I can define my needs.

• Back seat room (more than 35″) – comfortable enough that I wouldn’t mind sitting behind myself on a long road trip.
• Modern safety – radar cruise, lane keep assist, full suite of airbags, good safety rating
• Not an SUV/CUV
• Not white/grey/silver. Maybe black.
• Wild card – maybe this car has something special (good stereo, excellent engine/driving dynamics, or just an odd but good car)

I initially thought I could find a K5 GT or Sonata N-line in my price range. Well, the only K5 GT in the area was white. The only N-line was the enuui inducing Hampton Grey. So I started checking out the used market.

I really wanted the K900, and tried hard to make a deal to buy it. After the third appointment to try to buy the car when either I waited over an hour, the person I made the appointment with had the day off, or I was left hanging for an hour while waiting for the finance guy, I gave up. The did put a set of Kuhmos on the car although different types front and back. One wheel remained curb rashed to hell with the chrome was flaking off. Maybe this was a sign that this K900 was not for me, but it was still a huge waste of time.

I test drove a Black 2018 Genesis G80 Sport. The G80 Sport had the same engine and transmission as the K900 (which is primarily a differently optioned Genesis G90) and the Stinger GT. It had a gigantic panoramic sunroof and copper accents on the inside and outside. It had enough power to be fun getting on the highway. The rear accommodations were not as plush as the K900, but roomy and comfy. The interior looked good, it had some scratches around the rear wheel, and smelled maybe too much of lemon scented air freshener.

The let down was the infotainment – it projected more upscale Elantra than mid spec Genesis, and was nowhere near as nice as the K900s. It did have a CD player – is this the last factory spec auto CD player? The salesman and dealership experience was excellent, and the only thing holding me back was the price, which was at the upper range of my set limit, but if was red or blue, it would likely be in my garage already. The car has an open recall, though. According to the official NTSB guidance, two fuses need to be exchanged. Seems simple enough, but it may be a headache.

The third car I tried to look at was a 2018 Volvo S90 T5 Momentum. Mussel Blue with Carmel interior, and the real kicker: Bowers and Wilkins stereo upgrade. S90s are handsome cars, with plenty of rear seat space, and the Bowers and Wilkins upgrade is praised for its excellence. The turbo charged 2 liter four cylinder is probably adequate, but efficient! I visited the dealership, and salesman was friendly, and sold the hell out of the car, but… the car was being used as a loaner and wasn’t there. He’d let me know. It’s been a week. I contacted again, with the same story.

After two price reductions, it looks like the K900 was sold. I still have some alerts up on Cars.com/Carvana/Autotempest for K900s near me. Right now, if the G80 sticks around, I may go for it next week – I even had the credit union bump up my loan amount.