CR-V, RAV4, or Rogue?

[SarahKate]

Hi all,

Well, the lease on my Odyssey is coming to an end and I really need to get on the ball and find something else. I could just buy it, then sell and make a little profit but I think I'll just trade it in somewhere.

As much as I LOVE the Odyssey, I think we're at a point where we could easily downsize a bit (just 1 DD 5.5 at the moment, no plans for more at least for 3-4 more years....can't afford to!) and am narrowing down to one of the smaller SUVs.

DH is doing research and these are the top rated small SUVs right now, RAV4 in first, Rogue in 2nd and CR-V in 3rd. I know we really couldn't go wrong with Toyota OR Honda, I don't know much about the Rogue but it seems a little smallish compared to the others (but it REALLY looks cool).

So for you folks out there with any of these SUVs, tell me your experiences! Were you able to get them down on the price at all (if so, what time of year did you buy)? How are they on gas, especially in city? I'm afraid that none of them will be hugely better on gas than the Odyssey but hoping for the best.

Thanks everyone!

 

[harleyquinn]

Saturn Vue.

I've been researching this market to death and that's what I've picked. Especially if you are looking at a new model since they greatly upgraded it this year.

Beyond that I would definitely choose the RAV4 or the CRV, one because you never want to buy the first model year of a vehicle (Rogue) and two because they have both been consistantly great.

www.edmunds.com is the best place to do your research.

I highly recommend you test drive all of your top choices, that can really, really help.
Good Luck!

 

[kandeebunny]

Mom has had 3 Rav-4's from when the first one came out. She has loved them! That said she is now looking at a Honda CRV for her next one, Honda holds its resale value a bit better.

The ONLY problem we had with the Rav-4's was the 1999 had a computer chip issue, some of them had bad sensors that would cause the check engine light to come on...they replaced the sensor free of charge and no problems since. It's still running too! She also has a 2002, and same thing, no problems.

Just be aware of the tire costs when you start getting in to SUV's if they have 4 or all wheel drive there is something a bit different with the tires, and if yuo only have a problem with 1 tire you still may need to replace them all. I know the tires on the Rav 4's were MUCH more expensive than for my hyundai, civic, subaru or scion ever were.

I think with the Rav-4 we do 20-something mpg on average (its mid 20's I believe) as of late we have been driving my car more (scion XA) as I get way better gas mileage.

I know scion is making an SUV type car now the xD. These are made by toyota (have typical toyota warranties, hold their resale value very well, and have typical toyota reliability,) so I would look in to that as well. They average 27 mpg city and 33mpg highway, but I have found with my scion (xa) if i keep up on my oil changes (every 3000 miles even if the dealership says 5000) I do FAR better than their average. Scion also includes your first 3 oil changes free (not a big perk, but its something!) I've had my scion for a year and a half and I love love love love love it. Mom is also looking at the xD to replace her rav-4 with.

 

[bdcp]

My parents have a new RAV-4 and my DS(24) has a CRV that he bought new 1.5 yrs ago. They both love their vehicles. I drive a 07 Pilot and DH has an 08 Toyota Solara convertible and DS (21) has an 04 Civic, so since we're Toyota and Honda drivers so they are definitely our first two choices. I agree on not buying the first model year of anything. The track record of first year vehicles for a lot of manufacturers isn't very good. Let them work the bugs out in the first year before looking at a new model. Also, I would never lease a car. At least if you buy it you have some equity especially in Honda's and Toyota's which hold their value better. Buying is a great way to leverage your way into a new car. Leasing makes sense for businesses since they can write it off their taxes, but not for personal use. The only ones that come out ahead on leasing are the leasing companies since they turn around and sell the car after the lease is up and they make more money. I know monthly payments are lower, but you need to put money down, then at the end of the lease almost everyone has to pay something for damage or wear and tear or extra mileage.

 

[Shanan]

Let me add another choice for you to think about - Forestor. I have one that is a 1998 model and I still love it. It has always been ranked as a recommended choice by Consumer Report. It is also ranked very high for safety by an insurance safety commission. The Forestor also gets good gas mileage and holds its value.

 

[DebMcDonald]

We had the Honda CR-V several years ago and my husband loved it and it never gave us any trouble and my husband typically puts on about 40,000 miles per year. He was going to buy the new version last year, but he's 6'3 and with the newer model he didn't fit in it so well, it wasn't all that comfortable for him to drive. So he went from his CRV to a Ford 500 and is very very happy, but our other car is also a Dodge Durango, so we already had a big car.

