Car shopping......two cents wanted, plea se.

“.....something to eventually replace my current vehicle, (I'm sorry, old girl) a 1996 Saturn that's faithfully earned every bit of 188,000 miles so far. I'm looking for a "Mini SUV" and have been considering either a Saturn Vue, a Jeep Liberty, or a Chevy Tracker. Anyone have any experience, good or bad, with any of these vehicles?”

“The new Chevy HHR is relatively cheap and gets over 30 mpg. Otherwise Go AVEO!!!”

“I love the jeep, the build quality has really gone up since Daimler took charge. Personally I'd look as one of the hybrid versions of the Escape, I think there's a mercury version now.”

“One of my best friends had a four cylinder vue for two years. They thought it a bit under powered but what can you expect from a four cylinder in a car that big? Otherwise she absolutely loved it. They had to upgreade to a minivan and that's why they got rid of it.

If you want a Jeep check out the commander. That thing looks awesome. The liberty looks a bit girlie don't ya think? ;)”

“A friend of mine had a Jeep Liberty and it only got 18MPG I get 16MPG in my Yukon XL. Something seems wrong there.
One question that you shold ask yourself is do you want to be Offroad capable? Or are you just looking for 4wd for snowy and wet roads?”

“People with Subarus seem to love em.”

“Whatever you do, don't take any car shopping advice from Tarabull. Even though she did everything right, she is jinxed.”

“get a red convertable Porsche!! Affordable, perfect car for backpacker...German.


heehee...
I want a Jeep Liberty. I think that's the perfect girly backpacker, all around SUV.”

“Okay, okay, scratch the fvcking Jeep Liberty! I'll be damned if I'm going to drive something "girlie."

Gem, you're a little German, perfect for this backpacker (wink-wink) but are you affordable?”

“I like wolfeye's suv. What's it called, WE?”

“Toyota RAV4, and I love it!”

“I liked my subaru, but 1 engine cylinder strangely went out of round & Subaru's customer service is pitiful. My Korean car has 70k & runs like a top. I have Wrangler's & Xterra's too. I'll NEVER buy another subaru.

The other company with pitiful customer service to date has been SUUNTO.(compasses) I have a SUUNTO wrist computer where the bezel popped off & other than a canned response to another site, their customer service/repair service is NON-EXISTANT too. No more suunto products for me.
last edited: 10/08/05 3:12:05 PM”

“A while back, I was looking at Ford Escapes. 4-cyllinder, good gas mileage, moves well especially if you get a 5-speed.

I almost bought one until I decided that I couldn't afford to replace my car at that time...”

“I'm actually eyeing Ford Escapes right now too. '01's with about 60k for about $7k. $8k will get you AWD. The 4cyl I'm eyeing gets a respectable 24-25mpg on the highway. I drive 80 miles round trip every day to work so something cheap with decent milage is what I'm looking for and those Escapes have really caught my eye.”

“Non, I just bought a mini SUV, the 2006 Subaru Forester. It has all wheel drive, so it's like four wheel drive is always engaged which is great for when you hit wet roads suddenly in WA. With WA always getting scattered rain, it happens all the time. I love this vehicle. The handling is great, and the excelleration (pick up) for a 2.5 liter engine; it's phenominal. It's a 4 cyclinder.

Go to the library and take out the Consumer's Report for mini SUVs and see the write ups. This SUV was rated very good. It comes basic with air, power windows, door locks, side mirrors w/front and side airbags and the headrest will actually come forward if you get rear ended.

The price and gas mileage ratings were good too. 22 city/ 28 hwy. I think before tax, it came to about $21,150.

As for pricing, whatever you go with, spend the $5. to get the Consumer's Online report that gives you the dealership's cost for the vehicle. It showed me they were getting a kick back to sell the car of almost $500. so I didn't want to pay above invoice since they got a kick back.

