So a while back someone put up a "how is winter treating you" thread, and it was kind of bad timing. I've driven my car over 30,000 miles since I got it with no issue, and much of that in the snow and rain (even when it's coming down), but on this last trip from Maine to Minnesota I hit black ice. Almost got control of the vehicle, but almost doesn't count for much, does it? The vehicle, an 06 Honda Element, was a beast and I loved it. So reliable, never had a real issue with it (the AC system cracked, but I usually just put the windows down when it's how and the heating still worked, so it was no major issue for me). Even when it crashed, despite a near head on hit (fortunately with a concrete median) the front end was crumpled, but everything still ran like nothing happened. But, apparently since the airbags went off, it was considered a total loss. But fortunately it was covered by my insurance, so I got most of the value of the car back and am now shopping again. I still want an SUV, but this time I'd like to get something with a little more off-road capability. Here are the cars I've been considering, feel free to add your two cents - that's what I'm looking for. Jeep Patriot - this came highly recommended from a friend and fellow vet who got one. He got one brand new Jeep Patriot Latitude with a premium sound system for under $16000, and I think that's not a bad deal. The problem I'm having is that I can't find a dealer working even close to that. It doesn't have the off-road capability I'd like, but it has the space I'd like, it's one of the few vehicles I want and can actually afford brand new. Toyota FJ Cruiser - if money were less of an issue, this would probably be my first pick. It's a very spacious SUV, has superb off-roading capability, very reliable and relatively inexpensive to maintain, holds the value well, and it doesn't have carpeting (a huge plus I loved about my Element - super easy to keep clean). But, they're pretty expensive. The starting MSRP new is around $28k, and even after five years with the better part of 100k miles they still tend to go for around $18k, not much of a drop in cost to make it 'worth' buying used. Jeep Wrangler - part of me has always liked this for the 'history' of it. It's a good looking vehicle, great off roading capability, but the more I think about it the less likely I am to get one. They're a little pricey to maintain, they keep their value extremely well (meaning a used one is still fairly expensive - they hold value even better than the Toyota FJ Cruiser), they don't have the cargo space I'd like, and for a vehicle that small you'd expect better mileage. Hummer - I was thinking about it, but probably not. They have the cargo space, off roading capability, and luxuries (hey, I like luxuries in cars), but even though they're only a tiny fraction of what they were new, they're still expensive to buy, and they're some of the most expensive to maintain and unreliable. So I've basically already crossed this off the list. But pissing off hippies would be cool. Land Rover - I've been looking at the Discoveries and Freelanders, mostly 02-05. They've got the off-road capability I want, the space I want (and kinda need), and are probably among the most comfortable SUVs to drive, plus they have all kinds of luxuries (which aren't needed, but are nice). The mileage is a little bit lower than what I'd like (most range about 17-20 highway, I'm use to just under 25 with my Element). The real bugger about them is the maintenance costs and reliability issues. I've seen that the average cost in maintenance and repairs for them runs about $2000-2500/yr. The flipside is that the 'true market value' is around $5,000 for them. Edmund's uses what the vehicles are actually selling at to determine that, so true market value is basically what you should be looking for in a price. The thing about this one is I'm okay with getting a vehicle that I'll only keep for another couple years, and based on that understanding I'm okay with paying a couple thousand a year for repairs and maintenance. After reselling it, it's still cheaper than getting some cruddy economy rental car. One issue I've been having is that I see is that the vehicles I find to my liking are usually one of two things - too low to trust, or the asking price is too far above the market value. I was looking at an 04 Land Rover with low mileage, and it was listed at $8500. I called the dealer to talk about it, but when I ran the numbers the true market value is $5850. That's what the final sales price is on average, but the dealer wouldn't budge. I have a feeling that's going to end up being the case with most cars I find, they're over-priced and stiff or they're too low to trust, so I figure I'll just keep at it for a while and if they're stiffs, they're not worth buying from.
I would go for one of the Jeeps or the Toyota. I've heard that Land Rovers are a bit unreliable at times and have poor gas mileage. The H3 hummer has decent gas mileage in a smaller version of the full sized hummer. The Jeeps are reliable and have good gas mileage depending on if it is a V6 or a V8. I'm no expert on these vehicles though, you are probably more informed than I am.
I drive a 2000 Lexus RX300 with well over 200,000 miles on it....basically top of the line Toyota for it's time. Though this is certainly not primarily an off road beast, it is by far the best built and dependable SUV I have ever seen. I cannot recommend the land rover, based purely on dependability and repair costs. The Hummer has much the same issue as well as very poor gas mileage. Toyota has an excellent track record for both dependability and off road prowess.
