Need to make a decesion on a new SUV?

[BELMONT148]

I am looking at buying a new SUV this weekend for th ewife and was looking for some insight. We are trading in a 6 year old Mercury Mountaineer that has been great but get s lousy gas mileage. We are not looking for offroad use, just highway use hauling groceries and trips.

Because of the huge incentives at Saturn, we have narrowed it down to the Vue or possibly a Hyundai Santa Fe. The Vue will have all the options along with the fast V6.

The Santa Fe will have all options except for leather. They both get the same gas mileage, but the Vue is much quicker, and a little smaller as well. However the Hyundai has a phenomenal warranty. The Santa Fe is also about $1500 cheaper but the payments will be higher as the car will be financed at 0% over 60 months as opposed to 0% over 72 months with the Saturn.

What do you think?

 

[Southeast Overland]

I would shy away from financing a car over 60 months, much less 72 months, unless you have gap insurance and don't plan on selling it soon after you buy. When you finance for 5 to 6 years you will be 'in the hole' for many years.

Isn't Saturn going out of business?

 

[99UZJay]

I'd go with a Subaru before either of those, outback or forester, AWD great gas mileage excellent crash safety etc.... Just my $.02

 

[Southeast Overland]

Subaru quality????

 

[BBQ BOY]

i agree with Subaru. amazingly great vehicles. They have great quality and all the Subaru's my family has had makes me a believer in them. i almost bought an Outback about 2 years ago. wish I did and my wife LOVED it. Very safe too. IMHO it blows your selection out of the water.

 

[Turkeypen]

I'm with Steve on the Subaru issue. Friends, who took excellent care of their subaru, had to replace a head gasket and redo their engine. Nothing they did, its just that Subaru had made a bunch of engines that later proved to be defective. I believe Click and Clack once said (before Subaru became a sponsor), that Subaru would be the perfect car if they put a Toyota engine in it.

It looks like price may be driving this purchase and that regardless of the car, you will be paying for it for a number of years. With that as a constant, and hoping that the car will last as long as the payments, have you considered either an Acura MDX, a Lexus RX, or the flipside a Honda Pilot or CRV or a Toyota Highlander. While some of the vehicles you are looking at have great warranties, the question is whether they are going to last much past 100k or be worth anything if they do.

Sometimes it pays in the end to buy a more expensive vehicle. For example, the Land Cruiser . . . one expensive vehicle to buy new, but it commands a good price on resale. And, during its entire life, it offers the owner peace of mind with dependability and the knowledge that you have done everything you can to protect your family. OK, I suggest a Land Cruiser!

 

[$out]

Hyundai... i have a friend in atl. that is a service manager for them and he said they are maintenance free.

 

[pillguy]

x2 on the Hyundai. I would avoid buying a Saturn vehicle. Just check consumer reports. Better to get a car 2 years old with low miles and save some money.
Clark Howard says do not finance any longer than 42 months.

Someone has a used landcruiser for sale in Birmingham for cheap with front and rear diff lock.

Hyundai... i have a friend in atl. that is a service manager for them and he said they are maintenance free.

 

[99UZJay]

You DO know that Toyota has a roughly 15% stake in Subaru right? They (Toyota) are contemplating using the boxer engine in a Toyota sports car a la supra/impreza hybrid thingy. So they may be unreliable, but they do have some Toyota in them (as if TMC were getting any better these days, geez how many SUV's can look exactly alike????)

 

[99UZJay]

Hyundai... i have a friend in atl. that is a service manager for them and he said they are maintenance free.

Is it because they don't last long enough to have regular maintenance performed? I kid....

 

[BELMONT148]

We really like the Outback too. As far as the vehicle lasting, everyone told us to stay away from the Mountaineer 6 years ago, and it has been maintenance free for 120k miles. We don't usually keep a vehicle over 5 years 100k miles.

Jeremy

 

[VTCruiser]

RAV4? might be a little smaller, but my grandparents have one with the 4cyl and when I took them to Maine for a weekend it got almost 30mpg.

 

[BELMONT148]

I thing we have settled on a 2010 Mercury Mariner Premier with the V6 and premium package. I decided that it was a bad idea to buy a Saturn since they are out of business, plus after all the money GM is costing the tax payers I refuse to buy a GM product anymore.

The Honda CR-V was tiny, underpowered, and overpriced.

The Subaru was just a station wagon with a little bit lift.

The Mitsubishi Outlander was to gimmicky and not luxury enough.

The Toyota was nice, but would cost $6000 more to get it equipped like the Mariner.

The Nissan Rogue was but ugly inside and seemed really small.

Oh yeh, I took the wife to look at the Hyundai first and she walked off after one look and wouldn't even drive it. Oh well must have been the name or something.

Let me know if you have anymore suggestions otherwise I think I am going to order one next friday after thanksgiving. And by the way, it will be financed at 0% for 60 months.

Jeremy

 

[BBQ BOY]

Why not look at the Explorer then? Mercury kind of reminds me of old people like Brock and dbenke.

 

[BELMONT148]

Why not look at the Explorer then? Mercury kind of reminds me of old people like Brock and dbenke.

We already have one in the Mercury trim. That's why we are trading because it only gets about 18 mpg on a good day. It's a truck based SUV with a big V6 and wide spaced gears so it's rather thirsty. We can tow just as much, ride much smoother, and get 24-25 mpg with a car based SUV.

I thought the Mitsubishi was off the table, but the wife just told me that she is still considering it. It has the most features of any other SUV at the moment.

HID headlights, rain sensing wipers, keyless ignition, rockford fosgate stereo, third-row seats, and they are discounting it the most because it was a demo. 5/60,000 warranty plus 10/100,000 powertrain isn't bad either. I heard that Mitsu's are now like a Toyota but with a better warranty. I wouldn't go that far, but I am sure they are pretty good for a Japanese make.

Jeremy

 

[BBQ BOY]

How about Mazda. i have always been impressed with their reliability. Toyota like reliability.

 

[BELMONT148]

How about Mazda. i have always been impressed with their reliability. Toyota like reliability.

Thanks, but I think Mazda is making some of the ugliest cars and SUV's on the road right now. They ruined the Mazda3. The new CX-7 and CX-9 look way to car like, and I don't care for the smiling grill.

How about a more premium vehicle used with less than 50k miles? What would you look for under $27k that will still run worry-free another 100k? The 100 series is out for price and mileage, as is the 4runner.

I saw a BMW X3 and an RX350 the other day that might be in budget. Acura MDX, Honda Pilot, Saab, etc?

Jeremy

 

[Southeast Overland]

There are a lot of good cars out there.

0% financing definitely is nice.

Biggest thing though - make sure the is happy!

 

[mooker82]

RAV4? might be a little smaller, but my grandparents have one with the 4cyl and when I took them to Maine for a weekend it got almost 30mpg.

X2. I had one for a week as a rental when I was out west. Even in the mountains it still got great gas mileage. It was pretty roomy and comfortable. Drove really well and seemed to be holding up great, especially for a rental.

 

[Turkeypen]

Used premium vehicle? Now you are talking! Best of both worlds - - great vehicle and somebody else got the privilege of paying for the "New."

Again, the RX series in Lexus is an excellent mid size SUV. A friends of mine who is a UC member got his wife a used 2006 black Lexus RX with @ 40k for $26k. Unlike Toyota, the Lexus warranty is for 50k.

While I'm a firm believer in all things Toyota, look at some used Acura MDXs, which should also fall in that price range. The great thing about these vehicles is that the interior is incredibly well thought out, with the 3rd row folding flat (no taking the 3rd row in and out like the LC).

Buying what will make your spouse happy? . . . priceless.