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Car recommendations

A lot of Subaru hate in this thread. I'm a twentysomething. I drive a Subaru Impreza. It has a fine interior and is fun to drive.
 
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Nothing I would love more, actually
 
I know the Prius has a negative connotation around Wake, but I absolutely love it. I think my next one will be the more hatchback one they also now have.

I'll also echo the Toyota Highlander (and hybrid) are great, but they seem much higher than many of the ones mentioned.

I also have a Jeep Wrangler. I love it, but I would advise against you getting her one even if she wants one badly.
 
I was completely anti-Subaru - until I drove the Forester. We had the worst salesman in the world, and I still really liked the car. So try to get to your daughter to at least drive one. It made a big difference to me.

My runner up was the CR-V. Really solid car. I also spent six weeks driving around a Kia Rondo a few years ago, and it wasn't bad. The interior feels cheap, but it rode pretty well.
 
Without hijacking, SBTtoy and I are looking at upgrading to an SUV pretty soon, and among the things we're wanting to do with the SUV is drive it on the OBX beaches. Her brother has a Land Rover LR3 and her dad has a Jeep CJ5, which are obviously top notch for off-road. Without going too crazy (Land Rover) or too niche (Wrangler), what are good SUVs for this purpose?

Looking mainly at the Grand Cherokee, primarily because of the adjustable lift suspension, but I don't know if there any other SUVs that have that feature, or if that feature is entirely unnecessary.

Driving on the OBX beaches doesn't require any crazy 4WD system. I drive my wrangler out there and often don't even put it in 4WD and I have never dropped the tire pressure. With that said, I saw a Toyota Minivan stranded in the soft sand last time I was there, so people will attempt to drive all kinds of stuff out on that beach.

We also have a JGC and it has hi/lo settings for 4WD, along with all of the ride height and terrain settings. I would not hesitate to drive it out on the beach in 4hi. I think all the ones with terrain selector also have a switch for hi and lo, but I'm not 100 percent sure. I would say you definitely do not need the ride height for driving on the beach. That feature is really more for increasing the break over angle on a JGC so it can go over rocks. If it's really important to you though, I "think" the Mercedes M series has it too.

My advice at the OBX is to make sure no one is in your way so you can hit the beach with a little speed to carry you over the soft sand. Get down closer to the water on the packed sand without stopping and then you're good to go. I will take my Wrangler up in the soft stuff for fun, but anything can get stuck there if you're not careful. Essentially just don't stop moving on that stuff and you're good.

Love driving on the beach. Super convenient.

Also want to add that this is definitely a "Wake" thread since the recent college graduate is deciding between a Lexus or an Acura. :)
 
Thanks for all the recommendations... As her dad I would probably advise her to get the CR-V or the Forester - she could afford one that was new or nearly new. But, being the young, somewhat irrational person she is, she is looking for a little more WOW factor - for that she wants more of a premium brand. Good decision? I don't know. But, since she is going to be the one paying the car payment, it is hers to make...

In her defense, she has been driving the same car since she was 16 and it is pretty crappy at this point. And, she says she wants something she can expect to drive for a long time. In all the recommendations, I am not sure I saw anyone who had actually owned an RDX?
 
The only 3 people that I have known to own the RDX all really liked the car but complained that the interior was tight and it bothered them more with each year. For a young single girl that may not be a problem. While not knowing any numbers the Lexus feels as if it offers more interior space. Both are vehicles she should be able to drive for a very long time with low to reasonable maintenance costs.
 
The only 3 people that I have known to own the RDX all really liked the car but complained that the interior was tight and it bothered them more with each year. For a young single girl that may not be a problem. While not knowing any numbers the Lexus feels as if it offers more interior space. Both are vehicles she should be able to drive for a very long time with low to reasonable maintenance costs.

That makes sense as the Lexus is actually classified as more of a mid-sized SUV while the RDX is definitely a compact SUV. The interior seems sufficient for her needs...
 
That SUV thread from back in January was mine I believe. We got a new Jeep Cherokee, which we've loved so far. It did break down once on the highway (and yeah that's a pretty big negative) due to the electronics controlling the CVT shitting the bed and not being able to switch gears, but aside from that issue, no problems at all. The new 9-speed CVT in it has been having some issues since it's a brand new gearbox, but Jeep has been putting out a lot of software updates to remedy those problems. Price was good considering it gets a LOT of options that other cars in that size segment can't get, and the space inside is great. But if you aren't looking at new, it's not really an option...

