Vehicle Shopping advice

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besserheimerphat

Well-Known Member
Apr 11, 2006
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Mount Vernon, WA
For us an entertainment system is not a must. We just buy the cheap dual DVD players on Black Friday and use that.

For me being a mom and transporting kids 90% of the time, the power slide doors and lift gate are my #1 must have feature. Especially if you have kids under the age of 3.

When we bought ours, we had a 2 year old, a 1 year old and were in the 2nd trimester with our third so we have felt that pain. We just didn't see the power doors as that important, and to date I've never heard my wife say "I wish we had that." And I agree you don't have to have the factory-integrated entertainment system, but you'll want something if you take long car trips.
 

AgronAlum

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Jul 12, 2014
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For the OP, I know for 100% fact two car seats and an infant seat will fit in both a newer Impala and a Honda Crosstour. We have a 2013 Honda Crosstour and the amount of room iin both seating areas is great for the car's size. The only real complaint I have are being able to fit strollers and such in the back.

The newer impalas are very nice for what you originally said you were looking for, if you truly do want a car instead of a van/SUV.
 
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cowgirl836

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Sep 3, 2009
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And who doesn't want a backup camera!? The backup camera and the rear cross traffic alert are probably my 2 favorite safety features on my wife's Highlander.

I love having those! When my car is replaced with a van, I must have the RCTA. So useful at places like the gym and grocery store. May steal spouse's vehicle more.
 

Cyclophile1

Well-Known Member
Dec 14, 2009
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Overland Park, KS
Well done of the third kid. For a second vehicle, I went with a Ford Expedition for the 3000 or so miles per year that aren't in the 18K per year Odyssey. It get worse gas mileage, doesn't drive as nice and tends to be less reliable even with the far fewer mileage. I like the four wheel drive aspect, but it's trade-offs make it largely slightly more negative than positive I think. We also have a third vehicle an older Honda Accord for the older kids to use. If I had it to all over again, I would probably look at the Mazda CX9 or maybe another Odyssey, or perhaps a Kia Sedona for the primary vehicle for the young ones, since they tend to get trashed out.
 

dmclone

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Oct 20, 2006
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Dont want camera in back
dont want keyless entry
dont want electronics except for what is needed to run the guts of the vehicle
want manual windows because when the break will be cheaper than having to replace the motors

Sounds like you want a car from 30 years ago. You won't have to sorry about replacing $50 key fobs but it won't be as safe, will get worse gas mileage, less reliable, slower, uncomfortable, etc.
 

iowastatefan1929

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Oct 26, 2006
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well this is some crap if i ever heard of it. sorry if i dont want to have to replace the rear camera; gas cap sensor; coolant sensor; central motherboard at 150k when the motor is still running fine. is it too much to ask to want manual windows and manual seats. give me 5k off the price and give me a new bare bones car. its all crap all of it.
 
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iowastatefan1929

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Oct 26, 2006
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someone will start a car company when all the auto drive cars become main stream that will sell bare bones reliable cars for 20k less and they will make a killin.
 

akellar

Active Member
Nov 28, 2008
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Stuart, IA
well this is some crap if i ever heard of it. sorry if i dont want to have to replace the rear camera; gas cap sensor; coolant sensor; central motherboard at 150k when the motor is still running fine. is it too much to ask to want manual windows and manual seats. give me 5k off the price and give me a new bare bones car. its all crap all of it.

Get off my lawn!
 

AgronAlum

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Jul 12, 2014
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well this is some crap if i ever heard of it. sorry if i dont want to have to replace the rear camera; gas cap sensor; coolant sensor; central motherboard at 150k when the motor is still running fine. is it too much to ask to want manual windows and manual seats. give me 5k off the price and give me a new bare bones car. its all crap all of it.

tumblr_o6kh9df7TE1t2pbgvo1_500.gif
 

cowgirl836

Well-Known Member
Sep 3, 2009
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someone will start a car company when all the auto drive cars become main stream that will sell bare bones reliable cars for 20k less and they will make a killin.


Probably not because when self-driving cars become mainstream, insurance rates on those that are not will become astronomical. Especially if those cars are lacking in all modern safety features and technologies.
 
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AgronAlum

Well-Known Member
Jul 12, 2014
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well this is some crap if i ever heard of it. sorry if i dont want to have to replace the rear camera; gas cap sensor; coolant sensor; central motherboard at 150k when the motor is still running fine. is it too much to ask to want manual windows and manual seats. give me 5k off the price and give me a new bare bones car. its all crap all of it.

