Which car does this describe?

[MICKEY88]

I must have misunderstood. Perhaps you could clarify?

That's not the issue though. Let me ask you to clarify, so I better understand: Who should be buying new cars?

and the issue isn't who should be buying new cars, my confusion came from what you told us, when someone else mentioned getting a good used car, you clearly stated that you wouldn't be able to find a used car that was any better than what you have, since a low mileage certified pre owned is just as good as new, one can deduct that a new car would be no better than what you have now, that doesn't mean anyone is a moron, just that you have some good used cars..

 

[bicker]

anyone with a little patience, a little mecahnical ability and the skill to use the internet . . .

Ack... I only qualify 1 out of 3.... Guess I'll need help with that.

Seriously. There is no way we're ever going to go back to trusting those kinds of shops. We've had too many bad experiences with too many of them shafting us and not doing anything to make good - or just vanishing to avoid folks coming back to demand satisfaction (and probably opening up under some other name down the street). At this point, if it isn't a relative running the shop (and I'll still have to exclude some of my second cousins), I don't trust those places one hundredths as much as I trust the dealerships. I've never been abandoned by a dealership. I've never had a dealership install something or fix something and then six weeks later say that the fact that it broke isn't their problem.

just that you have some good used cars..

Perhaps we do, with the exception of the seating comfort issue I mentioned before. So perhaps it boils down to the question: What do you do if you buy a car, after careful research and considering lots of recommendations from people you know, and it seems comfortable after three different test drives, but then your seats end up being not comfortable enough for long trips, so much so that your wife is unhappy and demands that we not make the same "mistake" this time?

 

[bicker]

Folks: Thanks for the pointers to the Crosstour, the Audi, and the Volvo... we may stop into some dealers this weekend to at least take a look at them.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Have the two of you ever had a car you feel is really comfortable on long road trips Humans are just not made to sit for such long periods of time. Personally I have found some are more uncomfortable than others--but nothing is really comfy after 6 hours

Sorry I can't make any recommendations for you. We find a higher end VW Passat to be very comfy and very reliable, it is a diesel and gets great mileage, etc--but what we have is not available in the US market. The US Passats are not made nearly as well--they cost less but for a reason. You are asking an awful lot for the price you are willing to pay.

Oh, and I am simply curious--if it is your wife's car and she has such strong opinions why even bother researching yourself--just turn her lose online v My husband pretty much always researches and picks our cars but that is because i don't care about anything but heated seats and having a stick shift The other thing I am curious about is why you wll not consider having dedicated snow tires instead of AWD Living in the land of "winter tires" I am truly interested in the rationale there. Not being critical--just wondering why it is not even worth considering.

 

[bicker]

Have the two of you ever had a car you feel is really comfortable on long road trips

My Subaru SUS, for the first eight years or so. After that, the driver's side cushion was so badly worn-out that it just wasn't comfortable anymore.

Oh, and I am simply curious--if it is your wife's car and she has such strong opinions why even bother researching yourself--just turn her lose online

That's not the way things work here.

Wife complains; husband does the online searches. Don't chya know?

Seriously, my wife probably would buy a Cooper Mini (purple, probably), and I'm sure most folks in this thread can list a dozen reasons why she'll be unhappy with that decision, a few months from now. I tend to be the wet blanket (big surprise eh?) thinking about how things will work out in the long-term.

The other thing I am curious about is why you wll not consider having dedicated snow tires instead of AWD

We both feel far safer with AWD than with snow tires. It is also a matter of convenience; snow tires means having to put them on and then take them off.

 

[NHdisneylover]

Thanks for answering my questions.

Maybe look into another Subaru then and just plan on replacing the seat (or cushion) seven or eight years from now.

Funny, I feel safer with good winter tires. I guess that is why everyone is different

 

[bicker]

Maybe look into another Subaru then and just plan on replacing the seat (or cushion) seven or eight years from now.

Seriously, one idea I floated was replacing the sport package seats in my BMW with the regular non-sport package seats. BMW says no. Grrr.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I'll pass that along to her.

