I am looking for a new car / SUV. I am think about a Toyota Highlander, Hyundai Santa Fe, Lincoln Aviator, or Ford Escape. I want a car with decent leg room that is not low to the ground. Any other suggestions or opinions on those listed?
New Vehicle Suggestions
- Thread starter cwbullet
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Outback? I'm 6' 3" and it's comfortable as driver, as a passenger, and in the back seat.
Thanks. i will test drive one.
I forgot to add that I want room to travel with rockets.
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IMO, pick the less popular option that meets your needs. When I replaced my S10, I was adamant about getting a 'small' truck instead of a full size truck. The Tundra (7/8 size) was cheaper than the Tacoma (small) truck. I love the Tundra and it is within 2 mpg driving and better pulling than a Tacoma would have been.
While I know little about the other's you've referenced, maybe checking to see which bigger or smaller alternate is available will help you to evaluate your options/value. If I had to buy a new 1/2 ton truck today, I'd be looking at 1/2 ton trucks with turbo 4 cylinder engines. Seems crazy, but my brother bought a Chevy with a turbo 4 and lifetime average (70k miles, trailer pulling 10-ish% of the time) at 28mpg. Not pulling, he was in the 32-ish MPG range. My V8 Tundra is lifetime (20% pulling) 18 mpg. I have to look at the Turbo 4-6 cylinders moving forward.
Hope you find the right fit for you.
Sandy.
PS: The 5.5 ton RV with the Mercedes turbo 3L Diesel is so far averaging about 16.2 mpg. Diesel is more expensive for sure, but it weighs a bunch more than my truck and is pretty much an aerodynamic nightmare compared, so maybe consider a small turbo diesel. I bet if that motor was in my truck, I'd get 20+ and still run 80mph pulling a trailer, but I could be wrong.
While I know little about the other's you've referenced, maybe checking to see which bigger or smaller alternate is available will help you to evaluate your options/value. If I had to buy a new 1/2 ton truck today, I'd be looking at 1/2 ton trucks with turbo 4 cylinder engines. Seems crazy, but my brother bought a Chevy with a turbo 4 and lifetime average (70k miles, trailer pulling 10-ish% of the time) at 28mpg. Not pulling, he was in the 32-ish MPG range. My V8 Tundra is lifetime (20% pulling) 18 mpg. I have to look at the Turbo 4-6 cylinders moving forward.
Hope you find the right fit for you.
Sandy.
PS: The 5.5 ton RV with the Mercedes turbo 3L Diesel is so far averaging about 16.2 mpg. Diesel is more expensive for sure, but it weighs a bunch more than my truck and is pretty much an aerodynamic nightmare compared, so maybe consider a small turbo diesel. I bet if that motor was in my truck, I'd get 20+ and still run 80mph pulling a trailer, but I could be wrong.
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Are you looking at new or used?
Probably new.
Have you considered the Toyota 4Runner? My wife love hers, it is the only thing I like better than my Tacoma TRD offroad.
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If you are interested in a truck take a look at the 23/24 1500 silverado with the 3.0 duramax. I get 24 to 28 running (I live in the mountains) around here and 33 to 36 on the highway. Towing my trailer around my area I get 15 to 17 and on the highway I get 17 to 19. My trailer is not lite. Normally I am around 7k. My son is 6'4" tall and can stretch out in the back seat. It rides like a car and has tons of power for only being a V6.
If we could afford a different car it would be a non AWD/4WD. Just a standard 2WD without the engine being transverse. Simple in design, easy to work on. Our SUV showed on the Carfax where they had pulled the transaxle @ 35K miles to rebuild. It was just another case of "Ineffective Thinking and Poor Judgement" in my life buying an AWD vehicle when it's not needed. 
But since you can afford a new car with a warranty, you'll be fine.
But since you can afford a new car with a warranty, you'll be fine.
All I can say is here in MN they are stealing Kia and Hyundai left and right. And our lovely Attorney General says it is not their fault as the companies make them easy to steal.
This would be my recommendation. We had one for 10 years.
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We really like our Toyota RAV4 Prime. The 40 miles on battery is great for around town. But hybrid gas is the best of both worlds, IMO. A decent amount of room in the back. I do occasionally miss my 8’ bed F-150 but not when I look at gas prices. The problem will be finding one for sale.
NTP2
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Gas or electric,hybrid?
Seconded. At 102k miles on my 2016 Outback 2.5 Limited. Over 23k of those miles has been pulling our Aliner Classic camper all over the country. Normal driving I get 30-33 mpg. Towing, 20-22. Absolute beast in the snow with snow tires. Best car I've owned, by far.
Also very easy to do maintenance on. Can change oil without ramps and the oil filter is right up top by the filler cap. It's not a complex car (meaning just a basic naturally aspirated motor so no turbo to go to hell and simple maintenance schedule). I still have original front brake pads (recently did the rears).
If looking for a sedan, well, we have an 18 Camry hybrid and holy crap is that nice and clobbers the mileage ratings. With the rear seats folded down, you could stuff some long rockets in it!
