[FearM9]

Hi. By late fall/early winter I am planning on purchasing a new SUV/small truck. Some of the models I am looking at are....

Ford Escape
Ford Ranger
Jeep Liberty

Those are pretty much my top three as of right now.

On the bubble are the Xterra, Kia Sorrento , Subaru Forester, Toyota Tacoma.

I want my MAX budget at $25,000 but would prefer if it was in the lower $20s.

[Own Goal Hat-Trick]

dude why not just get a WRX wagon? all the speed and handling of a WRX, in wagon form. like, 23k or so.

[FearM9]

Originally posted by Own Goal Hat-Trick
dude why not just get a WRX wagon? all the speed and handling of a WRX, in wagon form. like, 23k or so.

Ground clearance is an issue...6.1 inches for the WRX wagon versus 7.8 for the Escape. And a WRX doesn't look right hauling around a small utility trailer with several cords of wood.

[amerifolklegend]

Originally posted by Own Goal Hat-Trick
dude why not just get a WRX wagon? all the speed and handling of a WRX, in wagon form. like, 23k or so.

WRXs are ugly.

I own an Escape. I love it.

[Alex_1]

My mother actually just bought a brand new Mazda Tribute and she likes it. It's nothing particularly flashy, but you can get a good package in the car, etc. for 25K. It is basically the same as the Ford Escape... and I do admittedly hate Ford in general. But the Mazda division - I'm un-decided.

Some interesting things that it doesnt' have is a real trunk convenience - it's not an automatic opening trunk - and doesn't have a flip latch to open the trunk from the driver's side. The stereo system is ho-hum even at the premium level. And it's not gonna give you a "RX 330" ish ride. But it is a pretty good truck for the money. Only thing I recommend is that you definitely beef it up to the V6 - the 4 cylinder is too whimpy.

But...

You say you're going to be towing things. Even the smaller SUV's may not be so great. I love how Volkswagon misrepresents their product with their Tourag towing capacity. Anyone else notice the rear axel on that thing screaming for mercy in the freakin' commercial? . So I'd take power into consideration as well as make sure to get information on the towing capacity of all the vehicles you're checking out.

If you're moving around wood, etc. - maybe a pick-up is better off. Get one with a good bed, maybe an extended cab. Heck, Chevy S-10's aren't all that flashy, but they aren't really so expensive either. No offense OGHT, but I'd stay away from the Subaru in this case.

Check out www.autobytel.com - that's actually where I found my car. And of course there's Kelly blue Book.com, and there're a few other sites.

[Alex_1]

Oh yeah - do you have to buy brand new? Let me tell you - Brand new cars are one of the biggest scams on the planet. unless you are willing to give away a giant chunk of change on first year depreciation, you might be better off going at it with a used model. Then you might be able to get something better and more adequate for what you're looking to do.

[FearM9]

Originally posted by Alex_1
My mother actually just bought a brand new Mazda Tribute and she likes it. It's nothing particularly flashy, but you can get a good package in the car, etc. for 25K. It is basically the same as the Ford Escape... and I do admittedly hate Ford in general. But the Mazda division - I'm un-decided.

Yup...that was a consideration as well but the big thing with me is the relationship I have with my dealer and the service hours and convenience. Dan Wiebold Ford wins hands down.

And it's not gonna give you a "RX 330" ish ride.

I'm not looking for an RX 330 (those are schweet though). I am looking for a basic SUV. Nothing fancy. I am actually gonna use the "Utility" part of an SUV. If it can haul a couple of my bikes, my rockclimbing gear, my snowboard and haul around several friends...it's good enough for me. No need to buy a rig so I can make up for "inadequacies" I may or may not have.

You say you're going to be towing things. Even the smaller SUV's may not be so great. I love how Volkswagon misrepresents their product with their Tourag towing capacity. Anyone else notice the rear axel on that thing screaming for mercy in the freakin' commercial? . So I'd take power into consideration as well as make sure to get information on the towing capacity of all the vehicles you're checking out.

If you're moving around wood, etc. - maybe a pick-up is better off. Get one with a good bed, maybe an extended cab. Heck, Chevy S-10's aren't all that flashy, but they aren't really so expensive either. No offense OGHT, but I'd stay away from the Subaru in this case.

When my small utility trailer is packed to the gills with wood....it's still not that heavy. ANY V6 with adequate low end grunt will pull the thing with ease. I'm not hauling around a huge travel trailer.

While I would like a pickup cuz of the bed...the HUGE downside is the lack of passenger space outside of two people (even with an extended cab...you ever sat in one of those...I'm an ********************* but not that big of one to subject my buddies to that type of torture on a road trip to go backpacking).

My dealership is gonna be receiving 2004 models in the next month or so...we'll see how this affects the 2003 prices.

[FearM9]

Originally posted by amerifolklegend
I own an Escape. I love it.

Hey afl --- how good of a job did you do with negotiating the final selling price? Did you get an extended warranty?

Thanks.

[TheWakeUpBomb]

I think the Escape did pretty well in the recent SUV side impact tests, if I remember correctly. I think they tested a few smaller SUVs.

Here is a piece about it:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news03/side_impact.html

From what it sounds like, you should spring for the side airbags.

[FearM9]

Originally posted by TheWakeUpBomb
I think the Escape did pretty well in the recent SUV side impact tests, if I remember correctly. I think they tested a few smaller SUVs.

Here is a piece about it:

http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news03/side_impact.html

From what it sounds like, you should spring for the side airbags.

Yeah my boss got an Escape several months ago and ordered one with the side airbags because of safety concerns in a side collision.

-----

I just emailed one of the sales managers at my dealership and have already printed out pricing info from both www.Edmunds.com and www.KBB.com . I hope everything works out in the next couple of months.