Looking for owners of these vehicles...

[Tik-Tok]

Hey people, my mustang is still for sale (HERE), I'm starting to look into trading it in if it doesn't sell in the next month, I'm looking into getting a hatchback type car because it'd be nice to have one paid off by the time my angel and I start having kids (in 4-5 years)

I'm looking at these cars...

VW Rabbit (already test drove and liked it except for the fawkin cruise control knob, which is in the way of the turn signal)
Mazda 3 Sport
Dodge Caliber R/T (only because of the AWD)
Subaru Impreza wagon

Any PERSONALLY EXPERIENCED opinions on these vehicles would be great, I know the rabbit is brand new, but it's obviously just the next gen Golf, so any Golf owners please respond

I'm also looking at a toyota tacoma, or nissan frontier, so I can get rid of my trusty rusty `74 1/2 ton, but I think they may be just out of my price range...

Any help would be mucho apreció.

[Tik-Tok]

Damn, over 120 reads and NO ONE has owned or driven any of these?

[Weapon_R]

You are going to get anywhere between 25-30k for your Mustang. You can easily get into a slightly used Tacoma for that price.

Tacoma > all on your list...combined.

[kaput]

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[SiOBS]

I'm personally biased towards Subies. I have owned 2 Subaru Impreza hatchbacks, both Outback Sport models. I'd like to go up to a WRX but fuel economy is a bit worse on the turbo models. Both cars were fun to drive with the manual transmission. Getting an automatic is basically robbing these cars of fun and power control factors. All Wheel Drive on the Subaru's is fantastic for winter driving, compared to my previous car which was rear wheel drive.

Maintenance costs are not that bad from my experience so far. I owned the 2003 model for a year and basically had just oil changes to worry about. Same goes for the 2005 that I got last year. I don't know if it's my insanely high expectations, but I don't get great feelings regarding either of the subaru dealerships service centers here in town. I think that in a city the size of Calgary that there would be at least one more dealer sanctioned shop to get any warranty repairs done. Parts for Subarus from my experience on the 2003 did take a little bit of time to arrive but nothing insane like 6 months or something like that. Same goes for the 2005, which so far I've only had to wait a week to get an armrest extension and some differential protector plates. After market availability of shop manuals for Subarus looks to be non-existant for the Imprezas which really annoys me as I like to do basic maintenance myself. Another item is it seems though the paint on Subarus has gotten a bit thinner, in that they seem to be a lot more sucseptible to chips from the Calgary gravel used in the winter, or from rocks on the highway.

I also test drove a Mazda3 GT Sport hatch a few times, and the thing I do prefer there is the more adjustable height and column depth steering wheel, the much smoother clutch on the 5 speed, and the fact you can get the sunroof. My Subies because they are not WRX's can not get a dealer installed sunroof Another thing going for the Mazda3 is the better fuel economy compared to the Subaru, but I am willing to make the slight trade off for better traction with the AWD on the Subaru. I think that's all for now. Feel free to drop me a message if you have any further questions.

Forgot to add: Friends of mine have a previous gen. VW Golf. They're comment on it is that the clutch is very smooth on the car but they wish it had a little bit more power from it's base 2.0 engine, and slightly better fuel economy.

[bspot]

I've driven the Mazda 3, the Impreza and a MK V GTI. I think I'll leave the GTI out of this because its significantly different than the rabbit, besides styling.

Between the 3 and the Impreza it was an easy call for me that the Impreza was better. A lot more usable power curve, All wheel drive, a much more 'solid' feel. Interior noise seemed better, the engine sounded way cooler, and I liked the shifter better, very mechanical feeling. The Impreza felt more sure footed through the corners, and the ride was nicer over bumps. The clutch engagement was very predictible.

This was actually while my girlfriend was looking for cars, and she agreed and got the Impreza. I've since had the pleasure of driving it in the winter and its awesome. In fact, it saved us from a pretty nasty highway accident.

[Xtrema]

If you need a truck, check out Tacoma. For some reason, this truck's resell value hold up EXTREMELY well. Just check bargain finder.

[Graham_A_M]

My blue mx6 is up for grabs if you want it, PM me. I need the money for something else...

