purchasing a new car

[Sue & Willy Babe]

  I am not sure if we have discussed this, but I did look,   What kind of car or mid size SUV does everyone have?    We are back in the market looking for something Mid-size, don't need the mini van anymore, our daughter is done with College   YEA!

 

  We were looking at the Dodge Journey, or A Kia Sorento  

 

 

  We are curious as to what everyone else has

 

 Thanks

 

 

   wilson is 27 inches tall and 83 pounds maybe a little more i pounds with summer here and those whip creams from STarbucks are tasty   !!!  LOL

 

 

[Susan, Zeke. Lily & Jasper]

I drive a Hyundai Tuscon with the back seat down to accomadate 3 doodles, 2 standard & 1 mini.  Our driveway is slanted so our doodles prefer to enter from the back seat door on the side.  The back hatch is a little high even for the big dogs.  I bought a seat cover that can be used with the seat up or down and an additional pad to cover the cargo area.  For short trips the dogs are free in the back.  For travel we use harnesses attached to various hooks with each dog having it's own zone.  I love this car and the Sorento you are considering is very similar but larger than mine.  Hope this helps.

[Lynn D.]

I had gotten my Doodle mobile before I got the doodle. Before I had even put my deposit down for my puppy. But the whole agonizing search was based around my dog. I am SUPER picky about cars, I won't go into why. My research included driving nearly everything in the $25,000 to $45,000 range. A major consideration for me was gas mileage, then features. I kept in mind that I do NOT want to pick up a dirty, muddy, wet dog to put into the car so the tailgate needed to be low (Echo is a medium). I am now a safety freak! If it didn't rate at 4 stars or above, I didn't even bother with it.

Too make a very long story short, I bought a 2010 Suabru Outback 18 months ago. Since then, I have had 3 issues with it. The fuel guage broke, the passenger side dashboard airbag sensor in the seat would not register a 150# person and the engine wouldn't turn over in cold weather (inside a garage) and this was causing the gas mileage to take a huge hit. I had to put up a huge fuss to get a dealership to even look at the car. In the end it was all fixed (cause it was broken!)

In the few months I was having issues, I began to look for a car all over again. In rethinking the right vehicle for me I broadened my search to trucks. Having a truck means I can have a clean cab (no dog hair/smell). And the dog can have a ton of room in the bed. I am not a truck person, till I drove the Honda Ridgeline. The tail gate is almost what sold me. Instead of the tailgate (just) folding down, it ALSO swings out! Downside is that the cap for the bed starts at $1,800.

 

Anyway, everyone has their own list of needs/wants. I also looked at the Journey, make sure you read a lot of long term reviews!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

We are in the market for a smaller car - small suv, crossover,  hatchback or small station wagon that will fit three dogs and that can be flat towed behind our RV.  It won't be our main car.  Air conditioning and a radio - all we want.  I know there are lots of cars out there but most of them cannot be flat towed.

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

Honda CR-V and Suzuki Vitara can be flat towed.  We have two friends that tow the Honda CR-V with no problems and love it.  Our SIL parents have the Suzuki and have had a few problems with it, but it was not due to towing.  Motorhomemagazine.com has Dingy Towing Guides that have a list of vehicles that can be flat towed.  I believe you have to be a member to have access to them.  Here's the link http://www.motorhomemagazine.com/Category/Dinghy-Towing/

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Tina, thanks so much for the link.  My DH has been trying to find this forever....  We will check it out.

[Tina, Clover, Plus 5 More]

You're welcome.  It's been a good resource for us in the past.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I have the Volvo SUV and I love it.  Mine now has 67,000 miles on it and we've never had any problems. Volvos seem to last forever....we've been driving them for almost 30 years.

[Nina, Phil, Harlow & Lacey]

The lease for my Camry Hybrid is up in a few months and I have started the car shopping trek as well.  I have looked at the Hybrid SUVs but the only one that gets similar gas mileage (35-36 mpg) as my Camry is the Ford Escape Hybrid.  I did a test drive of one and wasn't crazy about it.  Besides, DH has the new Exploxer and DD just got a used Escape (regular) and I just can't bring myself to have 2 Ford SUVs sitting in the driveway.  So now I am I am kicking around the idea of crossovers or wagons.  I like the VW Jetti TDI hybrid wagon but walked away after regaining conciousness after looking at price tag.  I am now thinking about the Subaru Outback; just wish it came in a hybrid model.  I do mostly city driving (except when I am DRC transporting) and I like the zero emissions of the hybrids when I am sitting in rush hour gridlock.

[Linda, Webber and Seda]

Nina, Ronna and I just did a DRC rescue in my 2011 Outback.  The more I drive this car, the more I like it.  Mine is not a hybrid but it sure gets good gas mileage and the cargo room is generous even if the seats aren't down.

[cocoincanada]

We also have a Hyundai Tucson, a 2010 model. We LOVE it! It's very roomy, looks really nice since they redesigned it last year and is AWESOME on gas. We live near Toronto and we drive home to Nova Scotia / New Brunswick a few times a year to visit our families. It's a 15 hour drive, and the Tucson is truly awesome on gas. Gas prices are still pretty crazy right now, but we love how the vehicle doesn't struggle on the highway when we're trying to pass a car (it's got some decent power) and it's way better on fuel than the Sante Fe, which is a V6. We should be able to accommodate our two doodles in the back seat, when the latest addition is fully grown. But once we decide to add a baby to the mix, we'll need a bigger vehicle for sure. Have you test-driver any of the Hyundai models?

[Denise & Hunter!!!]

I have a Suzuki XL-7 SUV, it has the optional 3rd row seat that can be folded completely flat and it makes for a great, roomy cargo area for a doodle :-)  I have had it for 4 years and have had zero problems with it.  We are in the market for a newer one now and I am going right back to the Suzuki dealer.  I had an Acura MDX before that and it had wonderful reviews and I HATED it.  I kept trying to convince myself it was as great as I read and I never could.  After that I think I drove every single mid sized SUV out there and loved the Suzuki.  Give them all a try and take Willy with you :-)

 

 

[Sue & Willy Babe]

 Thank you for the advice  Yep Willy will be going with us, we are going test driving this coming Saturday!!

  I can hardly wait !!!!