Starting to look - Recs on a small or mid SUV/Crossover/Wagon

[Jzero]

I agreed with everything you said when I thought to myself.... Except the quoted struck me as odd.

People actually care about stuff like that when buying a car? I've never had it on any car I've owned and I really don't see how it something someone would go out of their way to get. It just sorta made me think of the popular "people have been driving cars for X amount of years and haven't needed X technology so far"

Anyways, was just wondering why you were so interested in getting this option.

Especially odd on the front-heavy low-torque Fit. It's low ground clearance might be troublesome in deep powder but if you're a competent snow driver (and most Canucks should be) I would not view it as a showstopper. If you're that worried about it, get some good winter tires. I drove it using the stock Dunlop A/S tires during some of the 2-foot storms that hit the Philly area this winter...I had no problems at all.

Did they really not offer any VSA option on the Canadian models? In the US it is bundled with the on-board nav (ridiculous), but it will be standard either 2011 or 2012 (can't remember which).

 

[Zenmervolt]

You don't think having two bolts that are loaded down on a unibody structure aren't going to eventually make the holes they're situated in get bigger? When you're driving along the road and you hit bumps, that trailer hitch is going to get loaded down far more than the 100lbs it is rated at. It's not the same to bolt through the unibody as it is to bolt through the frame. The only other way to fix this problem would be to weld the hitch onto the body but that isn't practical for most people. The major limitations for towing you listed are for vehicles that are designed for towing, I think it's completely asinine to think towing with any of these cars is a good idea at all. I'm sure you can get away with it but I've heard too many and see too much damage done by trailer hitches on unibody cars.

1: The "couple of bolts" that hold the suspension onto my unibody cars don't "eventually make the holes they're situated in get bigger".

2: The couple of bolts that mount the engine to my unibody cars don't "eventually make the holes they're situated in get bigger".

3: A properly engineered trailer hitch is held in place by more than "a couple of bolts".

4: Any bolt holes for unibody trailer hitches are reinforced by welding significant additional amounts of additional metal into the structure.

5: Unibody trailer hitches are held in place by welds in addition to bolts unless an idiot is installing it (you'll note my caveat of "professionally installed").

6: Trailer hitches are designed for a certain static tongue weight; this rating takes into account the dynamic changes in loading that occur when hitting bumps.

7: If a car's manufacturer rates a car for towing 1500 pounds, then it can safely tow 1500 pounds. Period.

In short, you're still wrong. You were wrong yesterday, you're wrong today, and you'll be wrong tomorrow.

ZV

 

[shortylickens]

The RAV4 isnt cool, but is very practical. My mother has one and I admit I like it. Thing needs almost no maintenance. Parts are reasonably priced. If you can find one in a V6 it makes a world of difference in almost all traffic situations. Its especially nice when merging on a highway. Please note, it still handles like an SUV. Or an unwieldy hatchback. You are not supposed to drive it like an idiot. Of course, you should never drive like an idiot, but the RAV4 will be less forgiving. Which is actually OK with me.

I test drove a Highlander and a Murano this past autumn and they were both very nice, but I've never owned either.

 

[ShawnD1]

Anyways, was just wondering why you were so interested in getting [traction control] option.

When winter comes, test drive a car with traction control. It will blow your mind how effective it is.
Test drive a Subaru as well. Subarus are pretty awesome too.

My 2006 Civic would get stuck all the time. Just look at it the wrong way and the car is stuck, even with winter tires. My Corolla never gets stuck, even with all season tires (but I still put winters on it because it uses the same tires my Civic had). Even though it looks like the Civic is lower down, the two cars actually have the same ground clearance.
-A Honda Civic will get stuck if either tire is in a rut of fluid snow, and it only takes 1 to get stuck
-A Toyota Corolla will only get stuck if both tires are stuck at once

I hate this guy's voice, but this is a really good video to watch. It perfectly shows why you should buy a car that has antilock brakes, traction control, and stability control.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3m24bjkfg0

 

[aphex]

Thanks everyone for the help (and the not so helpful ones as well *ahem*).

