Time For A New Car

[vf-xx]

I would kill a man to witness Thor bike his *** around for 3 miles a day through a Jersey winter. Best suggestion yet!

http://www.popularmechanics.com/outdoors/sports/4204339.html

Could be FUN!!

[Lohman446]

I would not own a Nissan suv/truck. Their cars are 10X better than their trucks/suv. I would not own anything Chrysler. Imo they are cheaply made. If I were purchasing a suv I would purchase a trail blazer for something small/cheaper on gas. If purchasing a truck I would prefer a chevy over ford, but ford over any of the rest. For a car I would look at older Mercedes or Cadillacs, but since you need it new it would throw those vehicles out of your price range.

If you can help it go south for your car. The cars we get from "up north" are nothing but rust underneath.

There is a point about rust. However, keep in mind getting too close to salt water can also attract rust. IMHO Cadillacs do not age well (Mid 90's up Cadillacs being rather unimpressive). Trailblazer / Explorer were both decent but both had there own idiosyncracies (Trailblazer rear ends, and did you know the bypass hose calls for 9HRs to change and pulling of the transmission - retarded design (you can replace just the end that leaks by pulling the alternator and cutting the pipe)). That being said the Explorers had ball joint issues (and the CV axle design had rear end bearing issues) so they even out somewhere. I would agree that Chrysler would not be my first pick in any segment (possible exception a cheap Neon Wagon... err Caliber). Personally I think the full size SUVs (Suburban / Tahoe w/ third seat) hold value better over the long run as far as SUVs - and your commute the mileage doesn't matter. Both of those over an Expedition - and a diesel Excursion will be killed by starting it and shutting it down in three miles so its out.

[SCpoloRicker]

For 8 you can buy... oh... A 2006 Focus with 50K miles on it

I bought a then-3 year old 2002 Focus for $7k with 36k miles; so I'm really getting a kick out of a lot of these replies.

/nothing wrong with the Focus, great little beater

[Lohman446]

I bought a then-3 year old 2002 Focus for $7k with 36k miles; so I'm really getting a kick out of a lot of these replies.

/nothing wrong with the Focus, great little beater

I have a two door sitting on the lot that I have $6900 on, and it could go a bit less. I would guess we are playing in the right ball game

/I hear Toyotas are cheap now

[Swampy]

By no means am I mechanic, but I do my fair amount of truck buying. Currently I own 6 trucks ranging from 1/2 tons to a F550, and looking to add more.

If you decide to the pick up route what fuel type would you want? Gas or Diesel.

What size or class of truck will suit your needs? 1/4, 1/2, 3/4, 1 ton.

Toyota's honestly they are pretty good trucks. I've heard about some frame issues in their 03 tundra's frame rusting out plus I don't like the style of the frame. Minus the cost though.

A few things to watch out for, if its got a plow or just the subplow framing under it. Means yes it has plowed snow which can lead towards premature front suspension failure. Trailer hitches if you can read the data plate attached to them watch out for the heavier class hitches, espeically the class 4 or 5 hitches it means they were towing something that could have been to heavy for it. I have a class four on my dodge 1500 only for the pintle setup that I need when I rent either a concrete mixer or the compressor that I use for irragation blowouts at the end of season or the jackhammer.

Don't forget since your looking at SUV's about Jeep's.

[bofh]

Here's my two crazy cents.

Volvo.

Early 2000's go for under 6k, AWD was fairly popular, some of the trim levels can have a damn peppy engine. (and others can be chipped) The station wagons can haul a lot of people or stuff, *and* you don't have to watch the height restrictions parking decks. The kind of people that buy Volvo's normally take good care of them too.

There's the stigma of being a Volvo, but I think you'd be fine with that after owning the Princess

[bofh]

Or, if you're brave, I bet you could pick up a brand new Hummer H3 for pretty cheap.

[behemoth]

erry time i drive my volvo...

They tow the shat.

[Soopa Villain17]

i vote for a focus. ive had my 05 for over 3 years and i love it.

[Swampy]

Still going on the Pickup truck. Work all week then hit the mud on the weekends.

[MANN]

Here's my two crazy cents.

Volvo.

Here's my 2 cents. Dont take bofh's 2 cents. volvos are expensive as heck to work on/have work done to them. They are no more dependable than any other jap/us car.

[FA22RaptorF22]

Here's my 2 cents. Dont take bofh's 2 cents. volvos are expensive as heck to work on/have work done to them. They are no more dependable than any other jap/us car.

QFT. Volvos, or any foreign cars for that matter....are a pain to work on.

Just changing the oil involves taking six bolts and a bottom access panel off. What a pain.

My vote goes to a jap car...more specifically, THREE letters.

.......R S X

[LinearGoose]

Saab

[Thordic]

more specifically, THREE letters.

.......R S X

You couldn't pay me to drive an Acura. I'm not a 22 year old douchebag. Maybe things are different where you live.

Looking at the XTerra soon simply because its closeby and I found it already. Meanwhile the search continues. I'm kinda meh on volvo's but I'm not beyond taking a look.

[Lohman446]

Saab

Why? They are currently an orphaned car company. There is little doubt value will plummet and price / service availability may become an issue.

On the other side: My issue with Volvo comes from working at a dealer. I once asked a factory rep why they were not at all concerned about transmission issues on the 850 (that dates it some). The sealed nature of the transmission was part of it, and they usually went out around 80K. He explained to me there priority customers are the customers who buy a new Volvo every 2yrs / 25K miles. The warranty was 5 yrs / 50K at that time and he could goodwill for a repeat customer to 6 / 60. So a repeat customer who had missed 2 buy cycles could still be covered. He explained to me he cared about that customer who purchased new and the resale value. After that he frankly stated it wasn't really a factory concern what happened with the car after that. Volvo built its reputation with the old 240 battle tank. They no longer produce it and the cars they produce now are not even built on the same theories (reliability and safety being the only concerns). Somewhere asthetics and performance came in (The S80 was available with high pressure turbos and a top speed of 184MPH).