 

[dpratt68]

I love my Rav4. I have only had it 6 months but LOVE it. Great in the snow.

 

[debster812]

Let me add another choice for you to think about - Forestor. I have one that is a 1998 model and I still love it. It has always been ranked as a recommended choice by Consumer Report. It is also ranked very high for safety by an insurance safety commission. The Forestor also gets good gas mileage and holds its value.

ITA with this. I have a 2004 Forrester that I LOVE. Subaru makes a fantastic product.

 

[staceyfe]

I bought a new RAV4 in '02. Loved it, but we finally outgrew it. Great on gas, easy to park, etc. The only complaint we had was that the seats were not at all comfortable--ok for just driving around errands, but not so great on long trips. And we are not overweight people. When I bought new again this past fall, I went from sitting in the '07 version to my '02, and the '02 felt like sitting on comfy pillows compared to the 07. It was a dealbreaker for me...we ended up with a Chevy Equinox. Lots of interior room! But not as good as the RAV on gas. HTH.

 

[vegasnative]

I personally love, love, love the way the new CR-V's look. I think they are beautiful! My parents however have a Rav and they LOVE it! While they were here for Christmas I drove it several times and that thing is powerful!! It has some pickup to itI Also, we have snow here and it does excellent in the snow! I think their Rav has quite a lot of space in it for being a small SUV.

 

[SarahKate]

Hi all,

Thanks so much for all the great feedback so far. I think we did eliminate the Rogue,for reasons mentioned previously but also because it's smaller than the other two. We think we're leaning towards RAV4, but we'll just have to test them both and see. We definitely want a Toyota or Honda. I appreciate the heads up about the tires, hadn't really thought of that. But DH is a research hound and he can usually find great deals even on more expensive tires...

RE: the lease, I know people have very strong feelings about leasing which I totally respect. But leasing has worked great for us. Currently, my payoff is LESS than what the van is worth. I could easily buy the van (since my lease is month to month now) and sell it & make some money but I don't really want to mess with it. My opinion on leasing is the reason to BUY something that depreciates so quickly? If you don't keep a vehicle til after it's paid off, it's not easy to have equity in it. We had a Caravan before we leased the van, and we were upside down on our loan by about $2-3k. When we trade in our lease, at the very least they'll give us what we owe, which I am totally fine with.

We will definitely be buying this next time. Not because of the lease. But because we moved about 6 mos ago and my mileage has increased quite a bit.

THANKS AGAIN, you guys are always so great about giving wonderful feedback on these types of things!

 

[CanBeGrumpy]

We test drove all 3 of those vehicles and ended up purchasing the CR-V. I actually like the looks of the RAV-4 better, but the back seat didn't seem roomy enough, and the middle seatbelt was in an awkward position. As for the Rogue, I had high hopes for it, but when we test drove it, it seemed "cheap", for lack of a better word. The interior is not finished very well, in my opinion. It drove nicely, though. I really like my CR-V, so no complaints. If you drive the RAV-4, pay close attention to the size of the back seat, and compare it to the CR-V. The RAV-4 sure felt smaller to us.

We also considered the Subaru Forrester, BUT, it does not come with side-curtain airbags, and I won't purchase a car without them. It still gets excellent saftey ratings without them, BUT, in my opinion, why not add that extra level of safety? Maybe they added them for '08, but I don't think so, since we were looking in October of '07 and I believe the '08s were already out.

I think you will like the CR-V and the RAV-4--it is a tough choice!!

 

[HayGan]

Have you considered purchasing a used Toyota or Honda? I just got a fantastic deal on a Toyota Highlander that was coming off of a lease. It only had 24k miles on it and is a Toyota Certified vehicle. I paid about $14k less than it would have cost me new! I absolutely love it!!!

 

[christiane]

I have the CR-V and I love it. It is roomy, easy on gas, easy to park and has some get up & go!!

I test drove the RAV-4 and the Forester, also. Of the 3 SUV's, my favourite to drive was the Forester, but it felt a bit too low on the ground, more like a station wagon than a SUV. Also the Subaru dealer network is smaller, so if you travel to out of the way places, you may not find a dealer if you have problems. I just didn't like the interior of the RAV-4, otherwise I would have had no complaints.

All 3 have excellent safety ratings, so you can't go wrong with any of them.

My husband has a Navigator which I avoid driving at all costs. It is like parking a bus!! Put me in my CR-V and I am happy...