What car should we get?
December 28, 2010 8:52 AM Subscribe
What car should we get?
We've moved to a city and we only need 1 car. We probably won't drive more than a few times a week.
* We have a 2-year-old
* We have a big dog
* We want to spend about $15k (thus used is more likely)
* Automatic
* Under 50k miles, want it to last to 150k miles
* Prefer a wagon
* No SUVs or trucks
* We have to park in a small space, so not-so-tall would be good
* Good in snow
* We're pretty environmentally conscious, so a car with that taken into consideration would be a plus
I'd like to hear Metafilter's opinions on some models worth considering.
(SO prefers Audis because he's had them for years and knows them well. He specifically wants an Audi Allroad, but I want us to research a bit more.)
We've moved to a city and we only need 1 car. We probably won't drive more than a few times a week.
* We have a 2-year-old
* We have a big dog
* We want to spend about $15k (thus used is more likely)
* Automatic
* Under 50k miles, want it to last to 150k miles
* Prefer a wagon
* No SUVs or trucks
* We have to park in a small space, so not-so-tall would be good
* Good in snow
* We're pretty environmentally conscious, so a car with that taken into consideration would be a plus
I'd like to hear Metafilter's opinions on some models worth considering.
(SO prefers Audis because he's had them for years and knows them well. He specifically wants an Audi Allroad, but I want us to research a bit more.)
Subaru Outback.
environmentally friendly, to a point.
good in snow (all-wheel drive)
wagon
I'd buy one if i needed a new vehicle now.
posted by zombieApoc at 9:07 AM on December 28, 2010
environmentally friendly, to a point.
good in snow (all-wheel drive)
wagon
I'd buy one if i needed a new vehicle now.
posted by zombieApoc at 9:07 AM on December 28, 2010
I love my Mazda5.
I have a big dog who fits perfectly in the back (she's about 60 pounds) and the hatch is low enough for her to easily jump in. I purchased it with the plan of it fitting two adults, two kids, one dog plus stuff. It has the footprint of a sedan but most of the flexibility and portability of a minivan, but $10k less than a minivan even with all the bells and whistles.
It has excellent crash test ratings and gets decent gas mileage (fully loaded with 5 adults and stuff on a highway road trip got us 27-28 MPG, but two adults and a dog on a road trip gave us 33 MPG. City driving gets me about 25 MPG).
Consumer reports rates it pretty well, also.
posted by jillithd at 9:08 AM on December 28, 2010
I have a big dog who fits perfectly in the back (she's about 60 pounds) and the hatch is low enough for her to easily jump in. I purchased it with the plan of it fitting two adults, two kids, one dog plus stuff. It has the footprint of a sedan but most of the flexibility and portability of a minivan, but $10k less than a minivan even with all the bells and whistles.
It has excellent crash test ratings and gets decent gas mileage (fully loaded with 5 adults and stuff on a highway road trip got us 27-28 MPG, but two adults and a dog on a road trip gave us 33 MPG. City driving gets me about 25 MPG).
Consumer reports rates it pretty well, also.
posted by jillithd at 9:08 AM on December 28, 2010
Audis may be preferred by your SO, but I've heard WAY too many horror stories to get one once you have a kid. nobody wants to be on the side of the road with a car still under 50k miles
posted by zombieApoc at 9:08 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by zombieApoc at 9:08 AM on December 28, 2010
It is not exciting or glamourous but our Ford Focus station wagon has been a workhorse, coming up on 150k with no big issues at all. Lots of winter driving. Easy to park; on the smaller side, though we once fit a six-station swingset in it. The "Britax Frontier" and "Cosco Alpha Omega" car seats were both easy installs. Again, very "boring" sort of car, not fancy -- but a great family car. Leather seats; the crumbs and spills brush right off. Really, the only con besides blah aesthetics would be that it can be hard to find in a parking lot as we invariably see several more of the same car.
posted by kmennie at 9:10 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by kmennie at 9:10 AM on December 28, 2010
Honda Odyssey. Seems to meet your specs and I know people with kids and dog who love this vehicle.
posted by Buffaload at 9:15 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by Buffaload at 9:15 AM on December 28, 2010
How about a nissan versa? they are not what I consider a great car, but they are inexpensive, reliable, fairly well made, good on gas, and just generally a competant car. You can get a brand new one and a set of snow tires for 15k, maintenance will be cheaper than a subaru (which are great cars, but not the cheapest to run) and you will get a factory warranty. Four snow tires will be almost as good as AWD but you won't pay the gas mileage penalty for the rest of the year when you don't need the AWD but will still be hauling it around. They have a decent amount of room in them for a three person family. they have both a four door sedan version and five door hatchback. I would go for the hatchback, but they look kinda dorky.