What's the general consensus around here on the Ford Edge and the Chevy Equinox?

Both have recently caught my eye as a possibility.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Haven't driven the Equinox, but I have a cousin who is quite happy with his. Of course, his father worked for GM and they got employee pricing on it (I don't think they've ever owned a non-GM vehicle). It seems nice enough though. I liked the Malibu that I drove as a rental and the Equinox appears to be a similarly "modern" GM offering unlike some of the "holdover" vehicles they still have.

I did have a chance to drive an Edge as a rental and I liked it. Ford's newer Cyclone family of V6 engines (marketed as the Duratec 3.5 and 3.7) is really, really good. The Edge uses the same platform as the CX-9 and while it's not quite as sharp as the CX-9, it's still on the sportier end of the crossover spectrum.

I would lean towards the Ford myself, but I am admittedly biased in favor of Ford at the moment. I'm a huge fan of Mulally and I also like that Ford avoided taking any government loans. I think that Ford is probably the strongest of the domestic makers right now and the only thing that made me scratch my head was that they had been keeping Mercury on life support. Now that they've pulled that plug, I think they're in the best place they could possibly be.

ZV

 

[alfa147x]

Is the GMC Acadia too large for you? A friend of mine drives one and I love it

 

[zoiks]

The Prius is quite advanced and has some features only found in the upper echelon of vehicles. Have you even had the chance to rent or own one of these vehicles? I think most people hate on the Prius for absolutely no reason and I actually used to be one of those people as well. Seriously, I used to not like the Prius but after renting an older Prius and doing the calculations, it's really the best most practical "green" car you can get. If you think the '04-'09 Prius sucks, you should check out the 2010 Prius, it's a lot better..

As for you comparing the Prius to the Corolla, that's hilarious because not only can the Corolla not tow shit either but it gets worse mileage, has worse driving dynamics (the '10 Corolla handles WORSE than the '10 Prius IIRC), doesn't advanced technologies that are usually only found in $50K cars, the Corolla is a compact car while the Prius is a midsize car, there is really no comparison at all. That'd be like me complaining about the Ford Focus being a really crappy Honda Accord, they're not even in the same league! There is a hell of a lot more room in a Prius than there is in a Corolla.. It's laughable that you would compare a Prius with a Corolla.


I'm an asshole for suggesting the purchase of a Prius? Are you retarded? Apparently so..


More than your bronco after it crushes it.

The new Prius is pretty cheaply made. I rented one and hopefully I'll never get to drive one again. It does however give good gas mileage and is roomy. But there's more to driving than going from A to B.

Hey OP. Whatever you do, don't get a car with lego wheels like the Prius or Honda Shit or whatever.

 

[zoiks]

Is the GMC Acadia too large for you? A friend of mine drives one and I love it

I like the Saturn Outlook better if you can find one. I've driven both on long drives and I prefer the Saturn. The turn signal handle also doesn't feel like you're breaking a chicken leg whenever you turn left or right.

 

[sdifox]

You have a 3 wagon or sedan? I used to drive a Protege5 which is basically the 3 wagon. My kid was fine in the car seat, both the basket Perego seat and the Eddie Bauer car seat fit fine. Don't change car unless you really have to. I know you want to. I held out 6.5 years in the Protege5, 5 of them with a kid.

 

[shortylickens]

You have a 3 wagon or sedan? I used to drive a Protege5 which is basically the 3 wagon. My kid was fine in the car seat, both the basket Perego seat and the Eddie Bauer car seat fit fine. Don't change car unless you really have to. I know you want to. I held out 6.5 years in the Protege5, 5 of them with a kid.

I miss mine. Only reason I left it was the cost to repair was more than the blue book value. They're great for everything except taking hits.

 

[sdifox]

I miss mine. Only reason I left it was the cost to repair was more than the blue book value. They're great for everything except taking hits.

One too many accidents ... Had about 150k km on it.