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SUV'S (1 Viewer)

C

cubd8

Footballguy
Hello,

I'm starting to look into buying a new vehicle, and am interested in exploring the market for smaller SUV's that are driven by men (not soccer mom's, for example).

Looking for the best combination of style, fuel efficiency, reliability and cost..

Anyone else in the market? Would like to start compiling that list this spring and then potentially make a purchase this summer/fall.

 
I can't say enough about my Explorer Sport. If you're looking for a little speed, I don't think it can be beat. My first Explorer was an 8 cylinder and was a beast but fast. My second one was a 6 and I was always disappointed in the performance. But this one, a 2013 has it all. Style, performance and good gas mileage. Not sure of the comparison to others in gas.

Not cheap though.

Though it performs comparably to many of its more expensive competitors and even has the aggressive styling to match, the Explorer Sport is often overlooked due to its lack of brand recognition. You’re probably not going to wow your friends when they find out you drive a Ford Explorer as opposed to a more-prestigious BMW X5. But if impressing others isn’t high on your list of priorities, the Explorer Sport is undeniably the best value in the performance SUV segment today.
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Outside the premium brands I think this one, among the smaller SUVs, looks pretty sweet.

ford-edge-sport.jpg


 
I have a 2011 Audi Q5 and it's a decent car.  Only major issues are the nav system blows (may have been upgraded by Audi since then), and the back seat is not that comfortable.  If I were in the market today, I would lean towards the BMW X5, which has a much better back seat.

 
I drive a 2015 Ford Edge Sport. My brother in law got a 2016 Escape right after Christmas.  My edge I would consider midsize, the Escape small.   Love the new Nav tech package on the 2016 Fords. Voice texts and touch screen are improved so much from what I have. 

 
2008-2015 Lexus LX 350.

Several awards won by the third-generation Lexus RX include AutoPacific Vehicle Satisfaction Award for Luxury Crossover SUV,[83] Kelley Blue Book Best Resale Value Award for Luxury Utility Vehicle,[84] and Residual Value Award for Near Luxury SUV from Automotive Lease Guide.[85] The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has awarded the RX 350 its Top Safety Pick accolade.[86][87]In 2013, J.D. Power and Associates named the RX as the most dependable vehicle in the U.S.; it was the first time a SUV/crossover had ever been listed as such.[88]

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) crash test results has given the RX 350 the maximum five star rating in the Frontal Driver, Frontal Passenger, Side Driver, and Side Rear Passenger categories, and four of five stars in the Rollover category at a risk of 16.4%.[89] The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety rated the RX 350 a Top Safety Pick given "Good" overall ratings in both frontal offset and side crash tests, the RX also received "Good" ratings in all 14 measured categories.[86][87]
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Doctor Detroit said:
That's a "smaller" SUV?
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I didn't notice "smaller." Sorry.

Of the smaller SUVs I rank the top contenders this way:

  1. Honda CR-V EX-L AWD
  2. Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring AWD
  3. Toyota RAV4 Limited AWD
  4. Ford Escape Titanium AWD
 
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The very vehicle you describe is what women want in a car. If there is such a thing as chick and dude cars, you're asking for a chick one.

 
johnnyrock62000 said:
I didn't notice "smaller." Sorry.

Of the smaller SUVs I rank the top contenders this way:

  1. Honda CR-V EX-L AWD
  2. Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring AWD
  3. Toyota RAV4 Limited AWD
  4. Ford Escape SEL AWD
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Why did you choose the top trim levels for the Honda, Mazda, and Toyota, but not the Ford?  

 
Not the prettiest looking SUV by any means but I LOVED my subaru forester... thing was a beast in the snow (if that applies to you) and I really liked driving it when it wasnt snowing too. It was small enough that it got good gas mileage and wasn't a pain in the #### in the city but there was enough storage for us to do most of what we needed to do.  Plus there were almost no blind spots in it for me because of the way the windows were laid out (I felt like the Rav 4, CRV, etc all had too many blind spots)

Unfortunately family outgrew it so we had to trade it in, but I miss it. 

 
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Make sure you go test drive a Kia Sorento as well.  All the features the others have with good mpg and not the sticker shock.  Plus they have Audi's old chief designer on staff now.

 
I have the Santa Fe Sport 2.0T AWD. Thing hauls ### when the turbo kicks in. Great handling, I like the styling, all the bells and whistles. Big fan. 

 
Car and Driver review of the Santa Fe Sport...

6.6 second 0-60. 

