I am once again in the market for another car. My Toyota Tacoma was totalled a week ago.
I need a car with decent gas milage, a back seat and ample room (I am a large individual). I haven’t decided whether to go new or used.
I am looking at the following cars:
Honda CRV
Toyota RAV4
Toyota Corolla
Subaru Forester
Saturn Vue
Saturn Ion
Ponticac Vibe
Nissan Versa
Nissan Altima
Scion XB and XD
Ford Focus ZX3 and ZX5
Any Dopers have any of these vehicles? Any praise or warnings? Would you buy again?
Until a few months ago, my wife had a 2003 Nissan Altima 2.5. It is a very roomy car, very comfortable and got pretty good gas mileage - about 28-30 mpg in mostly city driving. My only complaint was that it wasn’t particularly quick or powerful, but that could be overcome with the V-6 instead of the 4-cylinder model, though at the expense of the fuel economy.
ETA: We didn’t sell the vehicle, but gave it to our college age daughter. It is still running fine with ~125,000 miles on it.
I drive a Grand Prix but had a Vibe once as a rental when my car needed some work. I really liked it - cute, a lot of cargo space, decent gas mileage, etc. I hear the manual turbo is really zippy.
A good friend has a Rav 4 and loves it. She says it’s comfortable, easy to handle, and is the best car for shopping she’s ever had. Her vehicle before the Rav 4 was a full-size pickup.
If/when my '99 Camry ever dies, the Rav 4 what I want.
My daughter owns a CRV, and likes it a lot. It is in our driveway now. She and my wife drove it across the country, and it went well. It is 2 years old, and no issues at all so far.
I have a CRV, but it’s a 2000. It’s a very good size - small enough to turn around or get into parking places easily, but roomy enough to carry bunches of groceries in. The only complaint I have about it is that it’s rather light-weight. A high cross-wind will quickly get your attention.
My husband says the engine seems weak to him; but he’s used to driving a V8. I did notice that comment frequently pops up in reviews of the 2000, but later years come with an option for a beefier engine. The gas mileage is fairly good (20+ in town, up to about 28 on the highway).
The reliability of Hondas is well known (I still have a '90 Civic wagon). I haven’t had any mechanical trouble out of the CRV since I got it (4 yrs ago).
My sister has a newer model CRV and she loves it. She and her husband prefer it to their other car (Ford Explorer). She also likes it more than her old Saturn wagon.
Absolutely, especially if I could get one with a stick. I will probaly not seriously entertain the notion of purchasing anything other than a Honda or Toyota for any future vehicles for myself. At one point we had, I think, 5 Hondas and one Toyota. Durability and affordability, yay!
I bought a Corolla for my son last year (college car). It fits him well, and is sufficient for his carrying needs. It can seat 4 average sized people fairly well. He’s pretty good sized, but just short of 6 feet, and I’d say he’s the maximum size for this car. I don’t know if it would be suitable for you if you’re over 6 feet tall. FWIW, he tracks his gas mileage religiously, and is usually just shy of 40 mpg (5-speed manual).
I am on Forrie #2 (I rolled and totalled the first one)
Forrie #1, a 2007 FXT Limited (turbo, fancy), a fantastic car, fast, brilliant handling, great brakes, comfy (I’m 6’ 1" and 260 lbs). The turbo car was HUGE amounts of fun but it was going to get me in trouble (the kind of trouble with lights on the roof) and mixing premium gas with an extra bottle of Techron at every fill-up got expensive!
The Forrie was silly-fast and that was one of it’s best features, it was the ultimate sleeper, it NEVER lost out to a Mustang (the 2007 FXT was the 7th fastest car under $30K for 2007) but it looked like Grandma’s station-wagon.
I rolled and totalled it, it was built like a Tank and it rolled VERY well.
Forrie #2, a 2009 X Premium (non-turbo, not quite as fancy but I had the dealer install leather before I picked it up), bigger and more user-friendly, peppy, brilliant handling, great brakes, comfier, better mileage. I went N/A (non-turbo) more because I have no self control than anything else.
If you live in a snowy area or pull a (small!) boat regularly I strongly suggest the Subaru AWD system, it’s VASTLY better than other AWD’s (but mileage suffers a little).
If I totalled #2 tomorrow I would go order #3 immediately!
Did you intend to exclude the Honda Civic? I notice you included the Toyota Corolla and the Honda CRV, so it seemed an odd exclusion unless you’ve already tried and hated it.
I drive a 2004 Civic and am very happy with it. Not by any stretch an exciting car but it is extremely reliable and solidly built. I prefer the Civic interior to the Corolla, and the latest Civic looks pretty awesome compared to mine.
The Pontiac Vibe is just a Toyota Matrix with Pontiac badges (and dealer network) so if you like that you might want to consider the Matrix.
Not on your list but related- the Hyundai Elantra. I’m on my second (a 2008- the first was a 2002), and it was basically the same price as the wifey’s 2007 Corolla, but came with much better standard kit, is slightly quicker, handles slightly better, and rides much better. I’m 6’ and very skinny (160 lbs.), so I can only speak on the headroom, but there’s plenty of that. The wheel also adjusts for reach and rake, which is nice.
If you like to run your cars into the ground, it probably isn’t for you- the first one didn’t need any non-scheduled repairs for 106,000 miles, then started breaking on a semi-regular basis- but if you don’t plan to keep it for more than 100k, it’s a sublime car for the money.
My only complaint is that the 2008 version has exactly the same engine as the '01-'06 one, but comes with lots more airbags, so is actually a bit slower, but it’s faster than the equivalent Civic, Corolla, Focus, etc. I did test drive the current Civic a couple of times, and it’s a great car except for the ride and handling- Honda skimped on independent rear suspension, which makes a huge difference.
ETA: Coming from a truck, I suppose ride and handling won’t be an issue, because just about any car with have much better on-road manners than a truck. Still.
We used to have a '99 Forester that met with the same fate. Handled great in the snow, decent gas mileage, comfortable (I’m 6-1 and 240 pounds), lots of storage space and room for the dogs… overall just a really good car. Like unclviny’s, ours rolled very well. One and a half times over, landed on the roof, and nary a scratch on the driver or passenger.
Cons: no autpilot. Don’t drive it if you’re sleepy. :smack:
For new cars, Subaru has issued a stop sale on certain VIN ranges of the 08/09 Japanese made models with the 2.5l Turbo engine, that is, Imprezas and Foresters, due to some kind of serious issue with the engine. Now you could still buy one and probably get a new engine under warranty but I would not want to own a 08/09.
I’m kind of surprised that you have the CRV, Rav4 and Forester in there but not the Ford Escape (since you seem cool with Fords).
I have a 2004 Escape and I’ve had several people drive it and they all couldn’t stop telling me how much they loved my car.
Sizes of people who have driven my car:
6’4" and thin
6’0" and thin
5’8" and very wide
6’0" and even more wide
5’4" and sort of wide
The back seat isn’t that roomy (I make the smallest person in the group ride back there) but there’s tons of cargo space and the front is quite roomy indeed. I love the way it handles, too.
We have a 2005 Corolla. The major problem is finding it in the parking lot because there are so many of them around.
It has been dependable, with good mileage. It’s comfortable (for two adults in the front seat and two kids in the back). The only quarrel I have is that visibility isn’t ideal. There are a couple of blind spots at the sides of the windshield that take some getting used to .