What I said above is true for a Honda Fit as well, but a Versa fits my 6'2" frame much better, if that matters.
If you mount the snow tires on rims and change the whole wheel assembly out for the majority of the year when they are not needed they will last for a long time. Usually the place you bought them (sears, discount, etc) will do it for free. Just make sure you mark the position the tire was on the car before you dismount so you can keep the rotation correct on them.
Audis are great cars performance wise, but maintenance nightmares, even if you do the work yourself. In general they seem to be less reliable and more expensive than volkswagens, which is kinda remarkable if you have ever had to maintain a modern volkswagen.
posted by bartonlong at 9:16 AM on December 28, 2010 [1 favorite]
What I said above is true for a Honda Fit as well, but a Versa fits my 6'2" frame much better, if that matters.
If you mount the snow tires on rims and change the whole wheel assembly out for the majority of the year when they are not needed they will last for a long time. Usually the place you bought them (sears, discount, etc) will do it for free. Just make sure you mark the position the tire was on the car before you dismount so you can keep the rotation correct on them.
Audis are great cars performance wise, but maintenance nightmares, even if you do the work yourself. In general they seem to be less reliable and more expensive than volkswagens, which is kinda remarkable if you have ever had to maintain a modern volkswagen.
posted by bartonlong at 9:16 AM on December 28, 2010 [1 favorite]
A Subaru Outback or a Forester.
posted by InsanePenguin at 9:16 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by InsanePenguin at 9:16 AM on December 28, 2010
I also thought "Outback" as soon as I read your list of requirements. A friend of mine was driving a 1992-ish Outback when we used to hang out a lot in around 2000-2001, and it was rock-solid well over 100K miles despite his very long commute and several trips across the country. And many models have "AWD" or some similar quasi-4WD feature that would probably help in the snowy weather.
posted by rkent at 9:17 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by rkent at 9:17 AM on December 28, 2010
You pretty much described a Subaru Outback. I just pushed mine to 205K and I hope it keep driving it to 300. It's roomy, handles beautifully in the snow, cheap to fix (find the best independent repair shop in your area) and maintain. I'd probably get another outback after this one dies.
Cons: Mileage (at least in the older models) is somewhat poor (not really that much of a concern for you since you'll just be doing light city driving).
My mechanic (and two of my close friends) suggest being super careful when buying a used east coast Subaru. Many are likely to be rusted out even though they may have low mileage.
posted by special-k at 9:39 AM on December 28, 2010
Cons: Mileage (at least in the older models) is somewhat poor (not really that much of a concern for you since you'll just be doing light city driving).
My mechanic (and two of my close friends) suggest being super careful when buying a used east coast Subaru. Many are likely to be rusted out even though they may have low mileage.
posted by special-k at 9:39 AM on December 28, 2010
How about a Scion xB? The older boxier type gets really great gas mileage (35mpg steadily, sometimes more) and isn't actually that tall since it's somewhat low to the ground, we park in compact garage spots w/low ceilings at times without issue.. We have one as our primary vehicle with a 2 year old (also a dog and impending 2nd child) and live in the Northeast - good snow tires have rendered it a most useful car even through Franconia Notch in a blizzard. Also, having to do any maintenance on it is pretty rare.
posted by kpht at 9:56 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by kpht at 9:56 AM on December 28, 2010
nth'ing the Subaru but most of their models also come in a wagon version so don't feel like you have to stick specifically to the Outback. The Impreza and Forester come to mind off the top of my head but you're describing just about every Subaru model.
2nd'ing the Honda Fit.
