Narrowing the New Car Selection Down

[Midlife]

SWMBO and I went car shopping today, seeing anything and everything that isn't made by Gov't Motors or Crapsler. Her criteria is that the rear access has to be at least 34" high and big enough to fit the dog carrier.

Ford: Explorer too small; Flex too small. Transit Connect big enough, and we took it for a test drive. Visibility is excellent, get-up-and-go isn't bad at all for city driving, and brakes a tad touchy, but easily gotten use to.

Kia: Sedona is big enough, and we took it for a test drive. Good pick-up, solid, nothing special. SWMBO has it rated the highest. 2nd row of seats fold up, not flush with rear seats, but may be taken out. Worth another look.

Subaru: Nothing.

Nissan: Xterra was big enough, and we took a drive. I thought it was a solid car, very maneuverable, worth considering. SWMBO doesn't like it.

Suzuki: One car has an interesting tail-gate, but not enough room front to back.

Lincoln and Mercury: Nothing, not even the Navigator!

Mazda: Nothing.

Mitsubishi: Nothing.

Sigh....

 

[aslan]

Randy
We've had a Dodge Magnum and love it. We can put both our Goldens in with no problem. Plenty of room and very powerful. It's got the smaller Hemi and is very comfortable. I'm sure you can find a used one around your area.
Stan

 

[66gt350]

What no PT on the final list??? What's wrong, don't want a car that can out performance your mustang??? :craz :craz

 

[KBMWRS]

Magnum production stopped long ago and the height inside is very low.

 

[Anonymous]

Dadblastit, Rob beat me to the punch.......a PT has lots of room and is blazing fast to boot!



and







You're at the right age to drive one :lol

 

[66gt350]

Sorry Mark...I've learned around here you have to be quick or ya get run over!!! I've got plenty of tire marks on my back!!! :lol :lol

 

[Jack1966]

I bought a new Toyota RAV4 this weekend to replace my 11 year old Honda CR-V. Don't know if it's big enough, but the rear access is 36". They discounted MSRP quite a bit and 0% for 60 months lets my money keep earning those high interest rates!

(Hopefully it won't decide to run me into a wall--it has a smart key that is really kind of creepy). :scar

 

[gwstang]

Have you looked at one of the new VW's? Toureg I think they are called? Good luck, gary.

 

[Midlife]

PTCruiser is made by Crapsler, so it is out. Magnum was on our short list 2-3 years ago, and a friend tried to sell his to us. We tried to install the dog carrier and it wouldn't fit.

RAV4 and many other mini-SUV's may have the opening, but then the dog carrier would take up the entire space. We need space for 4 cat carriers, food, litter, etc. for hurricane evacuations.

We did see a very nice RV, but it just won't fit inside the garage...

 

[Anonymous]

time to get a smaller dog.

 

[Bite Me]

Why not just use your sheep trailer

 

[RyanG85]

We did see a very nice RV, but it just won't fit inside the garage...

Build a bigger garage!

 

[lethal289]

Build a bigger garage!

:wstup Ryan, you beat me to it! :lol

 

[blue65coupe]

Mid, we have an '08 Sedona and it's a good vehicle. Get up and go is pretty impressive. Hint: You can get one for about 20-25% off sticker if you shop it. I'd recommend it. Of course you can get one a year old that's taken a massive hit on the $ and still get a heckuva warranty.

 

[daveSanborn]

For what it's worth.... there are two ladies here at my office who own/drive Sedona's to work everyday. I asked them if they'd had any problems with them and both had negative responses. These are both at least 2-3 years old and were bought new.

 

[apollard]

For what it's worth.... there are two ladies here at my office who own/drive Sedona's to work everyday. I asked them if they'd had any problems with them and both had negative responses. These are both at least 2-3 years old and were bought new.

Same here - everybody owning one has reported no issues & at least one has purchased a second one.

 

[AzPete]

Either one you pick will dry rot before they wear out anyway.......that vehicle will be driven less than his '66.....and that is not much. :lol

 

[BobV]

Ford Edge, Mazda CX-7, CX-9, Mazda5???

 

[RustyRed]

Sounds to me like you need some sort of mini van.

I bought the Explorer because my old GMC Jimmy was worn out. The Jimmy was a good deal since I bought it with about 25k miles on it and drove it for about six years but it was getting time to sell it off or spend some money on it.

I got a good deal on the Explorer and I use the third row of seats from time to time. I had thought about getting a Honda Pilot but when I walked up to it I didn't even have to open the door to figure out it was too small for what I needed. So I started looking for other vehicles that had a third row option but weren't the size of a bus like a Suburban, etc.

 

[Midlife]

Ford Edge, Mazda CX-7, CX-9, Mazda5???

None of those matched the rear access dimensions needed: we checked them all.