Looking for a small CUV, (Used)

martybee

martybee

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The wife and I are currently hunting for a small SUV. We are very much in our senior yrs. (84&85).
We now have a 2001 Buick Regal that is about to expire! We are trying to decide on what to buy. It needs to be used as we are very frugal and live on a small fixed income. The reason we want an SUV is for good visability, Higher off the ground and lots more glass than our Regal. Anyone with a suggestion? Thanks in advance.

mb
 
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Are you looking to do any real off road driving. If you are then ignore this.

Take a look at the Mazda CX series vehicles. My 90 year old mother has a CX5 and it is great car. It is all wheel drive and does fine in the snow. It is very comfortable and has plenty of room for grocery runs. It averaged better than 30 mpg and runs on regular gas. Overall it has been a great vehicle but it isn't one I would take out to play in the dirt.
 
Well, they don't make them anymore but I love my 2008 Chevy HHR! Very comfortable, good visibility and great fuel economy. Some controls are poorly placed, windows controls for one but all in all, I'd buy another one! Oh, and I'm only 73!
 
I've had RAV4 that we loved but it was a little small for 2 dogs and camping and fly fishing gear.

Wife has a Pathfinder. Great car. Bought used with 75K on it. All the bells and whistles for $12K.

Here in the Cascade foothills, lots of people (especially older people) have the Subarus==good for around town and highway driving in winter.

Stay away from Jeeps==ours cost us more in repairs than the payments totaled in the first year we had it!

ps: I'm 66 and we're keeping the Pathfinder and my Frontier into retirement. Especially since both are paid for.
 
My Son In Law has a Rav 4 and I have been impressed in how it drives and rides, and is not that much smaller. I have a Highlander which I call the mid size, but most call a full size. I'd check out the Toyota Rav 4.
 
+1 on the Mazda CX5. I drive one as my work/winter vehicle. It is very compliant. The seats are comfortable and infinitely adjustable. The controls are straight forward, easy to reach and logical. It handles great with very good vision all around. It's roomy for most everything I need it to do. The gas mileage is among the best for small cuvs, yet has plenty of power on tap. I think the reviews you'll read are positive and are pretty much spot on for how the vehicle performs in the real world.

Good luck with your search Marty.
 
We've had a 2005 Rav4 for 8 years, not 4 wheel drive. Just hit 100,000 miles. Good gas mileage, dead reliable and handles well. I like the visibility and the back seats come completely out very easily. I'd buy another one.
 
I have a 2012 4 cylinder Toyota RAV with 125K miles that has been perfectly reliable inside and out. I use it in my construction business and work it pretty hard and have taken it down some really narly trails and it has performed quite well. The 4 cyl. is adequate but I wish I would have gotten the 6 cylinder because it will run like a hot rod but no one makes a small SUV with a six any more. I have been thinking about getting a new vehicle and have been researching it thoroughly and would probably buy a pre-owned Kia Sorrento, Ford Edge, or Nissan Murano. They are slightly bigger but all of them have 6 cylinder motors and are smooter and quieter and I have seen several two year old Kia Sorentos on Autotrader with under 40K miles and still under warranty for around $17,000.
 
Thanks, Lots of good info!

Thanks to all who responded to my OP.
I and the wife, are leaning towards a used RAV4 or a CRV.
The comment about looking for a vehicle coming off a lease,
was especially informative!
We don't go off road, so a 4 cylinder engine would be fine.
The reason I remarked about needing a high off the ground vehicle was for the greater visibility.

mb
 
Here's another vote for the Toyota RAV4.

I've had one for 8 years and I love that SUV! Totally reliable, good gas mileage. Plenty of power. Good for light offroad - plenty of clearance. I can't say enough good things about it.
 
The Toyota Rav and Honda CRV are very good vehicles and because of that their resale is VERY high. You are almost better off buying a brand new one because people ask so much money for their two or three year old ones. The 2013 or 2014 Ford Escape with a turbo is a pretty highly rated vehicle but much less money on the used market.
 
Farmer17 said:
The Toyota Rav and Honda CRV are very good vehicles and because of that their resale is VERY high. You are almost better off buying a brand new one because people ask so much money for their two or three year old ones. The 2013 or 2014 Ford Escape with a turbo is a pretty highly rated vehicle but much less money on the used market.
Click to expand...

One of our Govt rigs is an Escape (I'm Fleet manager temporarily) and it's down a lot. Not much power (not a turbo)
 
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