Safe, practical SUV for family under 12k

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wikibedi

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Wannabe Geek

#204341 28-Sep-2016 11:03

Hi team,

My first post here, so please excuse if I miss following any forum rules.

I've been doing some intense research to get the best value for our money on a used SUV we're looking to buy from a dealer here in Chch.

It is going to be an upgrade (in terms of space, at least) from my wife's current hatchback, a 2005 Nissan Pulsar. The car will be ferrying my wife and new baby. So I am paranoid about it being a safe car.

Also, the Pulsar is suddenly ridiculously space deprived as the front passenger seat has to be moved and leaned so far forward to fit the baby's capsule on the rear seat that the car is literally down to being able to accommodate 2 adults (1 driver, 1 passenger directly behind). And with a collapsed mountain buggy in the boot (barely fitting in), there hardly any bootspace left to carry anything else.

Wife completely refuses to be seen driving any sort of car that barely resembles a people mover. So most Honda Streams, Odysseys, Toyota Wish, Ipsum, Estima, Mazda Premacy, MPV are ruled out.

The budget is 10k (ideal) to 12k(max!). I am trying to find a good balance between having a late model car (safer) and low kms (lesser general wear and tear).

So far on my shortlist are (in order of personal perference):

1. Toyota Kluger

2. Honda CRV

3. Suzuki Escudo

4. Nissan Murano

5. Mazda CX-7

Any feedback on these cars would be highly appreciated. Also let me know if there are other sensible options I am not yet looking at (I am just using the filters I just mentioned and looking at TradeMe and have been to a couple of car yards so far).

Specific question about the Mazda CX-7 - I am considering a 2.3Litre Turbo petrol version. May seem like over the top performance (I know), but it has a 5 star safety rating and I am not terribly worried about naysayers about its fuel economy.

However, I have no experience with turbos, nor do I know anybody who has owned this model (2007) or any turbo petrol. Is it incredibly unreliable and expensive to fix? Is that reason enough to strike it off this list?

I am looking to buy in the next 10 days or so. Really looking forward to members' feedback.

Thanks.

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#1641676 28-Sep-2016 11:22

Kids just went through a similar thing.

They had a Nissan Primera wagon, and whilst someone could sit in the front seat with the baby seat behind, they could only be small. When they became pregnant with child #2, they decided time was up on the Primera.

After a lot of research, they settled on and bought the Escudo. They wanted manual transmission, and 4WD (to tow a boat up a beach every so often).

They are happy with the vehicle, and I think they got it around that price. NOt a super powerful car (only 2L engine, petrol), but it gets them A to B, and I think it had pretty low K's (around the 100k mark). Was in really good nick internal and external, and they were really happy with the Dealer (Buy Right I think).

The CX7 - is it manual? SOunds like it has got the engine from the Mazda MPS - that was a 2.3 Turbo. I have an 07 Mazda3 MPS, and it is really powerful - a lot of fun to drive, and plenty of pull for overtaking etc. It is thirsty though, and that is in a much lighter car than the CX7 would be. You wouldn't get under 11L/100Km in that vehicle in real world driving I'd think (you would on long trips). Mine gets about 10-10.5L/100km around town, about 9/100 intercity. The engine in the MPS is apparently very reliable, and so long as your keep it serviced, should be OK. I wouldn't want to get one with more than 100k on the clock though if you didn't know about service history. Servicing will cost more too - needs synthetic oils, and more of it. Most garages/service centres class it as a Euro for service pricing.

maoriboy

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#1641682 28-Sep-2016 11:29

Have you thought about a Mitsubishi Outlander?

Here's a nice example that falls within your price range (just)

Trademe 2006 Outlander

I have a 2010 Outlander and they are awesome to drive, heaps of room (I've got 2 kids) and the 2.4l are fairly economical. I believe it also has a chain driven engine so cam belts are not an issue.

Inphinity

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#1641693 28-Sep-2016 11:48

I would go with the CX-7 or Outlander, personally. You ruled out people-mover style vehicles for the look, can we assume this means you don't need the extra seating?

wikibedi

5 posts

Wannabe Geek

#1641714 28-Sep-2016 11:58

Thanks for the responses so far team!

trig42, the CS-7 we're looking at is a 6speed auto.
Thanks for the detail on the 2.3 turbo. I will keep that in mind.
The details so far about this car are not instilling a lot of confidence in me for the Mazda so far, but I think I will still test drive it. Will let you know how that goes.

Thanks maoriboy. I forgot the put the Outlander on the list. Wife has made positive sounds about the Outlander. We'll check it out.

Inphinity, we're just the 3 of us in the family (so far). But I am partial to a 7 seater if we can make it happen - Toyota Kluger and Outlander could be the possible candidates.

MikeB4

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#1641715 28-Sep-2016 11:59

Do you want/need 4WD or AWD? this adds alot of weight and makes the vehicle drink more fuel.

Here is a crazy notion, lets give peace a chance.

trig42

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#1641717 28-Sep-2016 12:02

I'm sure the 2.3 Turbo Mazda will be nice to drive - it will certainly go where you point it, and get there while pushing back into your seat.