Still, there is always hidden money in the invoice price. Dont go by their invoice price, it will be higher than the one from Consumer's. If you want a basic model and what they have has more items, only pay cost for them which you can find the prices for at edmonds.com. or see if they can find one that is basic or has more of just what you want from another dealership. Figure out what you should pay and stick to it. Don't go for the let's split the difference line or we are not that far apart line. Pay what you want.

It's hard to recall now, but I don't think any of the models you mentioned got good write ups, but you can look that up. Do not listen to anything the salesperson has to say. I had a salesperson tell me the Ultima sedan had a great side impact write up and Consumer's said it was bad.

Washington people love Subarus because of our hilly streets that are frequently wet in the winter and for some rough roads to hiking trails. I think the clearance is about 8.1 inches for the Forester. We finally did a great trail that we could not do with our Honda Accord because you needed 4wd or awd and a high clearance vehicle to get to the trailhead.

I used to sell cars, so I did have an edge over you typical car buyer. Don't even look at employee discounts or there buy now and get $1,000. off. That's not enough of a discount and you will see that if you get the real invoice price.

Our salesperson forgot to take our a $400 pkg which was a thick rubber mat in the cargo area, a cargo net and 4 mud guards. Just the mud guards were $139.00! It had a rubber strip also that protected the color coded bumper which could not be removed.

If you have any car buying question, I'd be happy to answer them and you can e-mail me personally too at lipstickhiker@yahoo.com.

There is also the X-Terra which gets bad gas mileage and starts low in price, but then you need to add everything to it including the rear cargo cover! It ends up to be expensive. The CRV by Honda was a consideration, but it's not made well inside which is not usually a deterrent to me since I only really look at performance and the engine, but it's small inside too. I think the Toyota RAV4 was tight inside also. It depends on how big you are and how much room you need.

First check the write ups to narrow them down. Then sit in all of them and drive them. Or if you are restriced by price, price them first and then drive them so you don't end up going to all of the stealerships for no reason.”

“Yeah, the Escape is another vehicle I'd consider, guys, thanks. I have my heart set on AWD no matter the make or model, although my current front-wheel drive Saturn has been great for winter travel. The Escape was also rated very highly (in its category) in one of the reviews I read.”

“http://www.subaru.com/shop/overview.jsp?model=FORESTER&trim=25_X&command=overview

I forgot to post the link to the Forester. Also, when you do test drives, go on the hwy for a short distance to see the pick up otherwise you will never know. It should be no problem for them to let you do a short hwy run.”

“LH, thanks much, I appreciate all the tips and offers for advice. I actually have gone the Consumer Reports route a loooong time ago (before internet) and you're right, it really is worthwhile. I'm currently looking to buy used and any of the smaller SUVs would suit us (it's just my son and I, and I'm not a big guy) as long as it's safe and dependable. Sure, an extra roomy interior would be nice but IMHO not for the additional $$ it would cost. As long as I can get a few people and our gear inside or on top, I'll be comfortable.”

“http://www.Edmunds.com is a great source. http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/testing/ncap/

Good luck.”

“Think AVEO.... AAAAVVVEEEEOOOO...

The five door holds 4 6 footers and some gear and I already have a thule rack for it.”

“Well NonC, If you had good luck with the Saturn, why not, buy another. I'm driving a 91 Saturn SL2 with 145,000. 30 mpg city
I bought it new and love it. My two children used it for their junior and senior years in High School.
Now I'm driving it, because I loaned our daughter my 2002 ford Taurus(dual air bags and potenially more reliable) for her junior and senior years at CMU.
I love the new front end of the Vue and if I didn't work for Ford, I'd buy another Saturn in a heartbeat. Probably a Vue too?”

“I found that the Vue was a little tight for me. I have broad shoulders and I'm 6'2". I know a guy who works for GM and he told me that if you ever buy a GM car, ask if it went through the line during the night shift. If they tell you yes, find out what part of it went through during that shift, and you'll know where the majority of your problems will be.
I like Subaru's and most things by honda or toyota are rated very high in Consumer Reports, but one that caught my eye this past go around was the Hyundai Santa Fe. It's cheap and has a great warranty. My mom has been looking at them. Hope this helps”

“i like the higher seating in Aveo it rides like a car and feels like an SUV. good mileage too. Funny looking at first. I only did some test drives and had to buy something different.”