[Tik-Tok]

Originally posted by Graham_A_M
My blue mx6 is up for grabs if you want it, PM me. I need the money for something else...

lol, thanks anyways but it doesn't look like it can tow anything... that's the other bonus with the Subaru, it can tow up to 2000 lbs... so I could get a trailer and still rid myself of the pickup...

[ZMan2k2]

Originally posted by kaput
Can you elaborate on why the Tacoma?

I might be able to. I was in the market for a newer vehicle about 3 months ago. I started looking about 4-5 months before that even. I wanted something to replace a Chevy Cavalier, and I was looking for something larger. I surveyed the mini-vans, but couldn't bring myself to consider them seriously, because IMO, they kill the fun factor of driving. So i decided that a truck would suit my purposes much better than a minivan or car. A truck has cargo capacity, roomy interior, and plenty of comfort.

Initially, after deciding on trucks, I went out and test drove every truck I could think of. I went and checked Fords, Chevy's, Dodge's, Mazda, Toyota and Nissan.

Mazda was almost immediately dropped from the list, because one of the requirements was that it was a Double cab, and Mazda doesn't have a DC. Also, the Ford Ranger was out, same reason.

Second thing I wanted was decent fuel economy, I know, economy from a truck, but it is possible. So in doing research and reading on the left over choices, I found that the large trucks, with V-8's weren't exactly the best for fuel economy. I mean, the Chevy Avalanche is rated for 9MPG in the city. So the F-150, Sierra, Avalanche, etc., were off the list. This left me with 4 choices that were left.

Dodge Dakota
Chevy Colorado / GMC Canyon
Nissan Frontier
Toyota Tacoma.

So off I packed the family to the dealerships again, this time armed with the baby seat and the wife, she's 5'1", so adjustable seating for her and I is a must. (I'm 6'4" btw.) The Chevy and the Dodge were first and second, and I wasn't impressed with the power of the Dodge, or the fit and finish of the Chevy. But the reason the Dodge was first off the list was really the lack of power of the v-8 Dakota, and the rather rough shifting transmission. The Chevy was rather difficult for both my wife and I to find comfortable seating in, as I found the seat too high, and she found the pedals too far away. Not good for control on the road.

So after about 2 months of looking and research, I was down to the Nissan Frontier and the Toyota Tacoma. And beleive it or not, the deciding factor for me between the two was the rear doors. The doors on the Tacoma are larger than the Frontier, bonus, making it easier to get the little one in and out of. And lastly, the Frontier is a standard 5-foot box, no matter what package you get. With the Tacoma, you can get either the 5-foot or the 6-foot box.

The comfort and the quality of the two were definitely very close, and the power was pretty much equal between the two. The Nissan did feel a little rougher on road, and I think that's due to the fully boxed frame, as opposed to the Toyota with a C-channel frame.

Now, after having my Tacoma for 2 months, I can say that I don't regret my purchase in the least. It's definitely one of the nicest vehicles I've ever owned, and my wife and I both find it very comfortable to drive. As well, I can rest easy in the knowledge that I have Toyota build quality and reliablility in the vehicle that I have that will last me years.

Sorry for the long winded post, but you asked.

[lint]

I have a mazda 3 sport gt. I was looking at hatches/wagons at the time and it was between the impreza and the sport. Went with the sport because the interior fit and finish is quite a bit nicer than the impreza and I wanted a sunroof. Downside is the lack of awd, (I've own an impreza coupe in the past) but a nice set of winter tires and I haven't missed it that much. Overall I felt that the mazda was a nicer car.

The other thing that swayed me was service. I did not like subaru's service department (subaru of calgary, never did go to centaur but heard horror stories before). Always felt like I was getting ripped off, and had to fight for warranty issues.

Just over 1.5 years now, and no problems at all. My only complaints are cheap factory wipers, paint chips easily, and the defrost vent does not hit the very bottom edge of the windshield. Had a couple of times with heavy wet snow when the wipers were frozen to the bottom edge of the winshield.

Course you will get much better financing on the subie. Nearer to the end of the year, you'll start seeing 1.8 or 0.8% financing over 4-5 years.

I also test drove a Dodge Caliber R/T Awd recently. Cheap plastic interior, power delivery felt non-existent. Could have been because the engine wasn't broken in yet, or that I'm not used to the CVT but it felt like an absolute pig with no acceleration. For the price, I'd go with the impreza if you want awd.

[kaput]

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