I looked at the 4Runner btu they have less room than the Highlander.
Honda Odyssey. LOTS of flexibility with configuration, not low to ground, very comfortable, good on gas, can get LONG rockets and passengers easily. All mine have gone 250K and were still going strong when I traded them in.
I am going to look at the Camary when I am on the lot also.
Not Electric. Those are not feasible at this time. Too much to give up and too expensive. I do not want to have to buy a third car for trips.
I love my Tesla Model Y. Smooth, quiet, powerful, reliable. Lots of room for rockets with the back seats folded down. Not expensive either. This is the current price for what I have, and this is before tax credits ($7500 federal, plus lots of states have incentives):
What are you giving up, except time and money spent at gas stations, and lots of maintenance? Charging at home during off-peak hours is cheap and convenient. There are lots of superchargers around, and I have adapters to charge at non-tesla locations.
They are the safest vehicles available, and you can't find anything that is more American made.
I appreciate your input, but you live in Columbus, Ohio and I live in Rural Georgia. Electrics are too expensive for what you get in my area. I am 45-60 minutes from the nearest charger that is rarely working (level 3). It takes 45 minutes to charge if you can find a level 3 charger that works—deal breaker in my book.
Home Charger: It would cost $1500+ for me to have a charger installed in my home, which is 45 gas tanks in my hybrid - over one year.
Vacations: It is 85 miles (level 2) and 120 miles (level 3) to the nearest charger where we camp. I would have to rent a gas vehicle to drive home to my family's houses when we travel twice a year.
Rockets: My level 3 projects would definitely not fit in a model Y.
Yes, I have researched them, and I am informed. The electric religion is not feasible for me at this time. It is probably useful for folks who live in towns 20 miles from an interstate, but that is now how I roll.
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I have a 2013 Outback, and my wife has a 2018 Outback. Both are the 6 cylinder versions. Subaru no longer makes the 6 cylinder 3.6R, I think 2019 was the last year produced. The engines and drivetrain are solid. We have had issues with electrical stuff going out, power window switches, a couple sensors. The nav/ radio unit on my wife’s Outback has gone out twice. The first was replaced under warranty. The second time Subaru gave us a credit that covered most of the cost.
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I noted the Honda Pilot was not on your list. Don't know about the newer ones but my older on is a perfect rocket, home depot, kid mover, shrub puller and reliable as all heck. Holds value extremely well if that is important to you.
I am also impressed with Hyundai. My daughter has a Tuscson limited which I think has great value, but they are creeping up in price now. I would have no qualms with a Santa Fe.
I would also take a look at the Honda Ridgeline if you are not ready to move into a real truck class yet.
I am also impressed with Hyundai. My daughter has a Tuscson limited which I think has great value, but they are creeping up in price now. I would have no qualms with a Santa Fe.
I would also take a look at the Honda Ridgeline if you are not ready to move into a real truck class yet.
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Agree on the Honda Pilot. If I was looking to replace my older Outback, the Pilot is first on list of possibilities.
NTP2
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I feel you we live next to a university so lots of college dorms and such and it’s STILL impossible to find charging stations i say tax incentives for gas stations to put charging stations.
MClark
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My truck meets you needs of plenty of legroom, ability to handle rocket stuff.
To LDRS I carried the bulky and heavy stuff for four people going to the launch. Driving across Midwest in cross winds being 22 feet long and weighing 9000 pounds loaded it beats other rides.
GMC 3500HD 4x4 crew cab, long bed. Probably not what you are looking for but checks the boxes.
To LDRS I carried the bulky and heavy stuff for four people going to the launch. Driving across Midwest in cross winds being 22 feet long and weighing 9000 pounds loaded it beats other rides.
GMC 3500HD 4x4 crew cab, long bed. Probably not what you are looking for but checks the boxes.
Made them easy to steal, past tense. 2022 and later are just as hard to steal as other vehicles. But you need to get a Club or something like that as a visual signal to the ****heads who don't know the difference and will do thousands of dollars of damage trying to steal it. DAMHIKT.
Depending how much you drive, the Level 1 charger that comes with the car is sufficient for many people. We used that for a long time, but the rare times we needed to take several longish trips in a week became a problem. We got a portable level 2 charger that plugs into our dryer outlet for a few hundred dollars -- it's not the fastest L2 around but it's a lot faster than the L1 charger.
This is the big problem. We're in NM. Along I-40, most decent sized towns have a fast charger... but you can't count on them to work, and the next town is 40-60 miles away. And if you get away from I-40, they're much harder to find.
If we can't do a round trip on a full charge, we can't be assured of being able to make it home.
So we love love love our EV and use it for 95% of our driving, but we absolutely can't rely on it for 100% of our driving and had to buy something else we could fuel at a gas pump .
My experience is the same in WV.
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LOL, most pickup drivers will tell you that the Ridgeline is not a "real" truck due to unibody construction, among other things. Trucks are what Chevy, Ford, and Ram do best.
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