OT: SUV advice

[Gangrel]

My little cracker box of a Ford Focus is on it's last legs at 11 years old, and the wife and I are looking to replace it with an SUV or CUV in addition to her newer Mazda 3. With the little one now, it would be nice to have some more room to pile our stuff in for family trips, etc. as we just discovered a month ago!

I've been eyeing a few models, and was wondering if anyone on here had any of them in their family? I know there's probably differences between the Canadian and US models, but if anyone has any feedback on these, it would be greatly appreciated!

1) Nissan Murano
2) Hyundai Santa Fe
3) Kia Sportage
4) Honda CRV
5) Mazda CX5.


So far i've just been browsing the sites and getting the brochures, haven't made any test drives yet. Kinda figured we wanted to whittle the list down to one or two before we get a test.

[dbdynsty25]

Bought a Sportage two and a half years ago before our son was born for the same reason. Replaced a honda civic 2dr...so we definitely needed the space. I absolutely love it. For the price, they can't be beat.

The Murano and Santa Fe are significantly bigger than the other three on your list. I drove every one of them, and the Murano was probably the best, but at >30K new, it was out of my comfort range before having a new kid.

[jLp vAkEr0]

If youre considering the Sportage why not check the Hyundai Tucson?

We bought one on December after comming down to the Sportage and the Tucson.

As far as price/value you can't go wrong with either.

We just liked the inside materials a bit more on the Tucson.

Both have unbeatable standard warranty.

[dbdynsty25]

If youre considering the Sportage why not check the Hyundai Tucson?

We bought one on December after comming down to the Sportage and the Tucson.

As far as price/value you can't go wrong with either.

We just liked the inside materials a bit more on the Tucson.

Both have unbeatable standard warranty.

Ummm...they are exactly the same materials inside unless you get different levels of trim. LOL. Same company. Just that the Tucson is uglier than the Sportage. That plastic on the bottom of the outside of the doors is hideous. They drive exactly the same...so it's all a matter of preference.

[Gangrel]

So I messed up . I meant to say Sorrento, not Sportage.


However size of SUV is another debate we have lol.

Thanks for the feedback. I may look into the Sportage.

[dbdynsty25]

Well...size wise...if you've only got one kid, the Sportage is fine. With our kid and our two little dogs, it was rough going on a road trip out of state. Had to really pack it in. So if that's a concern...get the bigger models. Def would have done that knowing what I know now...but I love the Sportage now that he's grown and doesn't need baby gate fencing and a million walkers/scooters/etc. as a baby.

[pk500]

We have a Mazda CX-9. LOVE it. Zoom-zoom is more than a marketing slogan -- it's the only SUV of any size I've driven that drives like a car, not a small truck. Granted, I've never been behind the wheel of a Porsche Cayenne or Audi Q5, but I've driven most of the brands and models in your list. And the Mazda was the best-handling, most car-like of the bunch.

No reliability issues, either. Great vehicle.

Mazda makes some of the most underrated vehicles on the road. Drive one. You'll dig it. And the new models have Skyactiv technology, which creates excellent power and torque for such a small-displacement, gas-sipping engine.

Here's the Mazda SUV nomenclature:

CX-5: Small, two-row SUV. Seats five in a pinch.
CX-7: Medium, two-row SUV. Seats five.
CX-9: Larger, three-row SUV. Seats seven with third row that folds down for more cargo room.

[Gangrel]

Have you had any rust issues on the Mazda PK? My wife's Mazda 3, which is 4 years younger than mine, has rust around the wheel wells and one of the tailights. Most Mazda 3s I see around town have just as much rust, if not more.

My car which is 11 years old, barely has any rust.

That was one of my main concerns about looking into another Mazda.......


As for size, I'm not 100% sure if we are sticking with one rug rat, or having another sometime soon, so I kinda was leaning towards a bit bigger is better, especially if we keep this thing 10+ years. We both have good jobs, so $$$ is not a super issue, at least with looking at the bigger SUVs. Getting a Cayenne however, wouldn't be an option, lol.

[skinsfan]

We have a Mazda CX-9. LOVE it. Zoom-zoom is more than a marketing slogan -- it's the only SUV of any size I've driven that drives like a car, not a small truck. Granted, I've never been behind the wheel of a Porsche Cayenne or Audi Q5, but I've driven most of the brands and models in your list. And the Mazda was the best-handling, most car-like of the bunch.

No reliability issues, either. Great vehicle.

Mazda makes some of the most underrated vehicles on the road. Drive one. You'll dig it. And the new models have Skyactiv technology, which creates excellent power and torque for such a small-displacement, gas-sipping engine.

Here's the Mazda SUV nomenclature:

CX-5: Small, two-row SUV. Seats five in a pinch.
CX-7: Medium, two-row SUV. Seats five.
CX-9: Larger, three-row SUV. Seats seven with third row that folds down for more cargo room.

