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Suggestions for a new family commuter


Smokeyyank
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Alright spend my money......not really, but that time has to come to get a more family friendly car that's not a fortune. We are expecting another ankle bitter in the next few months and after all the fiascoes with the WJ I'm done with Jeeps. Not selling mine but need something I don't have to wrench on or worry about will we make it. Plus the addition of the lunchbox to the WJ has made the ride slightly less tolerable. 

 

Here's a basic breakdown of what I'm looking for.

4 doors, under 6k, nothing Ford, no minivans (seriously), preferably 2008+

 

Here's my must have

#1 Need to be able to fit 2 car seats in the back without making front passengers uncomfortable 

#2 Reliable, I don't mind basic maintenance but I really want to have something I can do minimal work on and not worry about.

#3 Needs decent MPG, my WJ averages 14ish MPG driving on the highway it needs premium too. So not saying I need 40+MPG but something better

#4 Needs to have solid safety ratings

#5 Needs decent cargo space. Kids have so much crap.....

 

My would be nice to haves

#1 Manual, I really enjoy 3 pedals

#2 under 150k, I know service records mean more than miles but.....

 

Right now my top choice is a Scion xB but open to suggestions. 

 

 

 

 

 

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7 minutes ago, Smokeyyank said:

Alright spend my money......not really, but that time has to come to get a more family friendly car that's not a fortune. We are expecting another ankle in the next few months and after all the fiascoes with the WJ I'm done with Jeeps. Not selling mine but need something I don't have to wrench on or worry about will we make it. Plus the addition of the lunchbox to the WJ has made the ride slightly less tolerable. 

 

Here's a basic breakdown of what I'm looking for.

4 doors, under 6k, nothing Ford, no minivans (seriously), preferably 2008+

 

Here's my must have

#1 Need to be able to fit 2 car seats in the back without making front passengers uncomfortable 

#2 Reliable, I don't mind basic maintenance but I really want to have something I can do minimal work on and not worry about.

#3 Needs decent MPG, my WJ averages 14ish MPG driving on the highway it needs premium too. So not saying I need 40+MPG but something better

#4 Needs to have solid safety ratings

#5 Needs decent cargo space. Kids have so much crap.....

 

My would be nice to haves

#1 Manual, I really enjoy 3 pedals

#2 under 150k, I know service records mean more than miles but.....

 

Right now my top choice is a Scion xB but open to suggestions. 

 

 

 

 

 

I love my minivan though... 

 

XB is a great choice though. RAV4, Honda Fit, and the Chevy Cruze would be things I would look at also. 

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1 hour ago, Torq_Shep said:

I love my minivan though...

 

same here.  I seriously miss my minivan. :(     The durango is nice, but is just not the same.   SUVs feel cramped and cars are just ridiculously tiny by comparison.

 

but back to the topic at hand: SUV?  car?  4wd?  AWD? 

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I will also throw in the, just get a minivan opinion.  I was against them as well, traded the wife's Commander in on a 2018 grand caravan last year.  So nice and would actually daily one myself, the cargo space is freakin super nice.

 

To fit within your rules above, I have to ask SUV or car and is 4x4 a consideration at all?  I know you said no Ford's but my first instinct is Crown Victoria.  They are cheap, safe, large, and have decent enough gas mileage.  They are also everywhere so parts are cheap and easy to come by as well. 

 

Very good option would be a Subaru outback.  They are extremely safe, extremely reliable, and get good gas mileage.  The also have fairly decent legroom in the back.  Will be at the top of your price range tho.

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So not really a sedan unless it was a wagon. SUV if it gets decent MPG, but most don't. CrV might be the closest and I've thought about those too. I just can't bring myself to daily a mini van. Maybe in a few years but just not at that point. Guess that's where the xB plays a part. Not a full on van but enough to check most the boxes for what a van can do but still have somewhat of a coolness factor. Subis I'm not found of. Everyone I've ever known that had one has issues. Head gaskets and blown engines. 

 

Fit is a little too small for car seats. 1 it would be fine but looking through stuff it would be a little crammed.  Rav4 possible but again MPG isnt really stellar. Ideally 30 hwy would be great. I know the xB is 28 maybe 30 with a tailwind going downhill. Thing is so unaerodynamic it's silly. don't need 4wd or was, WJ will still jeep bad weather duty and and backroad adventures. Years ago I used to have a HHR ss, thing was fun. It could haul @$$. Wouldnt classify it as relaible though. Tons of space and got 30s if I wasnt pushing it. 

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We've had minivans in my family from 1986 'til 2017.  1 stupid ford and 6 nice chryslers.  the '97 town-n-country was ours for 250k miles.  I eventually gave it to a friend who needed something reliable and not rusting apart.  there is just no substitute for that level of space and mpg.  Every time I try and shove things into the durango for a trip I'm reminded of how restrictive it is.  and it's a decent sized SUV.  :(  remember that "coolness" always has sacrifices in comfort and/or usefulness, whether that is clothing fashion or cars.  think skinny jeans or corvettes or those kids in highschool that were just too dang cool to be wearing a jacket in the winter.  make sure you're familiar with those sacrifices before setting that idea aside.  cupholders everywhere, storage everywhere.  what more do you need?

