Thinking of an SUV.... probably second hand low mileage.... where to go?

So I'm thinking of an SUV. Decided with my health issues I no longer need a pickup. I have a 2005 Dodge Dakota Quad Cab. Been a great vehicle except for MPG. Just had to put $400 in it yesterday.... 130,000 miles. I'm thinking and SUV would be nice again. I once owned a Ford Exploder. Tell me your preferences and why. I'm probably going to be looking for something no more than a 2 or possibly 3 years old....20,000 miles or so would be good. I've been totally out of the car market since 2006. I know nothing about any of them. A standard tow hitch and 4 wheel is all I need. I just don't feel like paying for a new one. My driving mileage is way down the past 3 or 4 years. At most I'd have one trip a year into Northern Ontario on a rotating basis with my fishing group.... 1200 miles round trip. The rest has become20-25 miles a day

 

My daughter has a trail blazer that seems to be a good one, lots of room and pretty good mileage.

 

I'm biased (as are most car owners), but I've had nothing but positive experiences with 4runners and Explorers in my family. We owned a 1992 Explorer (second year of the 1st gen) that my parents bought new, drove the wheels off, then handed it down to my brother, then my sister, then myself through high school. It had 250K on it when they sold it to another local gentleman who owned it for another 15K, then totaled it. Very little problems with that vehicle. Another co worker here had a 93 and a 98, both aren't taken care of AT ALL. They're still ticking, though. I like the looks of the newest generation, I just don't like how low they sit, granted that's the direction the SUV market is heading (uni-body, vs body on frame).

My wife and I own a 2012 4runner, and while it's way too new to make any reliability claims, we love it. A neighbor of mine has an 07, and my in-laws have an 09. Both vehicles fit and finish are still as good as new, and the interior and build quality is definitely superior to my 05 Tacoma.

I don't have any other experience with many of the other brands, so I won't pretend to comment. I'm sure others will chime in shortly. Good luck!

 

Don't buy a Nissan. That's all I can offer.

 

This, lol. Best decision I made (thanks for the extra nudge last summer, Matt)

 

I have one too and it's been a good reliable vehicle for me.

The gas milage is not good but that normally goes with the territory on a SUV

 

My wife had an X5 and in about 9 months it must have been in the shop at least 6 times. So looking for some reliability we sold it and she has since bought a Honda Pilot...she loves it. We have it for about an year and have had zero issues with it. Gets decent gas mileage for its size( 21-23ish) and its drives very nice, plenty of power and handles well. It roomy enough inside and you have a lot of space in the back with the third row seats down.
The spread between new and used in the Pilots tends to be pretty close because they hold their value and resell quickly. With a low mileage used pilot you will have to consider the added cost if any verses the deprecation of a new vehicle. Depending on if you have added finance costs or pay cash shortens the new vs used spread.

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I'm not rich so havent driven luxery, but the GMC Yukon/Chevy Tahoe is the best riding vehicle I have had.

 

Had an Expedition. Good ride, bad mileage, few problems. My oldest walked away after bouncing it twice off a concrete wall/median and a commercial bus-so it passed on the safety test too. Though it was totalled, so maybe not quite up to all durability standards

 

I would keep your truck, you can fit the same amount of people in a crew cab as an SUV and most SUVs dont really get that much greater fuel economy to suffice over throwing stuff in the bed. Deer, other dead animals, Icefishing equipment, motors and what not. That is just my two cents. I also do not like where the SUV market is going as well. They all have very low ground clearance. Look at all the new Jeeps for example, except the wranglers. I owned three jeeps in my life all older and they were all fantastic and could get through anything. It doesnt look to be the same for the new generation of SUVs. Keep your truck.

 

I've already told everyone I was going to keep it until it died. I'm just starting to search and see what's out there. My truck has 130,000 miles. I spend $1000-1500 a year on maintenance, tires, rotors or whatever else gets worn. The other day I got 2calipers( one under warranty) break pads( one set free with the warrantied caliper) New spark plugs, oil change with all the fixings, thermostat and tire rotation. It was like $380 something. That beats the hell out of a $300-400 dollar payment with a bunch of money down. Someday I'll lose a tranny or front gear box and decide enough is enough.