As it is, I'd consider "incredible shocks" as indicated by the ratings on "the vehicle's suspension systems, including ... handling stability". Comfort ratings are about "the vehicle's comfort and convenience features and seats." Hopefully the analysts doing the ratings record their input in the corresponding category.

We're really very-much concerned about seat-comfort. Car after car after car, we've been substantially disappointed with the comfort of the seats, specifically. And it carries on from cars into our home. We've gone through several easy chairs, couches, recliners, etc., looking for that perfect sitting-situation for watching television. We're still looking.

Gotcha. I have a lazyboy where the "head pillow" where you rest your head is just not in the right position. I have a reverse curve in my neck--so this "comfort feature" causes neck strain and headAches.

I'd be looking for a seat that doesn't flatten over time. That linley would be a measurable objective feature.

 

[tvguy]

hehe... so we're back to Square One: I know my wife: The ones she's interested in are the ones that have top category ratings for comfort and reliability.

I'm going to try to reserve one now. We have a trip coming up in September we could so this for.

EDITED: Darn. Hertz doesn't rent any of the cars we've talked about in this thread, here.

Hertz rents Escape Hybrids here.

Good luck, sounds like you have your hands full.
Only car mistake I've made with my wife in 28 years of marriage is deciding to replace her 15 old car with a very nice used car. She would have rather I dumped $4,000 in her old car to replace the engine and transmission. Her only qwirk about cars is, she wants to be the only person to have ever owned it. So, I bought her a brand new car in 2000, and she expects that to be her last car....and she's only 53.

 

[Hillbeans]

I haven't seen it mentioned yet but I have a Saab 9-3 that would probably fit most of the bill - gets 28 MPG on highway, is not as luxurious as the BMW but was rated the safest car in it's class the year I got it (2004). I had the first 50K miles covered for almost all service.

Unfortunately Saab took a huge hit 2-3 years ago and almost went out of business. I am not quite sure what they are manufacturing at the moment. I have 99K on my car and the hope is that we'll keep the car long enough for one of my kids to drive it in about 6 years. Sadly, I need a bigger car and Saab doesn't yet have the crossover SUV for sale. I am thinking about the Volvo XC60 but like the way the Buick Enclave looks - love the 2nd row Captain's chairs without the sliding Minivan doors.

While I love my Saab, my DH thinks it's uncomfortable. I'm 5 foot 7 and it fits me well, he's 6 foot and says it's not comfortable. I think car buying is such a personal feeling that what is perfect for one is not for another. Good luck!

 

[WDWBarb]

Am I the first vote for the Toyota Prius? I adore mine. You can get integrated bluetooth and voice-activated GPS. It handles GREAT in snow. It's very roomy and comfortable.

Mine is 7 years old with 120,000 miles and has never once been in the shop!

 

[tvguy]

Am I the first vote for the Toyota Prius? I adore mine. You can get integrated bluetooth and voice-activated GPS. It handles GREAT in snow. It's very roomy and comfortable.

Mine is 7 years old with 120,000 miles and has never once been in the shop!

Wow, you haven't had to replace the batteries yet? I see a lot of Prius' on eBay of that age that mention they have new batteries.

 

[RC Fan]

The other thing I am curious about is why you wll not consider having dedicated snow tires instead of AWD Living in the land of "winter tires" I am truly interested in the rationale there. Not being critical--just wondering why it is not even worth considering.

This is a contentious issue, but winter tires on a front wheel drive car are not a viable substitute for a car equipped with AWD.

Bicker, there aren't a lot of affordable options when one is searching for an AWD sedan. Subaru, Lexus, Infinity, Audi, BMW, VW come to mind.

 

[MICKEY88]

This is a contentious issue, but winter tires on a front wheel drive car are not a viable substitute for a car equipped with AWD.

Bicker, there aren't a lot of affordable options when one is searching for an AWD sedan. Subaru, Lexus, Infinity, Audi, BMW, VW come to mind.

interesting, I drive a 2002 Chrysler 300M Special,{ front wheel drive } I run Blizzak snow tires in the winter and I've driven in several major snow storms without problem, and in these storms I've literally seen dozens of AWD and
4WD vehicles stuck along side the road..

