Suggestions for Used Vehicles

[graceful]

Inspired by the Buying used car thread:

What used vehicles should I consider?

Requirements:

Good mileage
Good cargo space (small SUV or wagon type)
AWD (are snow tires a better option for safety?)

Not interested in minivan and prefer non-sedan since we have that already - something in between.

Interested in hearing all suggestions. I am nowhere near a decision.

But once I decide on a make/model/year, how do I go about finding it?

[disneysteve]

How about a Subaru Outback?

[littleroc02us]

Go to the library and check out this years consumer reports on all 2010 cars and also used 3-4 year cars. They do such a good job of buying the vehicles under cover and letting their employees drive them for weeks to grade them at the end of the test run. No one does experimental car testing better.

[cypher1]

I love Audi for their Quattro design so I have to suggest an A3 sports wagon 2.0T, but being euro=overpriced, higher expense maintenance overall.
Subaru= I'm not a big fan of their boxer motor design, but WRX wagon and Outback aren't bad. The Saab 92x is a rare one, but basically same car as a WRX besides upgraded suspension, front end for looks.
Your big factor will also be price range. AWD is fun the winter, but typically use more gas overall, just another consideration. Snow tires are a huge improvement for control and traction on any AWD, FWD, or RWD, but I guess it will depend on your commute/climate for winter.
You can read up on all kinds of cars, but until you drive them, you won't really know. I recommend Craigslist or even dealerships just to get a feel from others suggestions. Other questions to ask would be about your lifestyle, family/kids, how long you expect to keep, etc.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

subaru outback. love ours.

[kork13]

How about a Subaru Outback?

Subaru Outback was the first thing that came to mind for me as well. Subie's are well-known for all being AWD, and their sport wagons do decently for mileage (average in the mid- to high-20's). Lastly, they are pretty common, so you shouldn't have too much trouble in finding an affordable one in good shape. For not knowing what you want, you sure described the outback pretty well: mileage, cargo space, AWD...

[graceful]

Lots of suggestions for the Subaru Outback so will have to look into that. Is a particular year better than others? The new ones are out of my desired budget of under $30K (new) and maybe $15-$20K (used).

Some background:

We currently drive a 2000 VW Passat. It is in excellent shape. DH does most of the maintenance of it himself. I think it has a little over 50K on it - most of it from the last 18 months - before than it was a weekend car since we were city dwellers.

We bought it new and will keep it when it dies which probably won't be for at least another 10 years.

DH and his family traditionally ALWAYS buy new and drive it until it falls apart and sometimes it doesn't. DH had a Nissan Pathfinder from before we got married which he bought new. It was about 13 years old and over 180K miles on it when we decided to upgrade because the Pathfinder lacked a lot of the new safety features that we thought were important because we started having a family and had kiddies in the car. The car was still going strong, but it wasn't worth much because of the high mileage. I think we either gave it away or sold it to a family friend who was still driving it YEARS later.


DH put custom 18" wheels/tires on the Passat when he first got it. I think they are Audi wheels actually - very pretty. He is a car "enthusiast" and likes to tinker with cars. He also "chipped" the engine - whatever that means - and we get about 30 mpg on the Passat. The only thing is that the Passat requires premium gas as per the manual.

When we first moved to the snowy North last winter, it was scary driving the VW on the slick roads. We had some sleet storms, etc. Thus, my desire for AWD. But DH says it's because of our tires - even though they are "all season," they were older - we actually had to replace 2 of the tires during our last car inspection in April because of worn treads. DH said that getting some real snow tires this winter will make a BIG difference.

So, he thinks we should get a VW Sportwagon - best bang for the buck - except it doesn't have AWD. Mileage will be over 40 mpg on diesel. DH is a fan of NEW. He's one of those that watches all the car shows and keeps up with all the new models coming in the FUTURE, even the proto-types.

But he agrees that it is my decision and is letting me pick out the make, model, and "vintage."