I hope the bolded is a joke. Those sensors and electronics connected to the ECM's are there for requirements like federal emissions (no getting around these) or to help ensure your car actually reaches 150k miles. The gas cap sensor means you have a vacuum leak. The coolant sensors are on almost every decent sized engine out there, car or otherwise, because it's a good way to blow up an engine no matter the hours on it. Why would you not want to know those things if you can? Yes, there are other gadgets incorporated for comfort, but building cars like you're talking isn't a possibility anymore and there's a reason nobody does.

You can ditch things like power windows and locks but you're talking small potatoes in something that costs 10s of thousands of dollars. Pulling electronics out completely can't be done by today's regs and goes completely against trying to get a vehicle to last past the 150k miles you claim.

I get being old school but the fear of technology in some folks is crazy.
 

capitalcityguy

Well-Known Member
Jun 14, 2007
8,332
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Des Moines
Thanks for your input. What's your feeling on crossovers? I may also end up just getting a bigger car. We'll see. I only need to be able to take kids a short distance here and there. Our van does the long trips and my wife takes them around more than I do.

I also use this vehicle for work so don't really want to be taking clients/coworkers around in a minivan haha.

Crossovers = compact SUVs. I’m by no means an expert but from my understanding/research from my recent purchase, crossovers are essentially the same thing as small or compact SUVs. When I was referring to compact SUVs in my post, I was essentially talking about crossovers too.

That said, you bring in a new variable when you mention “clients”. You can control you own reaction to minivans and how practical they are in the end vs SUVs/crossovers, but if impressions are important with your clients, that is another story. I don’t know what type of business you are in. That could be enough to tip the scales. That said, one of the earlier comments did offer up a couple sedans that would work for 3 little ones in the back.

Another advantage of sedans I didn’t mention before is performance. Again, for less money, you tend to get better performance with a sedan vs an SUV.
 
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CyCloned

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Oct 18, 2006
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Robins, Iowa
I would go along with the others opting for a minivan over an SUV. Usually better ride, more space and better gas mileage. 4 wheel drive is over rated in your situation. If it gets so bad that you need 4 wheel drive, you should just stay home with your wife and 3 kids. As far as models, I have no clue, as I haven't needed a minivan for kids for several years. I would agree with the fold down 3rd seat, as you will eventually be hauling kids and their friends. I think the toyota's are always a good choice if money is not an issue. Honda's and Chrysler's both had a lot of transmission issues 8-10 years ago. Not sure how good the later models are. I am not a big fan of GM vehicles, but I know others will come to their defense. The Ford Flex is really ugly, but I don't know anything else about it, so it might be a decent vehicle. The sliding doors of a minivan are better for loading and unloading.
 

besserheimerphat

Well-Known Member
Apr 11, 2006
10,278
12,517
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Mount Vernon, WA
That said, you bring in a new variable when you mention “clients”. You can control you own reaction to minivans and how practical they are in the end vs SUVs/crossovers, but if impressions are important with your clients, that is another story. I don’t know what type of business you are in. That could be enough to tip the scales.

I completely missed that, good catch. To the OP, would it be worth asking your boss to pay for a rental when clients have to be transported? Is transporting clients in a particular "image vehicle" a requirement of the job? Like, you risk losing the client if they aren't driven around in a Cadillac or equivalent?
 

capitalcityguy

Well-Known Member
Jun 14, 2007
8,332
2,124
113
Des Moines
huge fan of suburbans. Hard to beat for versatility (can tow, haul, transport, etc) and used ones are fairly reasonbly priced. I have a 2000 1500 4x4, and my gf has a 2002 Yukon XL 1500 4x4, and they are both extremely handy with kids, dogs, firewood, towing quads/dirtbikes, etc....

He has 3 kids to haul, not 5 or 6.

These options seem to be the definition of excessive. (and I’m not a progressive/tree-hugger type….just ask those that visit the cave).

Why crowd your garage unnecessarily? Why burn that much fuel? Why strap yourself down with the expensive associated replacement costs (e.g….huge tires)?

Maybe I'm missing something here?
 

Macloney

Well-Known Member
Feb 28, 2014
5,194
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Up Nort
He has 3 kids to haul, not 5 or 6.

These options seem to be the definition of excessive. (and I’m not a progressive/tree-hugger type….just ask those that visit the cave).

Why crowd your garage unnecessarily? Why burn that much fuel? Why strap yourself down with the expensive associated replacement costs (e.g….huge tires)?

Maybe I'm missing something here?

Full size trucks and SUV's, especially GM products are ridiculously nice vehicles. I don't have one, but if could throw practicality out the window I would love to drive one.
 
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