Car Shopping - Small Crossovers

[surgtech1956]

I'm car shopping - my lease will be up in June, thinking about buying instead of leasing, undecided right now. I'm thinking about a small crossover vehicle. Something like a Kia Sportage, Mazda CX-7, Nissan Rogue, Honda CR-V or ??? Any comments on any of the small crossover vehicles? I really need AWD(or 4WD).

[FlyingScot]

Subaru Forester!!!!!

[surgtech1956]

Forgot to add the Forester to my list. Subarus are not that popular in my area, but I've been reading some excellent reviews on them.

[GLC1968]

I have two more suggestions to consider - but they are a bit smaller than the cars you've listed.

We have a 2005 Toyota Matrix that has been an EXCELLENT car. Truly. Ours has 115K miles on it and it's given us not a single ounce of trouble. We didn't opt for the AWD option (since we lived in the south when we bought it) but it is available.

We also now have a 2011 Mini Cooper Clubman on order. When we picked it out, I test drove the MINI Cooper Countryman (4dr, AWD) and liked it a lot. The Clubman suited us better, but the Countryman was really nice and might be worth considering.

[Jolt]

How about the Suzuki SX4? It's a little smaller than the other cars you mentioned but may be worth a look depending on how much room you need.

[westtexas]

I love my 2008 Honda CT-V. I've got about 43k on it now and it's never needed anything other than the occasional oil change and gasoline. For a small SUV it holds a lot (the weight limit load for it says 750lb, including passengers, but I've had up to 1200lbs in it). I've pretty much used mine as a truck, dog/cat hauler, moving van, etc. and my friends always ask me to drive because riding in the back is actually comfortable. It gets great gas mileage too. I think the rating it came with was 19/23 but I actually get 24/30 and I'm a huge lead foot (not a speeder though, just a quick accelerator).

HTH!

[jeremywe]

Nancy,

Before turning your lease in, you should first find out what the purchase price is. Used car prices are at historic highs right now so it's likely that your end of lease purchase price is below market value.

you can potentially make a profit by buying and selling your leased vehicle. Most states allow a 10 day grace period on paying taxes if you buy and sell a car within this time period.

Here is more detail on this process:
http://www.realcartips.com/leasing/0...e-buyout.shtml

A lot of people are leaving money on the table with leases these days.

[Kitsune06]

I was looking for basically the same sort of vehicle and found it in my 1999 Chevy Tracker. They made 'em 'til 2003, but many are 4WD and the convertible ones are a LOT of fun to drive with the top down. No room inside for a bike, but a Thule spare tire rack fixes that just fine. 25ish mpg isn't GREAT but it's not TERRIBLE, especially for a 4x4. Handled the snow this winter just fine. only thing to be aware of is that it's a bit underpowered with a 1.6l engine, but if you're not looking to tow a camper or road race, it fits the bill.

[Crankin]

Well, I disagree about the AWD/4WD. Maybe because I learned to drive in the snow at age 36?
Our streets are well plowed, but I could not deal with the snow without AWD. You can't get up my street or my driveway, especially, without it. My driveway is a 15% grade and although it is plowed, it ices over and some of the snow just can't be removed. When my son comes to visit (He has a Hyundai), he parks on the street and we come down to get him, after the time he slid backwards down the driveway. I also have Blizzaks on my small AWD sedan. I even had issues sliding around without snow tires with the AWD, actually 4WD on my previous car, which was an SUV.
I'd say about 75% of the drivers here have AWD, but not necessarily SUVs. The town I live in supposedly has the highest percentage of Prius' in the world...

[VeganBikeChick]

I also require AWD (when I finally get another car!) because of my job/where I live. Granted, it doesn't snow much here, but when it does, the city is a disaster, and built on hills. Snow plows are few and far between, rock salt is not used (save the environment!) and being at my job is a requirement, no matter what.

I grew up learning how to drive in the snow and never had anything other than front wheel drive, but living here I find AWD a necessity due to the reasons above.

[Eden]

I also require AWD (when I finally get another car!) because of my job/where I live. Granted, it doesn't snow much here, but when it does, the city is a disaster, and built on hills. Snow plows are few and far between, rock salt is not used (save the environment!) and being at my job is a requirement, no matter what.

I grew up learning how to drive in the snow and never had anything other than front wheel drive, but living here I find AWD a necessity due to the reasons above.

Best thing to do when it snows in Seattle is leave your car home and ride your bike..... I don't care if you do have AWD, if you can't get around all the other schmoes who are stuck, you are stuck too....

I live on Capitol Hill and work at a hospital, and though I don't have a vital job, they still expect me to be there unless the world is pretty much coming to an end - I dress warmly and pull out the cross bike (someday I swear I'm going to outfit it with studs) when there's snow on the ground here and laugh at all the people who are lined up stuck on 23rd/Montlake.....