Vehicle shopping...need opinions

[GLC1968]

We are a couple of weeks away from closing on our farm, so we will no longer need the pickup with camper to haul hay, animals, etc. It's overkill for our needs now and even though it is paid for, it gets lousy mileage and it's really inconvenient. It a model that is very much in demand right now, so we will get more for it than what we bought it for (not counting all the work we put into it, of course).

We are thinking about a new car. We want something that will fit three large dogs in the cargo area with the seat still up, gets decent mileage and has AWD. Decent clearance for mountain/dirt/gravel/potholed/rutted roads would be a plus. Other than that, we don't really care about fancy features like Navigation, heated seats or rain sensing wipers. We have a newer MINI Cooper Clubman that is set up with a heavy duty roof rack to carry sea kayaks and bikes, so we don't really have to worry about that either.

The new car will be primarily for transporting dogs (sometimes dirty ones!), towing a light dirt bike trailer and carting hiking gear and possibly additional hikers on trips. The MINI is also our daily driver, so this one won't rack up the miles either.

We have narrowed it down based on price, MPG, horsepower, reviews and cargo space to the following 4 vehicles (prices are approx):

Ford Escape Titanium I4 - AWD with towing package - 21/28 MPG - $32K
Subaru XV Crosstrek 2.0i Limited - AWD - 25/33 MPG - $27K
VW Tiguan 2.0T SEL $Motion - AWD w/ towing - 20/26 MPG - $37K
Mazda CX-5 Grand Touring - AWD 25/31 MPG - $29K

Anyone have any experience with any of these four vehicles and care to offer an opinion?

We've only driven the Ford so far, and we were surprised at how much we both liked it. It is my least favorite in terms of exterior looks, but I can get over that if it ends up being the best choice for us. We hope to drive the other three this coming week/weekend.

Thanks!

[Becky]

Isn't the Crosstrek built on the Impreza platform? We can barely fit one large dog (80 pounds) in the cargo area of our Impreza Sport Premium. (Sorry to sound like a party pooper...)

There was a really good discussion about the Crosstrek on the forums at MTBR.com if you're looking for more feedback.

Good luck with the car search!

[GLC1968]

Becky - you are right! It's the Impreza but with more ground clearance. Hmmm, we only liked it better than the Forester for the better MPG, but yeah, the cargo space might be an issue. Thanks for pointing that out.

Though, I should clarify, when I say 'fit all three big dogs in there with the seat up", I mean for super short trips like to the vet or the dog park. For longer trips, we'll put the seat down for them of course! ;-)

[tulip]

Any reason you are not looking at a Subaru Forester or Outback? Or a Honda Fit?

[GLC1968]

Tulip - we originally ruled out the Forester and the Outback in favor of the XV Crosstrek just because their MPG is so much worse. If we look at the Crosstrek in person and see that it is too small, we may consider one of the others.

The Fit is too small and really, too close to the ground. I don't think it offers anything different than what we have in our Clubman (which we will be keeping).

[tulip]

Tulip - we originally ruled out the Forester and the Outback in favor of the XV Crosstrek just because their MPG is so much worse. If we look at the Crosstrek in person and see that it is too small, we may consider one of the others.

The Fit is too small and really, too close to the ground. I don't think it offers anything different than what we have in our Clubman (which we will be keeping).

Oh, right, the Fit isn't AWD either. I'm partial to the Audi A3 Sportwagon, but I don't think I'd want to get it muddy...

[GLC1968]

I think we are also going to look at the Honda CR-V as well.

We've owned 4 different Toyota's since we got married and we weren't enough impressed with any of them to want another one so we have ruled out the RAV-4. Besides, it's up for a redesign anyway.

[maillotpois]

We were just looking at those and ruled out the crosstrek because it was too small for our dogs (two 90 pounders). I think the A3 would be too small as well. The Escape wasn't flashy, but it did meet all our other needs - we had similar ambivalence as you seem to about the looks. The Tiguan seemed a little small as well, but would probably be my top choice of the ones you listed.

We ended up with a Jetta sportwagon TDI which we LOVE (28k). The diesel gets great MPG (40), but it isn't AWD, which is the one bummer about it.

I'm actually intrigued by the brand new BMW X1 which comes in AWD and the smaller engine gets great MPG. We looked at it for fun, and the rear is definitely large enough for dogs. It's more $ than the ones you listed, but not as much as I would have thought - I think you can do it for low 40k.

[Roadtrip]

We have a 2011 Tiguan that we've had for two years and love it!! Have a hitch mount bike rack for our bikes and the cargo area is pretty large. Not sure three large dog "large" however.

[Irulan]

Hs Subaru changed their seats yet? Worst ever for back support on lengthy trips....

[GLC1968]

A few years back, the EPA was forced to change the way they rate new cars so that the MPG was more 'real-life' accurate, so while I think they used to be reported way high, I think now they are a little closer to realistic.

Thanks for the feedback on the CR-V, Emily. We haven't seen one at a dealer, but there was one parked next to us at dinner last night so we may have put a few proverbial nose prints on it! It's definitely in the running as that cargo space looks massive compared to some of the other cars we are considering.