Aside from that huge issue, no problems at all. Ummmkay
 
Yeah, I love our Grand Cherokee, and I also have a Wrangler, so I am the first to defend Jeep, but the issues with that transmission in the Cherokee seem like no joke. Seems like a mix of software and hardware issues that are going to be tough to tame, from what I've read about it.

Obviously, they should have worked all that out before they released the CUV. They already had egg on their face for delaying the release of the Cherokee three times, and it sounds like that was all about the transmission too, and they still couldn't fix it.
 
Without hijacking, SBTtoy and I are looking at upgrading to an SUV pretty soon, and among the things we're wanting to do with the SUV is drive it on the OBX beaches. Her brother has a Land Rover LR3 and her dad has a Jeep CJ5, which are obviously top notch for off-road. Without going too crazy (Land Rover) or too niche (Wrangler), what are good SUVs for this purpose?

Looking mainly at the Grand Cherokee, primarily because of the adjustable lift suspension, but I don't know if there any other SUVs that have that feature, or if that feature is entirely unnecessary.

The next best competitor is the Toyota 4Runner. It is more of an off road minded SUV, yet it is still good on the road. It's one of the few SUV's to be built body on frame, as opposed to unibody like most crossovers/SUV's today. The added benefit of the 4runner is that you will probably get something that is more reliable than the Grand Cherokee since Jeep has been having problems. It does get worse gas mileage than the Grand Cherokee though which is something to consider. The 4Runner has a power operated rear windshield which is a cool feature if you have dogs or need to carry long objects.
 
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I tried every crossover, SUV, etc when buying my new car a few months ago. My two finalists were the RDX and the outback. I ended up with the outback. Really liked it better for price as well as larger interior space. The RDX was a really nice vehicle though. We actually test drove two rdxs as the first one felt a little loose on the road. The second one had better traction. I believe the AWD was better than front wheel drive. Really made a difference. Both are great vehicles though. Subaru interior is very nice. Leather, wood, etc.
 
Yeah, I love our Grand Cherokee, and I also have a Wrangler, so I am the first to defend Jeep, but the issues with that transmission in the Cherokee seem like no joke. Seems like a mix of software and hardware issues that are going to be tough to tame, from what I've read about it.

Obviously, they should have worked all that out before they released the CUV. They already had egg on their face for delaying the release of the Cherokee three times, and it sounds like that was all about the transmission too, and they still couldn't fix it.

Chrysler is just a bunch of idiots. I have a Ram 1500 that has the 8-speed transmission to get pretty good mileage (the one that won the Motortrend TOY for 2013 and 2014 that they advertise all the time), and that transmission hasn't had any major problems that I know of. It shifts a lot but the increased mileage is worth it, and it has a tow mode that will go higher in a gear before shifting when towing something (plus you can manually force a shift with the controls on the steering wheel). If I can get 25mpg in a 6,000 lb full size truck with that transmission, how hard is it to modify it for the much lighter Grand Cherokee to get the 30 or so they are looking for?
 
My mom has one and she likes it but I'm not a huge fan of driving it.
 
That makes sense as the Lexus is actually classified as more of a mid-sized SUV while the RDX is definitely a compact SUV. The interior seems sufficient for her needs...

My buddy's parents have had a few RDX's. They love them and seem really nice. I've rode in them a couple times and it's a solid car. To me, the RDX seems like a luxury version of the CRV. There's a little more room than the CRV but it's really similar.
 
Wait for the new one to come out with the new technology. Looks very nice, the ones right now are quite dated.

The 2015 model looks bangin, I agree. That said, the current model hasn't changed in what, 10 years, which to your point looks kind of blah now but I'm sure they worked every last kink out of the 10-year-old technology by this point. We test drove an 2010 XC90 today at lunch and I was actually really impressed with it.

That said, I just made a crazy low-ball offer via e-mail on a 2012 Grand Cherokee Overland that has been listed for over two months, just sitting on the lot and the price has gradually been lowered by about $5K. We'll see if I can drop it down another $3K and help take it off their hands
 
The 2015 model looks bangin, I agree. That said, the current model hasn't changed in what, 10 years, which to your point looks kind of blah now but I'm sure they worked every last kink out of the 10-year-old technology by this point. We test drove an 2010 XC90 today at lunch and I was actually really impressed with it.

That said, I just made a crazy low-ball offer via e-mail on a 2012 Grand Cherokee Overland that has been listed for over two months, just sitting on the lot and the price has gradually been lowered by about $5K. We'll see if I can drop it down another $3K and help take it off their hands

If you can find one of the V-8 XC90's they are quite kick ass. Pretty fast for a car that weight.
 
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