station wagon vs small suv

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Originally Posted By: zzyzzx
Originally Posted By: Eddie
+1 Subaru Forester is a great vehicle. Excellent visability, reliability and cost to own.


I maintain one of these and it is neither reliable or economical to own. It's also really hard to repair.


I've owned three Foresters. They have all been good vehicles. They are not hard to work on. Changing plugs is a bit harder than a transverse four, but easier than some V8's.
 
Since my 98 Volvo wagon is much older than the newer models you're looking at, I'll comment about wagon vs suv.

I'm surprised at just how little room is inside on many suvs. Not all of course, but many. It's like a small interior vehicle cloaked in a large exterior. Big doors, big tires, big sheetmetal and mouldings. Which adds up to big(er) weight. Further, it takes more power to get it all moving...and stop it.

Then there's a very large frontal area being pushed into air. Aerodynamic drag goes up with the square of velocity. All that massive frontal area adds up to A LOT of aero drag, that takes HP and $$$ to move against that drag.

My wagon doesn't look very big, but there is a lot of interior room. Plus there is a roof rack on top for more if need be. I can haul 4' x 8' sheets of plywood, bicycles and a kayak up top. Plus I can easily reach it, unlike many suvs. It does sit very low to the ground and has a rather small frontal area.

The sled is also very comfortable to drive and doesn't kick you around, especially your head. It has a long wheelbase and sits low. Compare this to a higher vehicle, with a shorter wheelbase, where you're sitting much higher. Your head can get kicked around a bit. I really notice the difference in my brother's toyota mini-van and his ford explorer over rough pavement, making turns and lane changes: I'm constantly getting "kicked" around, moved side to side, having my head josseled (sp?) about. Makes it hard to relax when you keep getting aggitated. Of course, they're used to it but I'm not. Very different geometries.

Finally, I never have to worry if I need to make an emergency maneuver, like a sharp swerve. The sled handles very well and it'd never roll over or become unstable where I would lose control. It doesn't have traction nor stability control either. Doesn't need it. I'm very, very leery of any vehicle that needs an electronic stability control to overcome inherent mechanical instability.

We used to hear about roll-overs quite a lot 10-15 years ago. Remember what happened when some of the suv's experienced a blow-out at 70mph? Very bad results. They became very unstable and rolled over. Perhaps every car today has to have a mandatory stability control system, I don't know. But I don't even think twice if I need to swerve...and swerve hard to avoid a potential collision.

Being low to the ground has its inherent advantages!
 
And the outcome is.....(drumroll) ......yesterday we drove home a new Acura MDX. We looked at the RDX and the Allroad and decided the back seats were too uncomfortable for long trips. For one mpg less and a few grand more upfront, we got an amazing vehicle, with Sh-AWD
 
Did you get a '14 or a '15? You will LOVE the MDX. My folks have a '14 Advance. What a great vehicle. The SH-AWD turns a 4,500 pound SUV into a real dancer. Enjoy.
 
Wagons are great, I really dislike driving trucks or SUV's unless you need them for a trade or lots of off roading.

I'd look at the BMW 3 series wagon for a small car, the A3 is also nice and you can get a diesel, or an E350 4Matic.

With snow tires all are very good in the winter.
 
we did look at the Q5 and I had a real issue with paying $50k for a 2.0 litre 4 banger to drive such a big truck also the frumpy styling.
 
Originally Posted By: PeterGreen
we did look at the Q5 and I had a real issue with paying $50k for a 2.0 litre 4 banger

That's way too much. These things sell for significantly below MSRP. It's too late now, but next time check out TrueCar.com. You can get a nicely equipped 3.0 supercharged V6 for this much.


The 3.5 NA V6 in the RDX is nice though.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: PeterGreen
we did look at the Q5 and I had a real issue with paying $50k for a 2.0 litre 4 banger

That's way too much. These things sell for significantly below MSRP. It's too late now, but next time check out TrueCar.com. You can get a nicely equipped 3.0 supercharged V6 for this much.