I'd also suggest the Mazda3. It comes in a wagon version but I don't think you can get AWD unless you get the hot-rod MazdaSpeed version but I could be wrong. In any case, my wife owns a 2006 2.3s sedan and we both love it. The stock "all-season" tires were awful in the snow but we replaced those with some really good all-season tires and even with just front-wheel-drive the thing is unstoppable in the snow and we've driven through every blizzard in what is now Minnesota's snowiest December on record. Good gas mileage, great handling in any condition, great reliability (by my own experience and by reputation), plenty of room especially in wagon form, reasonable cost, and seat heaters that go up to 11!
posted by VTX at 10:03 AM on December 28, 2010
2nd'ing the Honda Fit.
I'd also suggest the Mazda3. It comes in a wagon version but I don't think you can get AWD unless you get the hot-rod MazdaSpeed version but I could be wrong. In any case, my wife owns a 2006 2.3s sedan and we both love it. The stock "all-season" tires were awful in the snow but we replaced those with some really good all-season tires and even with just front-wheel-drive the thing is unstoppable in the snow and we've driven through every blizzard in what is now Minnesota's snowiest December on record. Good gas mileage, great handling in any condition, great reliability (by my own experience and by reputation), plenty of room especially in wagon form, reasonable cost, and seat heaters that go up to 11!
posted by VTX at 10:03 AM on December 28, 2010
> I'd also suggest the Mazda3
I love my Mazda3, but it sucks in snow on an incline if you had to have stopped or if you need more clearance. They're light cars, so you get good gas mileage (I've gotten over 40MPG before on a long trip, but usually it's around 30MPG), but that light weight makes it OK in the snow, not great, but the snow-tire make a HUGE difference. And the interior is roomy with the ones prior to 2010. Once you hit the 2010 models you feel more like you're flying a plane than driving a car, and that's not good.
posted by zombieApoc at 10:12 AM on December 28, 2010
I love my Mazda3, but it sucks in snow on an incline if you had to have stopped or if you need more clearance. They're light cars, so you get good gas mileage (I've gotten over 40MPG before on a long trip, but usually it's around 30MPG), but that light weight makes it OK in the snow, not great, but the snow-tire make a HUGE difference. And the interior is roomy with the ones prior to 2010. Once you hit the 2010 models you feel more like you're flying a plane than driving a car, and that's not good.
posted by zombieApoc at 10:12 AM on December 28, 2010
I've got an Allroad and really like it. However, fuel economy is very poor and when things break it is expensive to fix. 100k on mine, had to have the fancy height adjustment fixed twice so far at about $2k each time. On the plus side, very safe and comfortable (heated steering wheel!) and it is the ultimate drive to Vail in any weather machine.
posted by cosmac at 10:27 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by cosmac at 10:27 AM on December 28, 2010
+1 for the Subaru Outback/Forester list. Great cars.
posted by angab at 11:20 AM on December 28, 2010
posted by angab at 11:20 AM on December 28, 2010
My 2004 Mazda 3 began showing signs of rust this summer. I don't take great care of it but don't drive it a lot either. A search on the net found others having this problem, many with newer models who claimed to be fastidious in the care of their vehicles. Disappointing, because it was otherwise a car I was quite satisfied with, and I had planned on easily getting ten years out of it.
posted by TimTypeZed at 1:05 PM on December 28, 2010
posted by TimTypeZed at 1:05 PM on December 28, 2010
Most folks around DC seem to get the Subarus. We have a Mazda Protege5 which was the predecessor of both the newer 3 and 5 models. It does not have all-wheel drive nor is it a crossover ala the 5. It gets awesome gase mileage though and is a bit larger than the 3. We manage to fit three car seats in the back for car pool. Also, it drove like a dream during Snowmageddon despite the lack of AWD and it's low profile alloy hub wheels. I even drove right past where a massive snow plow had just lost control and skidded off the road and into a ditch!
There are still plenty around at dealerships for reasonable prices as they are quite reliable if the Suby is too steep for you.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 1:14 PM on December 28, 2010
There are still plenty around at dealerships for reasonable prices as they are quite reliable if the Suby is too steep for you.
posted by The 10th Regiment of Foot at 1:14 PM on December 28, 2010
I also read the list and thought "outback!", but I also know two people with the mazda5s that love them.
posted by dpx.mfx at 12:26 PM on January 4, 2011
posted by dpx.mfx at 12:26 PM on January 4, 2011
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posted by sanka at 9:03 AM on December 28, 2010 [1 favorite]