 

maybe try renting one for a weekend trip.  :L:  if you don't like it, at least you'll know for sure. :D  

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I've never personally seen any issues with Subarus, a few buddies have had them and my mom has had two Outbacks, only got a new one because she wanted it, sister got the old one.  As long as maintenance is done and it's not driven like a racecar it'll last a good long time.  Also trust me, vans ARE cool!  Just a different kind of cool.  And they are so functional, it's insane.  Best vehicle.

 

I think the best match to tick as many of your boxes as possible is going to be some form of crossover.  

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8 minutes ago, Dzimm said:

 And they are so functional, it's insane.  Best vehicle.

 

the first time you drop the seats into the floor and go pick up a few 4x8s and a giant pile of 2x4s is a life changing event :D 

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Just now, Pete M said:

 

the first time you drop the seats into the floor and go pick up a few 4x8s and a giant pile of 2x4s is a life changing event :D 

Yes it is.  I took the third row out and built a cover for it with hinges so it functions as an underfloor storage compartment and it's perfectly flat with the rest of the floor.  That alone is the size of the trunk of an old Cadillac.

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I vote for mini van also. We have had 3 of them. They are great for hauling stuff. We have driven to camp in the sequoias gone to Yellowstone the Grand Canyon plenty of room for kids and all the crap 💩 you gotta bring with them. 
I used one as a work van for a few years. The wife was a Girl Scout leader and you can haul 6 girls and   2 leaders plus a lot of luggage’s. The wife’s Kia just sucks for luggage space. 

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11 minutes ago, 89eliminator said:

non 2013 outback

 

that's remarkably specific. :laugh:  gotta ask... what's up with the 2013 model?  Is it like the 1987 wrangler?  (carbed, peugeot, CAD 30, 35, 207)

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13 hours ago, Dzimm said:

I've never personally seen any issues with Subarus, a few buddies have had them and my mom has had two Outbacks, only got a new one because she wanted it, sister got the old one.  As long as maintenance is done and it's not driven like a racecar it'll last a good long time.  Also trust me, vans ARE cool!  Just a different kind of cool.  And they are so functional, it's insane.  Best vehicle.

 

I think the best match to tick as many of your boxes as possible is going to be some form of crossover.  

 

I'll toss Subaru a bone too.  My wife is on her 4th one, started with a Legacy that she inherited from her grandmother when she passed several years ago.  Traded that on a Forrester, then another Forrester, and another Forrester (see a pattern here lol?).  Nothing wrong with any of them, she just likes to have a "new" car every couple years for whatever reason (says the guy who owns/drives an 01 Focus and an 02 KJ).  She just got her windshield replaced yesterday, but that's another story...and wouldn't affect you unless you decided to purchase a 2018+ model.  

 

Outback is a little bit smaller than a Forrester, and has a pretty bad view out the back window due to design, but is a solid vehicle.  She gets consistent 30-35 mpg in mixed driving her Forrester, and remember it's an AWD too.  TONS of room inside of it, plenty enough for a couple car seats in the back and an unbelievable amount of room with the rear seat folded down.  Puts my KJ right to shame.  I've already said that if I ever decided to stop driving Jeeps, I would be driving a Subaru something-or-other.

 

 

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I've been thinking about it and I've changed my mind about the rent-a-van suggestion.  If you're dead set against them, don't rent one.  don't borrow one.  don't bring one into your life at all.   It's better that you don't know what you're missing. 

 

not reverse psychology, I'm very serious. :L:  

 

 

tentative discussions are now on-going in my family to sell the PT Cruiser this winter and put that towards an older minivan.  I can pick up a 3.3L van from the early 2000s for like a grand!  rust free too!   :drool:  (only reason the Cruiser is still here is because of the lifetime powertrain warranty that is now gone because we apparently didn't take it in for a free checkup that we knew nothing about. :fistshake2: always read the fine print!)

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Hahahaha, one of my really good buddies has a sequoia and other has an odyssey. They both really like them, one has 4 kids and other it's their only vehicle I also guess it's the other thing of why you never buy a truck because all your friends will ask your to move. Get a van and everyone will just say let's load that up and go.  I'll also preface the rest by my wife drives a GX460 that has 3rd row and truly is great to drive. MPG wise is pretty much on par with some of the minivans specs give or take 5ish MPG. I don't need another big vehicle or anything AWD. I'd prefer MPG over AWD. Subis I just am not interested in at all for a few reasons. One, in CO it's going to be the top of my price point and beyond the mileage I want. Two, I've driven them and don't find them comfortable at all. Lastly, their maintenance cost can add up and given what I would be getting mileage condition wise I don't want to get stuck holding the bag. 

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with that i still say impala or a 300 cause i can't say taurus., all are big cars with large trunks and lots of space in them. the only thing it doesn;t match is manual trans.

or if you want imports a honda element or a kia soul, nothing against scion but they just seem really cheap( which is what toyota was going for).

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2 hours ago, Torq_Shep said:

If you are willing to squint and pretend it isn't a minivan... Mazda 5? It is somewhere between wagon and van and you can have it with a manual trans. 

 

I had peeked at these. Guess I just am not sure if Mazda has improved their reliability factor. 

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I haven't heard anything bad about them. I don't know anyone with a 5 but I have had several friends with 3s that have the same drivetrain. No major issues. 

 

Plus if you get bored you can swap in the Speed 3s drivetrain... 

 

I contemplated a Mazda 5 before I got the Hot-rOdyssey. 

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