The 3.5 NA V6 in the RDX is nice though.


There was a time that True Car was helpful, but in my opinion the place has sold out. they listed Audis at above list price as a good deal. There are very few audi dealers in my area and the one closest to me is a little on the arrogant side, so I decided to steer clear of the entire brand. Like Nathan Hale, I regret that I have but one life.
 
Originally Posted By: PeterGreen
There are very few audi dealers in my area and the one closest to me is a little on the arrogant side,

Yes, lack of local competition (single dealer in a given area) can really hurt your bargaining position, and that sucks.
 
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: PeterGreen
we did look at the Q5 and I had a real issue with paying $50k for a 2.0 litre 4 banger

That's way too much. These things sell for significantly below MSRP. It's too late now, but next time check out TrueCar.com. You can get a nicely equipped 3.0 supercharged V6 for this much.


The 3.5 NA V6 in the RDX is nice though.


Maybe the prices are different in your area, but the True Car price is $5k more than what we paid for the Acura
 
Originally Posted By: PeterGreen
Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: PeterGreen
we did look at the Q5 and I had a real issue with paying $50k for a 2.0 litre 4 banger

That's way too much. These things sell for significantly below MSRP. It's too late now, but next time check out TrueCar.com. You can get a nicely equipped 3.0 supercharged V6 for this much.


The 3.5 NA V6 in the RDX is nice though.


Maybe the prices are different in your area, but the True Car price is $5k more than what we paid for the Acura

Well, I don't know what features/options you were looking for in the Q5.

TrueCar is showing me $44.5K for a Q5 2.0 Premium Plus with Nav (Tech Package). So that's significantly below the $50K that you mentioned above.

$47.7K for a Q5 3.0T Premium Plus with Nav (Tech Package).
 
Slightly not what you or others have suggested, but our family car is a 4 door Nissan (Ranchero???) with canopy shell on the back.

Great family SUV/dual compartment station wagon.
 
Originally Posted By: PeterGreen


Maybe the prices are different in your area, but the True Car price is $5k more than what we paid for the Acura


I decided to check out TrueCar just now after reading thig thread. I've seen their ads but haven't checked on their site yet.

I'm thinking about getting rid of my Kia and going for a Focus ST, so I took a look at one.

TrueCar was about $2500 more than I'm seeing on CarGurus for the same trim.

It kind of surprised me, since it's so easy to go to cars.com or cargurus.com and check up on prices; I'd have thought TrueCar would need to do better to get people's business.
 
Originally Posted By: Smcatub
TrueCar was about $2500 more than I'm seeing on CarGurus for the same trim.

Which price from TrueCar are you referring to? They show a number of different prices from invoice to avg to MSRP, etc.

On CarGurus, I only see dealer advertised prices, at least on new cars. Maybe I'm not looking in the right place?

Quote:
TrueCar would need to do better to get people's business.

TrueCar is free for buyers.
 
Originally Posted By: Shannow
Slightly not what you or others have suggested, but our family car is a 4 door Nissan (Ranchero???) with canopy shell on the back.

Great family SUV/dual compartment station wagon.


I still think 4dr trucks are yesteryear's station wagon replacement, in terms of capability. CUV's and small wagons are better on a day to day basis; but for moving lots of stuff...
 
Originally Posted By: supton
Originally Posted By: Shannow
Slightly not what you or others have suggested, but our family car is a 4 door Nissan (Ranchero???) with canopy shell on the back.

Great family SUV/dual compartment station wagon.


I still think 4dr trucks are yesteryear's station wagon replacement, in terms of capability. CUV's and small wagons are better on a day to day basis; but for moving lots of stuff...

I am coming to that conclusion as well, the success of the ecodiesel shows that there is lots of demand for a fuel efficient truck, as most of the time, most of them are hauling air anyways.
 
$1,600 p.a. to register and insure each vehicle, you can't afford to have too many specialties, (or trailers)...just saying what works for us...$ per miles travelled is the same or better than a Commodore wagon, and pets don't leave hair in the car part of the deal.
 
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