That’s pretty close to tops in this class, a tribute to the power traits of the optional 2.0-liter turbo. At 264 horsepower and 269 lb-ft of torque, its output is robust by compact-SUV standards. But its most endearing virtue is midrange response. The turbocharger comes online almost instantaneously, delivering a habit-forming surge, and if the six-speed automatic isn’t particularly gratifying in manual mode, its programming makes it intuitively responsive when it’s operating in full automatic.
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http://m.caranddriver.com/news/2015-hyundai-santa-fe-sport-awd-20t-test-review

[/QUOTE]
 
Screw the small SUVs. Go midsize. I love my Toyota 4Runner so much it's silly. Rock solid, reliable as hell, roomy, holds value,  has good towing capacity, and gets about 20MPG HWY (16-18 city). Awesome for long road trips and daily driving. 

 
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I heart my 13 lincoln mkx.  Excels in all areas except for possibly the 21 mpg being on the low side.  Worth it.

 
My buddy is about to buy a 2012 X5 with 31k miles on it for $30k.

That's crazy to me.  Also some of the cars listed in this thread have some terrible reliability reviews, although not to the level of Jeep and Range Rover products. 

 
Wingnut said:
Screw the small SUVs. Go midsize. I love my Toyota 4Runner so much it's silly. Rock solid, reliable as hell, roomy, holds value,  has good towing capacity, and gets about 20MPG HWY (16-18 city). Awesome for long road trips and daily driving. 
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You must have one of the older 4-runners that had the v8 which is awesome.    Now the towing capacity is amongst the worst in the segment at 4700 lbs.  when most mid-size products have 5000.   And in general the towing capcity of the suv segment has went to hell since most suv's are unibody or crossover style rather than body on frame... which admittedly is what most people want... it also is better for gas mileage.

It's my frustration with the entire SUV segment...  i can't find what I want...   there's either the mid-size SUV's with a 5000 lb. max,   the hulking massive SUV's..  or a few really expensive luxury suv's that actually do some legit towing.

I can't find the equivalent of my trailblazer anymore...  affordable,  tows nearly 6000 lbs, and isn't massive

 
Dentist said:
You must have one of the older 4-runners that had the v8 which is awesome.    Now the towing capacity is amongst the worst in the segment at 4700 lbs.  when most mid-size products have 5000.   And in general the towing capcity of the suv segment has went to hell since most suv's are unibody or crossover style rather than body on frame... which admittedly is what most people want... it also is better for gas mileage.

It's my frustration with the entire SUV segment...  i can't find what I want...   there's either the mid-size SUV's with a 5000 lb. max,   the hulking massive SUV's..  or a few really expensive luxury suv's that actually do some legit towing.

I can't find the equivalent of my trailblazer anymore...  affordable,  tows nearly 6000 lbs, and isn't massive
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If you can hold out another 3 years - Ford is bringing back the Bronco to be based on the Ranger platform.

Ranger and Bronco to return to US

 
All joking about their dumb commercials and the age of their drivers aside, I've read good things about the Buick Enclave. I'll at least look at them now as opposed to dismissing offhand.

 
I did most of my looking/research in the "mid-sized and large" SUV's but we really liked the Hyundai Santa Fe and if we didn't need a bigger vehicle then likely would have got that. I have never heard a bad thing from owners of it either.

 
BowieMercs said:
Subaru Outback
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So you do not have to be hairy arm-pitted lesbian to drive one? See, I told my brother the same thing when he was contemplating purchasing one.  Then he started looking around, and the next thing you know it was off his list.  Of course maybe that's just a Colorado thing.  For instance the lesbians I know in Wisconsin and Minnesota who own them almost all shave their armpits.

 
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FWIW, of the vehicles being discussed in this thread,  the Suburu Forrester is consumer reports #1 rated small SUV

The CRV by Honda is generally #2 along with the Lexus RX350

 
BowieMercs said:
Call it what you will. Subaru AWD beats most if not all other AWD / 4x4 systems. The newer outbacks have the ground clearance of an SUV & lost favor with the fans of the older wagon-ish outback.
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Honest question.... how can one AWD be better than another? And how in the world better than 4X4? All that AWD means is that all four wheels have power driven through them but if one tire gets stuck the power goes to the opposite tire, whereas the 4X4 has a locked differential and thus wont transfer power and spin wheels if stuck.

 
Chadstroma said:
Honest question.... how can one AWD be better than another? And how in the world better than 4X4? All that AWD means is that all four wheels have power driven through them but if one tire gets stuck the power goes to the opposite tire, whereas the 4X4 has a locked differential and thus wont transfer power and spin wheels if stuck.
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It's all ball bearings nowadays

 
We almost bought the outback when we were looking. It's a great vehicle but I liked the ride height of an SUV better. 

