Minivan-small SUV suggestions

H

huggybear

New member
Howdy guys!



Its about time for my mom to get a new vehicle, and I would like to call upon your knowledge/experiences.



We are looking for a mini-van or smallish sized SUV in the 95-2002 range. (Maybe 03-04)



I've been reading some reviews and talking to people, but always come away with the feeling that they are biased.



Any suggestions for a vehicle I may want to look at are greatly appreciated.





Thanks in Advance guys and gals!

Erick
 
1995-2004 is a massive range. There will be literally millions of vehicles to choose from. Can you narrow it down a bit for us? Is she on a tight budget (how much)? Does she prefer a brand new vehicle? There's some big decisions there; a '95 Ford Windstar can be had for $5000. An '04 Toyota Sienna Limited is over $40,000. So both a huge vehicle range and price range.



There's a diff in functionality between a mini-ute and a minivan. Does she need the room and size of a minivan?



Don't forget all reviews are mainly opinion and all opinions are biased. Its human nature. We all have preferences in life but there's nothing wrong with that. Your mom should probably make a list of her preferences and start the process from there.
 
and also, a "small-ish SUV" could mean either like a ford escape, or a ford explorer sport, or regular explorer, etc. which are three different sized SUV's. Looks like you'll need to narrow it down a lot more before you can really get a concept of what you're looking for.
 
I was looking for more of a "I own this vehicle and can vouch for it, its been great" type of opinion.



But, id like to spend 35K or less if we decide to go for a new one. Yes she needs the room of a minivan.



Thanks so much for the stuff to think about.



We are in the broad make a list of vehicles to look at phase. We are no where near the narowing down phase.



Thanks aBunch!
 
"I was looking for more of a "I own this vehicle and can vouch for it, its been great" type of opinion."



My Dad really liked his Explorer and I have customers who are on their 2nd and 3rd Explorers since I've been detailing their cars, so they must be happy if they keep buying them.



Honda Passports are really nice too with. So is their new minivan.
 
I have a 1997 Ford Explorer with 84K miles on it, owned it since day 1 and have zero problems. I have the V6 OHV engine. I just changed the plugs and wires in it and I get about 16-18 MPG in the city and about 21-23 highway.



If you end up getting a used Explorer you might want to look into getting one with the 4.0L V6 OHV or the 5.0L V8 OHV. They are considered "old school" engines by todays standards, but they are just about bullet proof in terms of reliability. Parts are cheap and easy available too!
 
"old school" engine is just fine! she does alot of traveling to mexico. They dont have alot of the equipment needed to correctly diagnose and repair higher end very computer dependent engines, should they break down.
 
Don't get the Honda Passport - it's a rebadged Isuzu Rodeo with sloppy handling, awful safety, and poor resale value... you can't buy a new one anymore. If you want a $35,000 SUV with seating for seven, get the new Pilot. It has a 240 horsepower engine and is nicely screwed together.



If you don¡Â¦t care for the tough SUV look and don¡Â¦t need all-wheel drive traction, check out the Odyssey. It has the same VTEC engine as the Pilot, but seats seven more comfortably for less money. I have a 2003 EX-L myself, and it¡Â¦s a hoot to drive. It goes from 0-60 in 7.9 seconds and has surprisingly nimble handling. Some have reported problems with the 5-speed automatic transmission, though.



I never thought I would ever modify, or even drive a minivan, but now I have one parked in my garage with performance mods ready to be installed. I've put 3500 miles on it in less than a month. Check out www.odyclub.com... some members have auto-X'd their Odys.



The 2004 Sienna came out too, but you won¡Â¦t get much of a discount. Plus, the new 3.3L V6 seems to have sludge problems. The 60/40 folding third-row, power sliding rear windows, and laser cruise control are all clever though.
 
"I own this vehicle and can vouch for it, its been great" = My 2002 Escape :up



But if you are looking to spend up to $35k, I really like that Honda Pilot. I think prices begin in the mid-twenties.
 
My wife has been driving Dodge Mini-Vans for about 7 years now. She did go for one year with an Intrepid but wanted her van back almost immediately!

The Grand Caravan does everything very well. No, it's not way coool, super fast, or anything but it sure rides, handles and functions just like it's supposed to. She loves it. She hates "SUV's" and for good reasons which I won't go into here but the van does everything any SUV will do for 99.9% of driving people do. PLUS better mileage, re-sale, and comfort.



Got the money? Get a Town & Country LXi!!!!
 
Scottwax said:
I have customers who are on their 2nd and 3rd Explorers since I've been detailing their cars, so they must be happy if they keep buying them.
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My grandmother is on her 4th Explorer. She has kept all 4 in the family as well, and they still run great with no problems. She has had a '94 XLT 4x4 (220k mi.) , a '96 Ltd., a '99 EB and a 2003 EB.



I would go for an explorer, it fits perfectly in that price range and is very functional and reliable.



Also, you may want to check out 4-runners, they seem to be pretty good as well.



:bigups
 
If your Mom does a lot of travelling, and doesn't need the 4WD, then I would say, get a Pontiac Montana. Man, that thing gets tremendous gas mileage. On a 1500 Mile trip, we were getting 500 miles to a tank of gas on the highway! We had two mini-vans on the trip, and the Dodge drank 30% more gas!



Can't speak much for long term reliability, but we have rented Montanas 3 times on trips now, each time putting 2000+ miles on it in 10 days. No drama, just good old reliable transportation, and fantastic gas mileage.
 
2wheelsx2 said:
Can't speak much for long term reliability, but we have rented Montanas 3 times on trips now, each time putting 2000+ miles on it in 10 days. No drama, just good old reliable transportation, and fantastic gas mileage.
Click to expand...

We have a 1998 Pontiac Tran Sport, (poor man's Montana) that has over 110,000 mile on it. Looks, runs, drives great.

84GTV6 said:
the van does everything any SUV will do for 99.9% of driving people do. PLUS better mileage, re-sale, and comfort.
Click to expand...
We have had a van around since 1987. Can't imagine not having one for utility purposes. For fun, we have a couple of other vehicles, but driving the van is certainly not an inconvenience

.

New or used?

The depreciation on a new domestic van is pretty bad. If you are buying new, you might want to look at the Honda Odyssey. Great van with great resale. Used, the domestics are much cheaper to buy.



Charles:wavey
 
My dad's just topped 50,000 miles on his Eddie Bauer Expedition. He loves it. It's never needed anything but oil changes and lots and lots of gasoline :)



He doesn't mind the gas guzzling because it's a company car, but you might--something to consider.



On the smallish side:



Honda CR-V. My mom drives one. She averages 20k a year on it and hasn't had a problem yet. If you get one, make sure you get the newest one possible. The pre 2001 models had a smaller engine that made passing difficult. The new ones have a bunch more power.



If you like the cosmetics, the Pilot is a good looking SUV also. You know you'll get Honda reliability. But since this one is the new popular design, you'll also get a big price tag.
 
1995 Suburban 1500 LT with 130,000 miles and still going strong. Dual air,leather, XM radio- 17 mpg in town, 22 on highway. 1999 Isuzu Rodeo LS 20 mpg in town 25 hignway. Both SUV's really have been good ones while one is the larger end and the other is the smaller end. No problems with either-change oil every 3500 miles. Try www.getauto.com for some searches. Lots of good buys on the older body style vehicles now.
 
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