you need to define "off road" capability that will tell you if you need a truck chassis or a unibody car-type chassis If off-roading to you is being able to park on the grass section at the local fair then any higher clearance vehicle will suffice. You must be honest about the application and then find a vehicle which fits the need. RAV4, CRV, Sportage, Tucson, Santa Fe, Tribute, Escape, Explorers etc etc are all fine vehicles but not one would I expect to perform in true off-road environments
Yeah, I'm thinking of vehicles that can handle at bare minimum trudging through at least 18inches of flowing water, can climb, reliable in the mud etc. I don't want to do any extremely serious climbing, I've seen that stuff and it looks like rich brats or idiots asking for trouble, but I'd like to do some trail riding. The reason why I was liking the Land Rover so much is because it's TMV as listed by Edmund's is so reasonable for a luxury off-roading vehicle. It has more luxuries, more power, and when you compare a used Land Rover to a used Wrangler of the same year, same mileage, the Land Rover is better in everything but reliability, and costs thousands less (at least if going by Edmund's TMV) to purchase, but I'm finding that no one selling Land Rovers accepts even close to that haha. I'm considering waiting to get a little bit more cash and just special ordering a vehicle. From what I've been reading, dealers tend to be willing to go a few hundred below invoice on it, because they get stuff like dealer holdback and what have you, and the sale really costs them nothing because it only occupies lot space for a day, and they don't waste time showing it or test driving it with a bunch of different people.
honestly, you need to assess just how much you'll really be doing that. It makes no sense to buy a 15 person van because you need to transport 11 people, 2 times per year. It might be cost effective to buy a beater 4x4 pickup for your off roading and anything else for daily driving demands
?? I'm not talking about 15 person vans, I'm talking about a 5 person SUV with a lot of space in the back. I would like to off-road more often, and the good handling and power doesn't hurt (I live in an area with a lot of bad weather), and I end up moving large amount of stuff fairly often, so I can use the trunk space. Plus, it'd be good to have the extra space in the back. I plan on getting a large dog (Irish Wolfhound) in the near future, and of course I want to be able to take him with me places, but I don't want the seats to get messed up.
The Honda CRV is an excellent car. We have an 2008 and 2012 in the family. Great driving and reliable.
I understand how about this analogy you don't buy a sledgehammer when a tack hammer is used 99% of the time
I'd love that, but there are two problems. First, hard to find parking spaces but, more importantly, I don't know how comfortable people would be around a vehicle with an ax equipped on the exterior. I don't want to upset people or anything.
You can just take the axe off and throw it in the back, then it won't look as dangerous anymore. Regarding parking......haven't you ever seen how monster trucks park in crowded parking lots?
if you're looking for new, then check out the new Sorento from Kia. If used, the older ones fell in value quickly and can be had cheap
That's actually excellent advice. I looked at Kias the last time I was car shopping (early 2012), and didn't like anything I saw that much, but they seem to depreciate very quickly (which, as a used buyer, is good for me). They're now $25,000 new stock, but this 2007 with 75,000miles is marked at $9,000 w/ one owner. And it has some luxuries, like heated leather seats (pretty much the coolest 'luxury' you can put in a car). So yeah, I'm going to look around, but that's pretty good advice. It seems like a weakling for off-roading purposes, but I might just have to deal. :/ Maybe I'll get an ATV at some point for my off-roading indulgences. My only concern - something I'll research - is why they drop so fast. If it's because of a reliability issue, I might have to take a pass on it, but if it's for some benign reason (like low demand), then I'll probably get a Sorrento. http://www.cars.com/go/search/detail.jsp?tab=summary&recnum=&actLog=&listingId=136075491&paId=562063548&listingRecNum=11&criteria=feedSegId%3d28705%26rpp%3d50%26isDealerGrouping%3dfalse%26sf2Nm%3dmiles%26requestorTrackingInfo%3dRTB_SEARCH%26sf1Nm%3dprice%26sf2Dir%3dASC%26stkTypId%3d28881%26PMmt%3d1-1-0%26rn%3d0%26zc%3d56082%26rd%3d150%26crSrtFlds%3dstkTypId-feedSegId-mkId-mdId%26mdId%3d22084%26stkTyp%3dU%26mkId%3d20068%26sf1Dir%3dASC&tracktype=usedcc&pageNumber=&numResultsPerPage=&largeNumResultsPerPage=0&sortorder=descending&sortfield=PRICE&certifiedOnly=false&
So I saw a Sorrento I liked, but it was already sold when I called the dealer. I was getting frustrated looking for SUVs, and didn't find any good deals. Everything was nearly a decade old (or actually a decade old), all with over a hundred thousand miles (some over two), and most without any add-ons I'd care for. So I figured what the heck, I started looking at Smart cars - and I actually found one that looked alright. It's a 2009 convertible with 88k miles, heated leather seats, listed for $6,000. I offered them $5600-OTD, or basically $5000 before taxes and fees. They haggled a bit but I stayed firm and they took it. I saw the carfax and it has no incidents on record. I looked around it myself and it has a few scratches, but they're only small surface scratches (didn't break metal), and the vehicle has a clean and well polished look to it. I think they may have waxed it. Anyways, w/taxes I paid basically what the KBB trade-in value is, so I'm quite pleased.
What's the fastest speed you have ever been in a car? I was in a friends Corvette and the speedo was on 130, then we blew a rear tire. Whoa, that was fun. I was racing an Olds once with a Plymouth. We passed the Olds and the driver said his speedo was dead on 120 when we went by him.