I drive clients around from time to time so a taller vehicle is easier to get in and out (some of our clients are in their 70s). 

 
Chadstroma said:
Honest question.... how can one AWD be better than another? And how in the world better than 4X4? All that AWD means is that all four wheels have power driven through them but if one tire gets stuck the power goes to the opposite tire, whereas the 4X4 has a locked differential and thus wont transfer power and spin wheels if stuck.
Click to expand...


That's a fair question and i don't know the answer.

But in a review cosumer reports did in the snow comparing the handling of the forrester vs. the rav 4 and the crv the forrester was the clear winner with how their AWD system reacted in the conditions...  it was obvious in their video.

 
Dentist said:
That's a fair question and i don't know the answer.

But in a review cosumer reports did in the snow comparing the handling of the forrester vs. the rav 4 and the crv the forrester was the clear winner with how their AWD system reacted in the conditions...  it was obvious in their video.
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I am wondering if it has to do with traction control, which may or may not be directly related to AWD... though I don't think so because non-AWD have traction control or should better be called driver control.

 
My in-laws have the GMC Terrain. Nice mid-size SUV. It's the GMC model of the Chevy Equinox, so it's upgraded a little bit.

If we were going to be getting something, we'd be looking at the Acadia, the larger version of the GMC, since we need the third row.

 
Mr. Ected said:
My in-laws have the GMC Terrain. Nice mid-size SUV. It's the GMC model of the Chevy Equinox, so it's upgraded a little bit.

If we were going to be getting something, we'd be looking at the Acadia, the larger version of the GMC, since we need the third row.
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I got an Acadia last year. Love it. I mostly targeted it from my research because we needed the size third row but my research showed it to be one of the safest vehicles out there. MPG is a bit lower than most of it's competition but I was willing to give that up for a higher degree of safety. Literally I have only one complaint: There is no hook for dry cleaning on the second row... it is back on the third row which means it is impossible to reach from the door and very hard to reach from the rear door. NO idea who the genius was on coming up with that but it is pretty dumb. However, if that ends up being my only complaint on it in owning it then I am VERY happy with that. The Acadia is the GMC version of the Chevy Traverse and the Buick Enclave. I considered all three but got a bit more money's worth with the GMC at the time with the deals available.

 
Chadstroma said:
I got an Acadia last year. Love it. I mostly targeted it from my research because we needed the size third row but my research showed it to be one of the safest vehicles out there. MPG is a bit lower than most of it's competition but I was willing to give that up for a higher degree of safety. Literally I have only one complaint: There is no hook for dry cleaning on the second row... it is back on the third row which means it is impossible to reach from the door and very hard to reach from the rear door. NO idea who the genius was on coming up with that but it is pretty dumb. However, if that ends up being my only complaint on it in owning it then I am VERY happy with that. The Acadia is the GMC version of the Chevy Traverse and the Buick Enclave. I considered all three but got a bit more money's worth with the GMC at the time with the deals available.
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my sister has an acadia.. awesome car.    Wish they had a v8 option or something... the towing is paltry at 5200 lbs.. and that's good for the class outside of the durango

 
Wingnut said:
Screw the small SUVs. Go midsize. I love my Toyota 4Runner so much it's silly. Rock solid, reliable as hell, roomy, holds value,  has good towing capacity, and gets about 20MPG HWY (16-18 city). Awesome for long road trips and daily driving. 
Click to expand...
What year?

 
Dentist said:
You must have one of the older 4-runners that had the v8 which is awesome.    Now the towing capacity is amongst the worst in the segment at 4700 lbs.  when most mid-size products have 5000.   And in general the towing capcity of the suv segment has went to hell since most suv's are unibody or crossover style rather than body on frame... which admittedly is what most people want... it also is better for gas mileage.

It's my frustration with the entire SUV segment...  i can't find what I want...   there's either the mid-size SUV's with a 5000 lb. max,   the hulking massive SUV's..  or a few really expensive luxury suv's that actually do some legit towing.

I can't find the equivalent of my trailblazer anymore...  affordable,  tows nearly 6000 lbs, and isn't massive
Click to expand...
Durango with a V-8 tows 7,400lbs. Though maybe you don't consider it "affordable"?

 
Payne said:
Durango with a V-8 tows 7,400lbs. Though maybe you don't consider it "affordable"?
Click to expand...


Oh, the durango is very affordable.    It's probably the SUV that fits my needs the best.

It's Dodge's reliability ratings that hack me off on that purchase...     Jeep Grand Cherokee has the same tow rating.

I want a Toyota or Chevy that tows 7000 pounds without being massive like a TAhoe or Sequoia

 
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