 

[DISdreamin']

This is a contentious issue, but winter tires on a front wheel drive car are not a viable substitute for a car equipped with AWD.

Hmm...can you show me the data on this? Honestly, in my limited experience I've been very pleased with foul-weather handling of a FWD vehicle with dedicated snow tires. While I would assume comparing FWD and AWD both with snows, the AWD would be superior, does AWD with "all-season" tires actually outperform a FWD vehicle with snows?

I would think much of it comes down to driving conditions. Here, we're only worried about paved roads with snow and ice, not off-road conditions. You need a certain amount of clearance to keep from running into issues in heavy snow, but a FWD car with sufficient clearance seems to do just fine.

+1 to Mickey88 with the AWD/4WD vehicles in the ditch while my FWD car (I've been running Nokian Hakka's) does just fine.

OP, good luck with your search. Having read through the entire thread though, I'm not sure how much success you'll have. If you can't seem to find comfortable seating in your living room, I'm not sure there is much hope of finding it in a vehicle, honestly!

 

[bicker]

Perhaps, but keep in mind that "no answer" is an answer. If you test a hypothesis and the test fails, that's not a bad thing: You still have learned an essential bit of information.

 

[RC Fan]

interesting, I drive a 2002 Chrysler 300M Special,{ front wheel drive } I run Blizzak snow tires in the winter and I've driven in several major snow storms without problem, and in these storms I've literally seen dozens of AWD and
4WD vehicles stuck along side the road..

I am glad you have had good luck with your 300M. My experience has been the opposite of yours.

Hmm...can you show me the data on this? Honestly, in my limited experience I've been very pleased with foul-weather handling of a FWD vehicle with dedicated snow tires. While I would assume comparing FWD and AWD both with snows, the AWD would be superior, does AWD with "all-season" tires actually outperform a FWD vehicle with snows?

Nope, just personal opinion. I did see a show on the issue, which was done somewhere in Europe, and the AWD car was superior.

 

[DISdreamin']

Nope, just personal opinion. I did see a show on the issue, which was done somewhere in Europe, and the AWD car was superior.

Hmm...I wonder what kind of tires were used on each. It's so hard to draw a conclusion without knowing the details. Anyways, living where I do (we average about 10 feet of snow a year, with 12-18" bursts not uncommon), I've been satisfied with FWD with unstudded snows. I'll see what an AWD/4WD vehicle will do this winter...I'm not sure whether I'll get the snows on it for the first winter, so I may be able to give you an update in a few months.

OP, yup. Experiments don't always yield positive results, that's for sure! FWIW, I went and drove a Fusion since it had been so highly recommended by a number of sites and mags...I just wasn't impressed. I drove the trim level with leather and such, and it just didn't seem/feel worth the money. IMO, it felt sort of cheap, and I didn't necessarily trust the reliability track record yet. Of course, I'm one of those people who would avoid buying the first year of a new gen/redesign for fear of issues. The Taurus, BTW, is the biggest TANK I have ever seen - that's literally what it reminded me of!

 

[WDWBarb]

Wow, you haven't had to replace the batteries yet? I see a lot of Prius' on eBay of that age that mention they have new batteries.

I've changed the battery but not THE battery. I've never heard of anyone having to do that? The car runs as great as it did the day I brought it home. It has been by far the best car I have ever owned.

 

[RC Fan]

Hmm...I wonder what kind of tires were used on each. It's so hard to draw a conclusion without knowing the details. Anyways, living where I do (we average about 10 feet of snow a year, with 12-18" bursts not uncommon), I've been satisfied with FWD with unstudded snows. I'll see what an AWD/4WD vehicle will do this winter...I'm not sure whether I'll get the snows on it for the first winter, so I may be able to give you an update in a few months.

I am not sure what tires were used.

We get lots of snow here as well. Let's not think about that right now!