It may not be the most 'practical' though ;)

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maoriboy

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#1641728 28-Sep-2016 12:15

If you are considering a 7 seater, the Outlander is not really an option. the 3rd row is terrible and is basically a fold out camp chair with seatbelts. Ok for small children on very short trips, but leaves virtually no room in the boot. My wife loves the higher seating position of the SUV, and with reversing camera, makes it a great choice IMO.

cshwone

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#1641733 28-Sep-2016 12:22

I would also suggest you open up your options to include Hyundai/Kia - not flash vehicles but solid, reliable and safe

Inphinity

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#1641734 28-Sep-2016 12:23

maoriboy:

If you are considering a 7 seater, the Outlander is not really an option. the 3rd row is terrible and is basically a fold out camp chair with seatbelts. Ok for small children on very short trips, but leaves virtually no room in the boot. My wife loves the higher seating position of the SUV, and with reversing camera, makes it a great choice IMO.

You pretty much have to go to a people mover or van-style vehicle to get 7 proper seats and good boot space, though. I'm not as familiar with the older gen Outlanders, but the more recent ones the 3rd row seats I can fit in comfortably enough.

I'm pretty sure the Kluger is just the name of the Highlander in the JP/AU markets, so if you're not you can include Highlander in your search as it's the same thing.

davidcole

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#1641756 28-Sep-2016 12:44

We've had a Vitara for the past 8 years....what you';re calling an escudo (which is the import version). You should be able to get an older one of those for that money. We had the car seat in that as it was "safer" than my old 96 maxima (ie had airbags and was 12 years newer).

It's a 2l automatic - full time 4wd - which is unfortunate. A 2l 2wd would be better....the v6 even better than that, it's a fairly heavy body. But it's been rock solid. We bought it from brand new.

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timmmay

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#1641784 28-Sep-2016 13:13

$12K is a fairly low budget if you want late model low mileage. Cars these days seem to last a long time, so I'd probably go higher mileage. My 2003 Corolla is around 200,000km and is just fine, never had any major problems, reasonably priced services. I think in the past 10 years I've pair $500 in repairs, some coil and a door lock had problems.

We purchased a Nissan Qashqui a few months back, the newest shape/style. My father in law has the previous model, both previous and current models are great. They're roomy, a good sized boot, plenty of features if you want them (though all we do is get in and drive), good performance despite their size, good fuel economy (better than my 2003 Corolla despite being bigger and heavier), good to drive (it's a cruiser not a race car), and the feel like good quality. Actually really impressed with the quality given the price. I'd buy one again for sure.

The most annoying thing about it is trying to spell it.

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6FIEND

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#1641787 28-Sep-2016 13:20

I seem to be missing the justification for it being an SUV?

Do you need to go off road? Need to tow stuff? Need 4WD and/or low ratio gearbox for any other reason? Or is it a perception that they are safer?

If you forego the SUV requirement, there are many more options available to you within your price range.

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#1641836 28-Sep-2016 13:44

If you want actually usable 7-8 seats <12k you need a Toyota Estima.

If you don't need 7 seats also consider the Nissan X Trail - they have a big boot.

The Mazda has a tiny boot ...

wikibedi

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Wannabe Geek

#1641852 28-Sep-2016 14:13

maoriboy, agree re the third row. Not really a 7 seater.

cshwone, I've owned a Hyundai (accent) before and completely agree with you, however there is only one random Kia Sportage within the budget (<$12k , <140k Kms). There just aren't as many of them around.

Inphinity, agree re the Kluger/Highlander thing. Will look out for those. Looking to test drive one later this week. Will report back.

davidcole, thanks for the recommendation. I have a 2.7 V6 Grand Vitara on my watchlist.

timmmay, 12k is low budget, I know, and that does limit options, but even with that filter, there are quite a few options on trademe (the 6 cars I've mentioned).

I get the feeling that the smaller/more fuel efficient the car, the more expensive the sticker price. The qashkais/x-trails/dualis etc. are more expensive than Murano etc. (matched for same year, similiar odo).

6FIEND, as maoriboy mentioned above, we too have the same rationale - not so much the offroading (hence not hung-up on 4wd capability) but the higher ride height, more room and ease of ingress and egress get these cars on the list.
And agreed about more options without this filter, the lady who will be driving it is also a designer, so aesthetics (and color!) matter. Hence the veto for people movers.
Although IMO the new shape Mazda MPV looks rather good.

Also, just an update. We just drove the Mazda CX-7, quickly followed by a 2004 CRV, and its definitely the Mazda between these two. The CRV doesn't really solve the space issue as it was nearly just as bad with the capsule + front passenger issue as the Pulsar. And though the cars are $1200 apart, the Mazda felt a lot more expensive than that.

More on the field research later this week.

Thanks a ton for the responses so far. I feel a lot more informed with these honest, owner's opinions than the reviews published online.

Even the review sites, one has to take with a grain of salt, as you don't often find people coming on to a ratings site to say how much they love their car. Its only when something is broken do they come online and rant about it, which, to me it seems, skews the online ratings. So again, really appreciate the comments here. Please keep them coming.

MikeB4

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#1641855 28-Sep-2016 14:23

I have owned two Suzuki Grand Vitara both NZ new. One the 3.2 Litre and the 2.5 Litre . I had them as they were inexpensive SUV's with good off road credentials having High/Low ratio and locking diffs which is rare in the price bracket.

They drive well and OK build wise but could be better, had no issues with them at all. However I will say they are very heavy on fuel especially towing.

If you are needing off road ability they are the only one on your list that has this ability. I got ours in and out of some quite rough terrain but they are not a rock hopper.

Here is a crazy notion, lets give peace a chance.

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