 

Those Ford Exploders are bad news.

 

Currently own an 2002 X5. Slick looking car, but with the luxury comes quite a bit of maintenance that can be tough on your wallet. I love European cars (German in particular). But these new American made SUV's are nice & easy/ cheap to maintain in comparison to German cars. Honda's and Toyotas are also good. They are tough are hell and dont break easily from what i've been told.

Today its hard to say what manufacture is top dog since cars nowadays are really built equally and there is no clear winner in my opinion. It comes down to personal preference.

 

My wife had a Trailblazer, the biggest P.O.S. out there from all the repairs we had. I would honestly say if you can find a 2009 or newer Honda Pilot to check it out. My wife has a 2011 and there are three rows of seats and still room in the back. Ours gets 18MPG around town and 22-23MPG on the Highway. They are also built in Alabama if I remember correctly. I know Richie Music and 130 Woodsman both have wives driving them as well.

 

Well I guess they must be a P.O.S. if yours sucked...never mind all the people are putting 200k-300k miles on them with few problems

One my best friends is a used car dealer and his business has sold hundreds of them over the years and rarely hear of major issues. Mine has needed no repairs in 4 years. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one.

 

don't understand why you guys knock Nissan hell I have an 01 frontier quadcab 4x4 210,000 on running strong just have to actually take care of your vehicles

 

I know four people including us that had the fuel line into the gas tank corrode, that alone was a small fortune to fix. She also had an issue where the car wouldn't go over 35mph because some fan clutch or B.S. part went out and that was a small fortune. The car also had electrical issues and the battery would die all the time, Chevy never figured out the issue and you couldn't leave it parked more than a week if you wanted it to start. That thing was a 2002 and was junk, a complete pile of crap. She was the original owner and it was impeccably maintained . Sorry if I twisted your panties because our experience and our friends sucked but honestly it is 100% truth. Your friend found every perfect Trailblazer in the country to sell from what it seems, but everyone I know that has owned one is sorry they purchased them. I would never recommend them and my wife twisted my arm for over a year before i finally let her get a Japanese car that was made in the US due to my devoted pride of buying American.

 

2002 was the first year they were made and they had more reliability issues. I avoided that year for that reason.

I'm just glad myself and many other people I know have been so "lucky" with ours

My panty's are not in a twist....just a difference of opinion and experience with Trailblazers

 

I'm still driving the same '96 Chevy S10 Blazer since 2004 that I never wanted. My wife was sick and tired of getting stuck in our '93 F-150 (5 speed 2 WD) so I gave in and picked up that little SUV (her choice). I now use it exclusively for trailering my fishing boat, hunting and collecting firewood. She now has 210,000 miles and records some crazy gas mileage for her age. I applied a few tricks that I learned when I was a mechanic and she still gets 23-24 mpg highway and 18-19 city. For an old 6 cylinder 4 WD that is pretty dang good in my book.

Cons on this truck as she likes to get stuck in now once it is around 14+" deep even with the supposedly 4 WD. Also, doing a tune-up on that 4.3L engine is a pain-in-the-@ss. There is one spark plug that requires a lot of time to replace it.

I can't bash any of the other vehicles mentioned but can tell you that my hunting buddy's Rav-4 has left him stranded a couple of times after a day in the woods (fuel pump and electronic control module) not to mention it does not have a high ground clearance (got stuck in plowed field and over a log in the woods). Ok, I guess I am bashing his SUV....oops.

One of the best SUVs (OK actually a station wagon) I ever hunted out of was a friend's Subaru Outback. Great gas mileage (over 30 mpg) and fairly high ground clearance mixed with all wheel drive. We went thru logging trails and mud that I would have hesitated to with a full-size pick-up.

Good luck with your search!

 

My oldest son is driving a '09 Subaru Outback that is a great vehicle. My wife is driving a '11 GMC Acadia Denali that does not do as well on fuel, but is a very comfortable 7 passenger AWD. No complaints on either from me.