Most places even in rural areas will have a Toyota dealership
Less common is Honda, Subaru, Kia, Nissan, Hyundai although there are a surprising number of them around but you will have to check. Generally, new cars are fairly good but any major problems will have to get them to the dealer.
Parts are still available, but they may have to be ordered as only the common parts will be in stock.
One thing that surprised me is that Volkswagen is the world’s highest seller of cars (More than GM or Toyota) although in the USA, Volkswagen is suffering from the Dieselgate
j/k, I’d say a used Civic SI if you can find one previously owned by a sane adult. More pep, larger than your Fit by quite a bit, but if you rev it, it has a lot more pep.
FWIW, I am leaning towards the CX-5 right now, but the OP sounds like he wants something smaller and I need bigger right now. I live in the mountainish west - Subarus sprout up like cockroaches around here. Impreza and Legacy are their smaller sedan/hatchback models (also BRZ is small, but that’s not AWD). VX Crosstrek is sort of the same niche as HR-V.
Smog in NV and AZ are only in bigger city metros - Las Vegas, Reno, Phoenix, Tucson. Looks like NM is only around Albuquerque?
AZ also has the crazy long driver’s license terms that last until 65, but sounds like that might not apply unless you’re retiring young.
Consider a 2016 or 2017 VW Jetta with the 1.4 liter engine.
I have one of these, and that engine must be running on voodoo. The torque is such that it accelerates like a sports car, yet I can routinely break 40mpg. It’s a turbo, yet it runs on regular gas instead of premium.
If more people knew about this engine, this car would be selling a lot better. But because it’s poorly advertised, and because of VW’s other issues, it’s ignored, and available cheaply.
I wouldn’t normally suggest a lease but it might make sense if your vehicle needs are likely to change in a few years. leasehackr would be a site to check strategies to get the best deals.
Instead of looking for a 6-cylander with a good amount of horsepower, look for a 4-banger with a turbo. That way, you have the gas mileage of a 4, but the pep of a turbo.
My old Saab had that and I loved being able to zip around when I needed to without paying the penalty in gas milage. I was in the same situation (kinda) as you a couple weeks ago, I ended up getting a Chevy Cruze Hatchback. It has the smaller/engine turbo combo I mentioned, but the turbo is a bit lacking compared to my Saab. That being said, it still has some good getupandgo and the options I got fit me perfectly!
A Subaru Crosstrek might fit the bill. A little larger than a Civic but decent on gas, reliable and roomy. Plus, it has AWD if you do get tempted to drive up in the snowy bits like Flagstaff in the winter.
Why? Any modern car should climb a hill easily. I drove a base Fiesta all over the mountains surrounding Mexico City, and it was fine, and that was thin air (my 1999 Expedition seemed a lot slower in Arizona).