Last night we drove the Mazda CX-5. I really, really liked it. Customers complained about the lack of acceleration on the 2013 model but raved about everything else, so Mazda released their 2014 early and put a slightly larger engine in it. We drove the 2014 and while it's no drag racer, it has plenty of pep. I was expecting it to accelerate like a PT Cruiser, but it's way better and has no problem getting out of its own way. I liked the feel, the trim, the features, the size and the look of it and it handled extremely well on the winding roads we test drove it on (purposely!). My H was not as impressed, unfortunately.

Then we drove down to the BMW dealer even though it was closed, to check out the X1. It's certainly attractive, but it's quite small. We couldn't open it up, of course, but standing next to it was not much different than standing next to our old Matrix. There is no way 3 dogs will fit in the back with the seat up. And then we started thinking about leaving a BMW at a trail head for 3 days and we aren't sure that's such a good idea. I kind of still want to drive it, but I think we may have to rule it out on size alone. There was an X6 right next to it and I think I actually drooled on it.

On our way back, we pulled into a Subaru dealer to look at the Crosstrek. We parked and walked around but couldn't find one right away (lots of Outbacks though!). As we were looking a salesman asked if he could answer any questions (they were still open!). We asked about the Crosstrek and he showed us one just a little past where we were looking. It was very cool. Oddly enough, one of the features we liked the best was that the cargo area has no carpet on the side walls, a rubber all-weather tray and the same type of all-weather cover on the backs of the seats to protect them. When you put the seats down, the whole cargo area is protected from slobber, muddy paws and dog hair!! Size-wise, there is again, no way the dogs will fit in with the seat up, but my H was willing to look past that because he really liked the rest of it. Then we opened up an Outback and looked at that. The MPG on the 2.5L is similar to the other vehicles we are looking at so it was worth investigating. Size was GREAT, features were great, exterior looks are only OK (I still like the Mazda for looks). We can get those same all-weather mats/covers for the Outback, too. We are going back on Friday to test drive them both. I did drive a 2012 Outback as a rental when I was in New England in Feb and I was impressed with it's handling for what felt like a big car. Still not much for acceleration, but we'll see how it is on a new one (as opposed to a rental).

Saturday, we'll check out the Honda and if I can convince my H, the BMW just because I'm curious.

If we get into a tough decision, dog fit is going to be the deciding factor and any dealer that doesn't let us try putting Sara in the back will lose out. Subaru already said it was totally fine.

Now I need to work on convincing my husband that the Mazda beats out the Escape (I like the Mazda, he liked the Escape). Or, with any luck, we'll both love either one of the Subaru's or the Honda!

[maillotpois]

Then we drove down to the BMW dealer even though it was closed, to check out the X1. It's certainly attractive, but it's quite small. We couldn't open it up, of course, but standing next to it was not much different than standing next to our old Matrix. There is no way 3 dogs will fit in the back with the seat up. And then we started thinking about leaving a BMW at a trail head for 3 days and we aren't sure that's such a good idea. I kind of still want to drive it, but I think we may have to rule it out on size alone. There was an X6 right next to it and I think I actually drooled on it.

Do go back and look inside the X1 when you can. We thought the back was really similar to our sportwagen, and definitely bigger than the crosstrek. We've only got 2 dogs, but they're 90 pounders and they wouldn't have any trouble in the X1. I do get what you mean about the trailhead, though.

[GLC1968]

We are a manual car kind of family ourselves. In fact, except for one time when manual wasn't an option, I've always avoided automatic transmissions. That said, last year when I had my foot problem and had to buy an automatic to use for a few months, it got me thinking. Sometimes, if you've got more than one car in the family, having one of them as a automatic for emergencies is not a bad idea.

I'm having issues with my husband on all of this. I swear that he is looking for a sports car SUV. He likes the Escape because it had 'balls', so to speak. He didn't like the Mazda for that reason. I assume he won't like the Subaru or the CR-V for the same reasons. He says he understands that fuel efficiency and space are more important in this particular car but I am getting the impression that's not really what he believes. Ugh.

When I left for work, he was watching videos of the 2014 Subaru Forester where they added a turbo option and CVT for better MPG. Men!

[BikeDutchess]

I bought a 2013 Subaru Forester and love it. This is actually our 2nd Forester, we have a 2002 also. I bought the base model because I'm not into bells and whistles (sun roofs and such just seem to me like things that will malfunction at some point), and the price was right at under $23K. I test drove the CR-V as well, and it had some nice touches that the Subaru lacked, but the Forester has the best visibility by far. My DH's Mazda 3 annoys me because of its blind spots. And for some reason the CR-V seemed larger than the Forester, in a way that I didn't like. I got an automatic this time (my first), and while it lacks some of the "oomph" I can get out of a manual, for city driving (and even busy freeway driving) it is so nice. The Outbacks are nice too, but I didn't want to pay that much more. Installing an after-market hitch on the Forester was no big deal (U-Haul).

[Catrin]

Congratulations on your new car! It sounds like the two of you put in a lot of time and effort to find the best choice for you