“Stick with the saturn a while more... Hopefully the next crop of sux's will get better gas mileage. 188k is not that old for a saturn. theres still a good 60 k left :) Cutting your gas mileage down to only 18 may induce regret a lot sooner then you think with the high gas prices not to mention the market for these is starting to eat in to the resale values.”

“nonconfomist, we were just in the market, see "pontiac vibe" thread...we too were looking for a small suv or wagon...we wound up getting a suzuki forenza station wagon and love it...we just took in on it's first trip this weekend on a car camping trip to shades state park...it has great room and gets pretty good gas mileage”

“I love my Forester! She gets good gas mileage (25-30ish), lots of room for gear and/or dogs, gets to the trailhead with no issues... and it isn't *really* an SUV!

I was looking at CRVs when I was car hunting, but was told that if you don't get the oil filter on just right when changing the oil, it can drip on the engine. I've had enough engine fires for one lifetime!!”

“My brother had that problem with the CRV...it's not a chronic problem, it only occurs the first time you remove the original oil filter. The oil filter gasket would come off the filter and stick to the oil inlet, and if you didn't remove it before putting on the new filter, oil would leak around it. It apparently had something to do with shipping of the cars.”

“Well that makes sense... it wouldn't have made a good seal!”

““People with Subarus seem to love em.”
y2
12:35:21 PM
10/08/05

“I love my Forester!
dicentra
9:54:38 AM
10/10/05

SEE!!!!”

“the suzuki forenza wagon is the poor man's (or thrifty man's) suburu :)”

“We have 2 Subarus. A '95 Legacy wagon that now has about 105,000 on it. I drive a 2000 Forester. My only complaint about it is that it's a little tight for grownups to ride in the back seat. Other than that, it's been super. I get about 20-21 mpg around town and around 25 on the highway. It's great in the snow, and has good pick-up getting on the freeways. It has about 65,000 right now. Here are some shots of it in action:

http://community.webshots.com/photo/63947810/63950287ZDJXto
http://community.webshots.com/photo/309543819/309546829hkkgVN
http://community.webshots.com/photo/416812360/416814498ttYEdD
http://community.webshots.com/photo/443953499/443959661HKWgTQ”

“I have a 1998 Forester and love the way it drives. I average about 24mpg driving to work in winter and about 27mpg the rest of the year when I don't have to let the car warm up. I've gotten 30 mpg a few times when driving nothing but highways and using the cruise control. The only thing I don't like with the car is that repairs are very expensive. I've paid close to $3000 on car repairs over the past two years. If you do go with a Subaru and need repairs, make sure you take it to someone who knows Subarus. When I had the timing belt replaced on mine I took it to my local mechanic who did great work on my old GMC, but he ended up damaging the head on my car because he didn't know Subaru engines very well.”

“I love my Subaru Impreza wagon. 'Nuff said.”

“Hate to pop your bubble man, but a new vehicle is gonna cost a lot more than two cents. A lot more!”

“Non, I think if I were to buy a used car, I might want to buy it from a private person. I just think the dealerships fool around with the cars too much with disengaging the odometer. Yes, they do that, so they don't even bother with rolling back mileage with cars they sell that are previously used by the staff. Forget if the car was a rental. Really, so many people that are given cars to use abuse them in so many ways, too many to list.

What's new now is "certified previously owned" vehicles. They come with a warranty, but I still don't trust them. You don't know who the previous owner was and how they maintained or drove the car. Dealerships have the world at their fingertips when it comes to fixing up wrecked cars to make them look good.

