greenini

Consumer Reports puts out an April auto issue, including recommendations for used autos and price ranges, or at least they did the last time I read it carefully. we're still driving out '96 Infinity G20 that we bought used in '99 and it has under 100,000. It's comfortable and except for out annual alternator purchase (part covered under warranty, we pay the labor), we've liked it. Getting pretty bored with it.....but trying to hold on until it dies. Can you tell we're kids of Depression kids?

Be careful not to buy a new car, ie one that it's the first year, they can tend to be troublesome. Most Credit Unions will help you with car finder services, don't know maybe banks will. With the economy the way it is, it seems auto loans are pretty reasonable. You might want to make sure any auto you buy did not get drowned by Sandy, a friend from the bayou mentioned that to us after one of their big hurricane events. And we always take the auto to our auto repair guy to have them check it out to make sure it hasn't been in a wreck or have problems if it's a used car. They charge for it, but at least once the car had been in a serious accident and the dealer didn't give us any grief about getting another car. In fact, when we bought the G20, the motor mounts were bad and we were given a choice since the car was still under warranty, so we let the dealer do it.

DaylilyDawn

We recently bought a new car after our old Dodge lights on the dashboard quit working. A/C had quit working years before, passenger front seat window couldn't be rolled down due to it coming off the track and wouldn't go back up. So In June we went looking at new cars. After looking at American cars, we knew they were out of our price range so we looked at imported Brands. We test drove a Honda CRV here in Lakeland but there were only 3 on the lot and neither one had on it the add ons we wanted. So hubby saw an add for Brandon Haonda. We drove over to Brandon and found one there that had every thing on it that we wanted. So he said if they would put a hold on that one, we could be back the next day to buy it. So we bought it. Drove it to Va. a few weeks later and we love it. Gets great gas mileage in town and one the road. My favorite item on it is the USB plug . I converted our favorite music to MP3s and loaded them onto a thumb drive. I plug the thumb drive into the USB plug, turn radio on and choose AUX on the radio dash board and it plays the MP3s. Heated seats are good when it is cold, moon roof is nice when driving at night in rual are with no light pollution.

cherylrom

We have the Chevy Equinox - absolutely love it - for around town she is so easy to get in and out of, great back for storage, and minimal blind sports. On the road (dry pavement with no slipping) we get 32 miles per gallon - for a small SUV that is NOT bad. 2 1/2 yrs old and she still runs just great. We have lots of extras, sun roof, AWD, etc. but if I couldn't have all those options, I would return to our dealer and buy another one without all the bells. Our family rig is a Dodge Caravan 3 yrs old and has 30,000 miles. With these two rigs (both of which my teen son and daughter don't think of as "cool" enough to want to drive, yeah for us!!!) we take care of almost all household needs, landscaping, etc. I love both of them equally but lean towards the Equinox because of gas mileage. HOpe this is helpful.

gaby4v

Thank you all for your replies. My hubby is almost 52 and had three back surgeries and is looking at another one.
He is more comfortable getting in and out of an SUV. We are driving a Honda CRV here in Japan. Not a bad car and
has good gas mileage. Looking at retiring in California, close to family. My husband would love to buy a Jeep Grand Cherokee, but it has horrible gas mileage.
We will have to do our homework and check them all out before we make a decision.
thanks again for your input.

Treasureit

I suggest a Subaru Outback..they run well with little maintenance for 10+ years and come with all wheel drive...comfortable to ride in and a good bit of room for hauling. I suggest you read some of the car websites that talk about the cars and what is good and bad about them. Carmax is one...Truecar or something like that is another...here is a forum I read for months before I bought my new one. http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/ Reaserch is the best for finding out about problems and good things.

TexasSunshine

We bought a Hyundai Tucson about 6 months ago and love it. It is relatively easy to get in and out of, gets good gas mileage and is very comfortable. I compared all the vehicles in the Crossover class and felt the best buy was the Tucson.

gramma nancy

I drive a 15-year-old Volvo wagon, so I am in no position to recommend a new vehicle. But I suggest you do your homework at Edmunds.com. It is a fabulous site with lots of reviews and very down-to-earth advice. There are multiple reviews by professional car reviewers at major newspapers across the country (both men and women.) In some of the reviews, they recommend competing cars to look and mention the pros and cons of each. I have been studying for the inevitable time when I have to replace my car in a few years and feel I will have the information to make the right decision for me.

I realize I sound like an advertisement, but I assure you I am not associated with the site or with any of the writers. I just appreciate their thorough reviews.

Mornigstar

for info your KIA is made in USA in Georgia --not all models I also have KIA Sorrento had the van before -great
milage and low repair ---everybody has different needs

Stitchnripper

We have a Nissan Rogue. Love it EXCEPT there is a blind spot on the right side. We noticed the newer SUVs have those sloped back windows which means much less visibility for changing lanes to the right. We got a blind spot mirror but it doesn't help much. We learned how to adjust the side mirrors but there is still that pesky blind spot if we want to change lanes in a lot of heavy traffic. So, with any car you consider, make sure you can see well enough to change lanes.