I have to Buy a New Car, Need Input, Please

[piglet too]

From a mechanics point of view, I avoid anything with a Nissan logo on it.

From a Chevrolet mechanic point of view, there's a reason I drive a Ford.

If I had to choose between a Nissan anything or a chevy equinox, I'd buy a bus pass.

Lol, and I know Ford mechanics that refuse to drive Fords. My brother-in-law is a mechanic and hates pretty much every manufacturer. Good friend is also a mechanic and works at an auto parts store, while he likes Subaru (for example) he hates doing repairs or trying to order parts.

OP, what is it about these two that you like the most? I spent a lot of time "building" different cars, and made a list of things that I felt were a "must" and "would be nice".

 

[loves to dive]

I just bought a 2016 Nissan Rouge in December. I love it. For those concerned about the blind spot and backing up, it has blind spot notifications on each mirror and both a backup and front camera (that sucker comes in handy when parking in the garage so I don't hit my honey's Infinity). I did a lot of research before I bought it and in the price range I was looking in, both it and the Toyota Rav 4 were highly rated. I have no problem with power, as a matter of fact we drove to WDW last week and my son decided to pass someone who was going at least 60 and had no problem getting the quick response needed. They come with an annoying notification if you leave your lane, it beeps but that can be turned off (mine actually didn't have it, yea me). There is also notifications if you get to too close in the front to another car and it will start braking for you, that can be turned off as well. I didn't want a full size SUV, was trading in my beloved Chevy HHR (it was named Kit) because I was starting to have issues with it. Looked at the Chevy but just didn't like it and it wasn't well rated. Looked at the Honda but it reminded me of a soccer mom car.

 

[IndyRnRfan]

You are going to get a ton of opinions and you know what they say about opinions. Research the web for both vehicles, Consumer reports is a joke so don't go by what they say. Go test drive both and then sleep on it for a while and then make a decision. Your best bet is to browse the Nissan forums and Chevy forums. There you will get the best advice and honest real life opinions because they all own them. Almost every car/truck forum has a thread specific to "problems". Now, remember it is a specific forum and there will be problems. Many are owner issues but some could be manufacturer problems as well.

My $.02. I personally don't like CVT transmissions so I will never own one for now. I have an 05 Nissan Frontier and other than tires brakes and oil has pretty much been flawless and an 09 Nissan Altima that my son drives with a CVT that has 154k on it and have only replaced what I mentioned above. I would never buy a Subaru because you have to be on top of checking the oil since they are known to lose a quart per 1000 miles and they consider this normal. I always maintain all my vehicles but I would not recommend a Subaru to anyone unless they are very anal about checking fluids and doing the maintenance like the manual says to. We have had excellent luck with Honda. We are on our second CRV and both were the best vehicles I have ever had and that is around 15 cars and trucks from just about every manufacturer that sells in North America.

http://forums.nicoclub.com/rogue-forum.html
http://www.chevyequinoxforum.com/

 

[learningtolive]

I just bought a new car to get out of a terrible loan I got a few years ago due to bad credit at the time.

I initially wanted a Rogue but then my husband started looking at other SUV/crossovers and I found the Jeep Renegade. I got mine in a bright orange cause that's who I am. I love bright! I got the Latitude version so it has some of the bells and whistles I wanted, including a backup camera. Plus they're doing $1000 cash back for buyers through March. I love it. Everything about it I love honestly. When I bought my last car, on that bad loan, I drove it home and thought "What did I do?" but with this, I feel great about it. Worth a look into at least if you want to go SUV way.

 

[JustCallMeMommy]

I just bought a 2016 Rouge, and I love it. It is the perfect size and it is a more substantial vehicle than the Hyundai Tuscon I had before. I do highly recommend the cameras and blind spot detection. There is a blind spot, but with good driving habits (actually looking), correct mirror adjustment, and the blind spot lights and beeps, it is pretty much a non-factor. I went with the middle model (SV) with the premium package.

 

[WishingOnAStar]

I LOVE my Nissan Rogue. When my first one was only 3 months old, I was hit head on at stop light. I was pushed back 600+ yards and over 2 lanes, all the air bags deployed and the car was totaled. However, I pretty much walked away. I replaced that one with another one.

 

[Bianca and Bernard]

I hated my Equinox. Ok, I loved it...the first year. Then we moved to FL and it just went downhill.

There was a problem with it, and Chevy swore up and down there wasn't one. Not just with mine, several dozen people on the internet reported the similar issues. (Driving between 65-70, in a rainstorm, with cruise control on, would cause my car to die. Just stop running. There was leaking from the engine compartment under the dash into the front floorboards. The carpet was soaked all the way back to the rear end. They kept swearing it was the window/door seals, but they replaced them 3 times before admitting that it wasn't the problem. They had to pull all the carpeting/foam down to the metal because I had mold. Also, mold in the dash because of the leak. Shorted out speakers and CD player because of leak, and I think that's what caused the car to shut down. It would only happen when it rained. Got rid of it & left a note in the owners manual for whatever sap bought it next, so they'd know what had happened.)

No more Chevy's here.

 

[willowsnn3]

I have had my 2016 Equinox since Dec, still have a little less than 2,000 miles on it and so far I am loving it.
I did notice some blind spots when I first got it but as another poster said, checking mirrors and the back up camera and safe driving practices, they don't bother me anymore.
We rented a Rogue for a Disney trip a few years ago and really liked it also.

 

[strat68]

Honda, Subaru or Toyota. I personally wouldn't consider any other manufacturers.

Yep. We got 11+ years each out of our 2 Toyotas and, so far, 6+ problem free years from a Honda CRV. We'll never buy another American car until they start equaling the problem-free longevity of our Japanese cars.

Don't even get me started on Fords.

 

[tvguy]

Lol, and I know Ford mechanics that refuse to drive Fords. My brother-in-law is a mechanic and hates pretty much every manufacturer. Good friend is also a mechanic and works at an auto parts store, while he likes Subaru (for example) he hates doing repairs or trying to order parts.

OP, what is it about these two that you like the most? I spent a lot of time "building" different cars, and made a list of things that I felt were a "must" and "would be nice".

LOL. I don't know too many mechanics whose personal cars I would feel safe in. A good friend has been a mechanic for a Toyota dealer since 1969, has never purchased a car for more than $500 and never purchased a car with less than 200,000 miles on it and a car that did not have a salvage title.
My mechanic is driving a first year Escalade, I think it had 300,000 miles on it when he got it.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

I have an Acura RDX... Similarly sized to what you're looking for. I love it.

 

[mrsstats]

Just read online that Hyundai has the least amount of major breakdowns and the annual cost to repair is the lowest. I thin it was called Carmd or something like that.

 

[CynBeth]

We are now an all Chevy family. I used to have Saturns until they stopped making them and the cost to repair my 2008 was not worth it anymore it was better to just put that money towards a new car. I have a 2015 Chevy Cruze. My husband has a 2014 Chevy Equinox and mom has a 2010 Chevy Malibu with hardly any issues.

 

[tvguy]

Just read online that Hyundai has the least amount of major breakdowns and the annual cost to repair is the lowest. I thin it was called Carmd or something like that.

Hyundai and Kia both have great reps now, which make sense since they are the same company.

 

[SkaGoat]

We had a 2012 Rogue, and a 2015 Rogue. We have really liked both vehicles, and had no mechanical problems at all. The first few years had CVT problems, but they have been figured out, and they're reliable.