I'm sure you know www.kellybluebook.com can give you ideas if a car is the right price, but then there is also what's called "what the market will bear" and that's what the car goes for if it keeps it's value or loses it value if it was a bad year for that vehicle. So it's good to check www.kellybluebook.com cars and other online car selling sites that have privately owned cars listed for sale. I think another online site is called something like autotrader.com where you can see SUVs in your area an around the country.”

“In light of the whole Delphi mess, please buy a US made Car while you can. They will be a rare collectors item in a decade.”

“Thanks everyone for the great advice (yes Geo, yours too) I appreciate it very much. I'm looking at everything and have ruled nothing out---other than the "girlie" Liberty....was disappointed to hear the mpgs.

I do plan on keeping my Saturn no matter what I get. Even at 188,000 miles I know there's more in her and she'll hopefully continue to be a great vehicle for local use.”

“Lots of great information about buying a car at www.edmunds.com - great site. In that class I recommend a Subaru Forester.

If you have a bit more of a budget, look at the lower end Outbacks.

I have an '04 Legacy wagon and I am absolutely in love with it. Best car I've ever owned and gets good mileage, though I wish it did better. It KILLS in the snow!!!! Light duty off-roading is a bit much for it though, it's very car-ish. Much more comfortable highway ride than an Outback or Forester, that's why I got it. Originally I was in the market for a Forester but I liked the Legacy so much more.

Maintenance is a little more expensive on a Subaru than competing cars, but nowhere near the price of high end German cars. My Audi cost a fortune to keep on the road. The Scoobie isn't quite as cheap to run as my old Isuzu was.

Here's a picture of my Legacy the morning I woke up on a ski trip last year. It drove right out of there with no slippage at all whatsoever.

http://philip.hammfamily.org/tb_pics/Snow_car.jpg
last edited: 10/11/05 8:16:03 AM”

“Sass and I picked up our first new car ever about 10 days ago. We got a 2006 Ford Focus wagon SES. Hadnt planned on a new car yet but the trade in wasgreat so were the rebates and "A plan".

We drove it down to mammoth cave Ky last weekend. What a fun car to drive. On the way down I wanted to see what type of fuel economy we could get so I drove 68mph. We stopped for coffee and fuel and well over 300 miles and aftyer some brief math discovered we got 33.3 mpg (the mfg says about 32). The car is peppy and handles very well around tight corners (I chased Pitts at about 65 mph on some really winding hilly roads with ease), very roomy interior (we slept two in the back with the seats down and gate up). Fantastic stereo and plush seats. Minimal road noise and smooth acceleration at higher speeds. I drove 75 mph on the way home and we still got just over 31 mpg. All in all a great little car.Normally I sleep half the time while Sass drives, I enjoyed this car so much that I drove both ways a rarity indeed.

Forgot to mention that a full tank of fuel (14 gal) will get about 450 miles at moderate speeds.
last edited: 11/08/05 5:26:59 AM”

“Oops, I thought the thread said "cat" shopping. My little Toyota p/u just had shocks and brakes yesterday. Coming back from my thru in a very rough riding vehicle started to give me new car fever. For perhaps the only time in my life I ignored it and did the repairs. Between my son and I we put almost 100k on it in three years; hope my insurance company doesn't red this.

Sounds like you got some great mileage and a good deal.”

“birch we just picked up an 05 Suzuki Forenza Wagon...it was our first officially new (we bought one with 1000 miles before) car too...it's almost identical to the focus wagon and we love it too”

“Whoohoo! Picking up the new baby in 1/2 an hour!

”

“The same color as the photo?”

“what is it?will all your hiking gear fit in it?”

“Paint some big yellow spots on it and it'll look just like your hiking pants.”

“A Dodge?
Have you lost your mind?”

“Nice!”

“what is that?...i think that's gonna cost more than 2 cents”

“Mine is the Dodge Red. It's cool and has plenty of space. The coolest things I like are :

One free year of satalite radio
MP3 player jack
115V plug
Refridgerated glove box with bottle holders for my beer
Better MPG (26/32)”

“No laser cannon?”