and found herself at 17th avenue. The Vireo was tame on the 50 km/h roads, launching from stopped traffic pretty well. Driver height was slightly lower than the trucks and crossovers around her, making it slightly difficult to see over. It was back to merging onto Deerfoot. The Vireo’s merge was a bit slow, but still comfortable. Active blind spot monitoring worked well in the vehicle, their parents were rather satisfied at how much emphasis was put into safety. After all, the Isami Vireo was class-leading, earning even more rewards than the Valkyrie. It was back to the Auto Mall. They were rather satisfied.
Sarah and her parents headed to their second location; an Evgenis dealership situated just off Shaganappi. She was attracted to the Valkyrie. Its sporty styling mixed with its cute blue colour was even more eye catching in person. She sat in its interior and admired the infotainment system in the middle of the vehicle, delivering sound quality that was less tinny than the Vireo. The seats however, were nothing too special compared to the likes of the Vireo. They were mostly cloth, while the interior was more plastic than soft touch. But then again, it was a few hundred dollars less expensive than its competitor so such was to be expected. The parents, and Sarah as well, admired its spacious inside, with more than enough room to throw in a heap load of supplies, may it be for hiking, skiing, or the stacks of banners for the next high school cultural festival. After a close examination, a set of keys was lended to Sarah for a quick test drive.
The vehicle felt as peppy as design suggested. Merging onto Crowchild was not a hassle at all. The Valkyrie cruised along at 90 km/h with no problems. The average fuel economy screen sat at a comfortable 38 mpg. Memorial drive was the next destination. At 50 km/h, the Valkyrie was still a rather decent driving vehicle. Surely the driver height wasn’t necessarily the best, Sarah sat quite low and seeing over other larger crossovers while taking turns was a bit of a hassle. The Advanced ParkPilot system was great. Being able to have it parallel-park itself was nice, but was not as reliable as having Sarah park the vehicle herself. The presence of sensors, blind spot monitors, and the like gave the parents a peace of mind. Overall, the Valkyrie was quite a decent vehicle. Although the interior may have not been the most comfortable, they drove back to the dealership somewhat satisfied.
Their final location was a Daito dealer in Country Hills. They walked in and were met with the olive-coloured Sancho. The interior was impressive. Soft touch in critical points, heated leather seats and dual zone climate were all in the package. The navigation unit was user-friendly while its speakers carried a considerably nice sound to them. Sarah was very satisfied. Despite being a 3-door with less space for her friends, the interior was more comfortable than its competitors, with a great amount of space for other supplies. A key fob was handed out, and the Sancho was on the road.
Merging onto Deerfoot was a significantly slower process than the Vireo, coming off yield lanes was a tad frustrating as well. Around Springbank, the Vireo was gutless on the hills, leaving Sarah pushing about 70% on the throttle just to get it uphill. The hydraulic power steering was a bit heavy compared to its competitors, but it provided an accurate feel of where the car was heading. Suspension, like the Vireo, was on the stiffer side, however, ride height proved to be no issue for visibility. Active blind spot monitoring was evident, with various other safety tech which kept it driving rather sound. Parking was a breeze. Its small form factor helped it fit into even the smallest of spaces. Fuel economy was significantly better than its competitors too, showing an average 43 mpg on the dash. Going back to performing the slow and steady merge onto Deerfoot, exiting off into Beddington Trail, and onto Harvest Hills Boulevard was good enough to invoke second thoughts. The Sancho wheezed up the large hill at the stoplight, cars overtook the Sancho effortlessly while it eventually hit 50 km/h. The vehicle was driven back to the dealership. It was comfortable, very safe, but just frustratingly slow.
After a bit of brainstorming, a rough list was created summarizing each vehicles pros and cons.
@MasterDoggo - Daito Sancho
It’s very comfortable. It’s super easy to drive, but it’s just too frustratingly slow. Considering its just 70 ish dollars off from the Vireo, I’d pay the extra money to not deal with its gutless engine.
@Cheeseman - Evgenis Valkyrie Sport
It’s practical, wow. It’s just that slight bit easier to drive than the Vireo. The cloth seats aren’t necessarily luxury, but they’re decent enough. Parts are apparently expensive despite being the cheapest car here. In the long-term, the Vireo might just be the better bang for the buck. Fuel economy is comparable, and reliability scores show that it’s rather average, and safety scores do not add up to the Vireo and Sancho’s.
@Chickenbiscuit - Isami Vireo
It looks nice, not as easy to drive as the others. Hood is kind of deceptive. There’s not much space for friends, cargo space is kind of down too, being a 3 door doesn’t help its cause. It’s expensive, but reliable. Doesn’t cost much in terms of service apparently either which is a massive benefit in the long run. It is also the most reliable out of the three. Maybe on the stiffer side, slower side, but a lot more manageable than the Sancho. Sarah says it’s the best looking car here too. For the extra 300 or so dollars, the Vireo is definitely the best choice.
After a bit of brainstorming, the decision was put. The Vireo would be the one.
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The next day was a trip to the Isami dealership. It was an exciting day. The price was eventually haggled down to ~$14 750, and the Vireo was hers. This was the start of a new chapter in her life, a step out of adolescence, a step into a road of maturity, independence. Her first car would carry the most fond memories out of any other car she would own. Good times awaited her; late-night drives blasting indie pop on the speakers, hanging out the sunroof on the drive towards Moraine Lake, camping in the car with her friends in Kananaskis, getting stuck in snow, sunsets at Crescent Hill, the memories created would be endless. And such experiences would be timeless.
Her departure from a family-cradled adolescence, into freedom, would open new gates to new experiences, hard times, bittersweet memories, and she would power through the most significant, most life-changing part of her youth, aside her new car; a reflection of her passionate, ambitious self.
Congratulations @Chickenbiscuit! You nailed this one! To be honest, the last stage was the hardest to judge. The Valkyrie had so many good points going for it, it looked great but gah, the comfort just did not add up well. The Sancho was very very impressive but its 0-60 time just killed it. Despite being very time consuming, the CSR was very fun to host! Thank you guys for the good time through interesting designs and some controversy.
ALSO do me a favour and give @z2bbgr a BIG thanks for helping me with spreadsheets and collaborating in this CSR with me. Without his help, I would be drowning in work. 
1st. @Chickenbiscuit
2nd. @Cheeseman
3rd. @MasterDoggo
P.S. here were your styling benchmarks. First is an ideal design, 2nd was a bit of a wildcard, while the final was essentially a bit outdated. Each vehicle had unique performance statistics as well, ranging from pure silly, to budget, to perfect.
Here are your benchmarks:
Huangdou CV
Saibou Vector
Saibou Sprint
), you can build a hatchback that proves market trends wrong. I was actually expecting an SUV to take the cake and yet, the Vireo trounced one and a fellow hatchback to win. How is that for a counterattack?
sorry!) I’d love to have some tech feedback though if you have any :3