[graceful]

I love Audi for their Quattro design so I have to suggest an A3 sports wagon 2.0T, but being euro=overpriced, higher expense maintenance overall.
Subaru= I'm not a big fan of their boxer motor design, but WRX wagon and Outback aren't bad. The Saab 92x is a rare one, but basically same car as a WRX besides upgraded suspension, front end for looks.
Your big factor will also be price range. AWD is fun the winter, but typically use more gas overall, just another consideration. Snow tires are a huge improvement for control and traction on any AWD, FWD, or RWD, but I guess it will depend on your commute/climate for winter.
You can read up on all kinds of cars, but until you drive them, you won't really know. I recommend Craigslist or even dealerships just to get a feel from others suggestions. Other questions to ask would be about your lifestyle, family/kids, how long you expect to keep, etc.

It will be MY commuter car. We are a family of 4 so would fit into anything except a 2 door. Would prefer more cargo than the Passat so we have more versatility. My parents have a minivan, in case we need the room, we can borrow but I HATE how it drives on the twisty, windy roads. We will keep until the kids drive them and beyond...

[cypher1]

Lots of suggestions for the Subaru Outback so will have to look into that. Is a particular year better than others? The new ones are out of my desired budget of under $30K (new) and maybe $15-$20K (used).

Some background:

We currently drive a 2000 VW Passat. It is in excellent shape. DH does most of the maintenance of it himself. I think it has a little over 50K on it - most of it from the last 18 months - before than it was a weekend car since we were city dwellers.

We bought it new and will keep it when it dies which probably won't be for at least another 10 years.

DH and his family traditionally ALWAYS buy new and drive it until it falls apart and sometimes it doesn't. DH had a Nissan Pathfinder from before we got married which he bought new. It was about 13 years old and over 180K miles on it when we decided to upgrade because the Pathfinder lacked a lot of the new safety features that we thought were important because we started having a family and had kiddies in the car. The car was still going strong, but it wasn't worth much because of the high mileage. I think we either gave it away or sold it to a family friend who was still driving it YEARS later.


DH put custom 18" wheels/tires on the Passat when he first got it. I think they are Audi wheels actually - very pretty. He is a car "enthusiast" and likes to tinker with cars. He also "chipped" the engine - whatever that means - and we get about 30 mpg on the Passat. The only thing is that the Passat requires premium gas as per the manual.

When we first moved to the snowy North last winter, it was scary driving the VW on the slick roads. We had some sleet storms, etc. Thus, my desire for AWD. But DH says it's because of our tires - even though they are "all season," they were older - we actually had to replace 2 of the tires during our last car inspection in April because of worn treads. DH said that getting some real snow tires this winter will make a BIG difference.

So, he thinks we should get a VW Sportwagon - best bang for the buck - except it doesn't have AWD. Mileage will be over 40 mpg on diesel. DH is a fan of NEW. He's one of those that watches all the car shows and keeps up with all the new models coming in the FUTURE, even the proto-types.

But he agrees that it is my decision and is letting me pick out the make, model, and "vintage."

Very impressed with the condition of that Passet for age/mileage. I had a 98 A4 1.8T which uses the identical motor, since both are based off the same chassis. "Chipping" basically means he had the ECU (computer) re-programmed with software to boost past stock limitation on the turbo, therefore increasing the performance another 30-35HP (guessing) without hurting the longevity of the motor, also allowing tweeking of oxygen/fuel tuning.

I'm not a family man and sports wagons are very practical for your purposes. I'm not a huge SUV fan, but my CRV with 4WD is very handy in the winter, and Lexus RX300/330 share the identical motors as the Camry (which isn't a bad thing). I knows vans aren't in your area, but more recent Honda Odyssey and Toyota Sienna are appealing, more pricey of course for what you get. IMO AWD is really a want (and love), than a need, and cost of maintenance is to be considered a little more overall. But I'm sure you already realize that.

[maat55]

How about a Subaru Outback?

I've always had a liking for the outbacks. I personally, have to have a truck and DW has no interest in them, but I still would like to have one someday.

[Seeker]

Does anyone use the Forester? I like the looks of it; though I've never driven any kind of Subaru (just 0 dealers within a reasonable range of me).

Though, I might be willing to go out of my way for that one when my Honda CRV ever decides to give up it's ghost.

Some reviews here:

2010 Subaru Model Reviews and Ratings | Subaru Research and Reviews