Another Mazda guy here. Great car.

[pk500]

Zero rust, dude. And I live in Snow Country, where salt is used to clear the roads instead of the plow until 3+ inches hit the asphalt.

[sportdan30]

I have a 2010 Mazda CX9 and really do love it. However, it has poor city driving gas mileage and I don't find it very good in the snow. It does drive very well, has plenty of space (good third row seating), and of course I could never do without my seat warmers in the winter time. No signs of rust either.

I'm sure the CX7 gets better mileage.

[Gangrel]

The CX7 isn't an option unfortunately. its not available in Canada. Just the 5 and the 9.

[pk500]

I have a 2010 Mazda CX9 and really do love it. However, it has poor city driving gas mileage and I don't find it very good in the snow. It does drive very well, has plenty of space (good third row seating), and of course I could never do without my seat warmers in the winter time. No signs of rust either.

I'm sure the CX7 gets better mileage.

The CX-9 is a big vehicle, so it doesn't have good city mileage. But the newer versions with Skyactiv engines get better mileage. Ours is a 2008 -- no Skyactiv.

Our CX-9 is GREAT in the snow, and we probably get five times as much snow per year than you St. Louisans. We average 120 inches per year. So either you have sh*tty tires or don't know how to drive in snow.

[Brando70]

My wife and I just went through this. Our six-year-old daughter is very tall for her age but still needs to be in a child seat, so we needed something that would give her leg room while still leaving some for my wife. After looking at a ton of SUVs, we bought a new Jeep Grand Cherokee. I really love it -- it's my first new car (had always bought used), it's super comfortable, and the tech in it is really something. I really liked the regular Cherokee, too, but my wife liked the look of the Grand Cherokee better and the extra size was nice for us.

I went into this process having no intention of buying a Jeep -- we are big Volvo fans and thought we'd get an XC60 -- but we were really won over.

Good luck!

[sportdan30]

I have a 2010 Mazda CX9 and really do love it. However, it has poor city driving gas mileage and I don't find it very good in the snow. It does drive very well, has plenty of space (good third row seating), and of course I could never do without my seat warmers in the winter time. No signs of rust either.

I'm sure the CX7 gets better mileage.

The CX-9 is a big vehicle, so it doesn't have good city mileage. But the newer versions with Skyactiv engines get better mileage. Ours is a 2008 -- no Skyactiv.

Our CX-9 is GREAT in the snow, and we probably get five times as much snow per year than you St. Louisans. We average 120 inches per year. So either you have sh*tty tires or don't know how to drive in snow.

I'm a big wuss when it snows. I'm like Mario Andretti all other times. Unfortunately, we usually get a nice mixture of ice and snow which is a bad mix. Then again maybe you have better tires. What I experience is a loose feel on cornering along with a floaty feeling.

[10spro]

My wife just traded our 2002 Rav 4 for this years model. The older model was running just fine but she was feeling a bit insecure during the snow periods which is not often here but nevertheless. A good change of tires would have been just fine but when we compared the prices of the Rav 4 to about 12 years ago, we decided to go with the newer model which by the way has lost the spare tire in the back of the trunk and you can open it upwards now instead of sideways.

It seems also slightly longer and roomier than our 02 version. We never had any issues with Toyota despite the late recalls on some models.

[dbdynsty25]

It seems also slightly longer and roomier than our 02 version. We never had any issues with Toyota despite the late recalls on some models.

Now the only problem is the rental-car-like finishes. My mom's husband bought one, and for 3-5k more than the Kia Sportage, it's embarrassing what Toyota gets away with. I guess you can do that when your reliability is proven.

[10spro]

It seems also slightly longer and roomier than our 02 version. We never had any issues with Toyota despite the late recalls on some models.

Now the only problem is the rental-car-like finishes. My mom's husband bought one, and for 3-5k more than the Kia Sportage, it's embarrassing what Toyota gets away with. I guess you can do that when your reliability is proven.

The Kia and Hyundai brand have made great strides in the past few years.

[dbdynsty25]

The Kia and Hyundai brand have made great strides in the past few years.

They have to make better interiors...they need to prove themselves. Toyotas been doing it for 30 years. It's good that they are finally starting to catch on...and for a great price.

[MUTTS]

My name is Tony. I drive a minivan.

9 yrs and 150K miles. Been looking at large SUVs but I know Im going to end up with another van.

So I repeat.

My name is Tony. I drive a minivan.

[bkrich83]

We had a Murano, nothing but great things to say about that car. Only complaint was the CVT transmission, but it was a great car with a lot of options for a reasonable price

[Gangrel]

I just read some reviews on the Murano that complained about rear visibility. Did you have any complaints? I assume it's referring to the window, and not the side windows.......

[RobVarak]

Real men drive minivans.