Best used sub 10k AWD/4x4 Vehicle with decent mileage...

[mvbighead]

In the title is what I am looking for. Decent mileage I expect around 20 mpg on average, so roughly 18 or so would be alright. I need something with a decent amount of space as I am 6'3", and don't fit into most smaller/tighter compact vehicles. SUV or sedan, but must have 4 doors and room for 4 actual passengers (IE - no crammed up back seat).

Throw me some ideas. Currently looking at used Jeeps, but I fear the mileage might be a bit too crappy. I did have a 92 Jeep Cherokee Laredo that I fit into pretty well, and was able to take it from 130k miles to roughly 215k before I sold it.

 

[Demo24]

Subaru's. Legacy or outback should fit you. Try for 04-09 models.

 

[v8envy]

Our Patriot gets about 30 mpg highway and mid to high 20s in a city/highway mix. May be a bit too new to find for 10k used though. 6'3" should not be an issue.

4 doors, check. 4 passengers, check. Part time 4wd, check. It may be too new to get for 10k used, that might be the only question. They were about 18k stripped for the '08, so it'll be close for the one w/o power doors and locks.

 

[beyonddc]

Subaru Forester

 

[Throckmorton]

Don't buy an older Jeep. Terrible gas mileage, for no apparent reason.

 

[PricklyPete]

Don't buy an older Jeep. Terrible gas mileage, for no apparent reason.

The reason is that you can go anywhere and do anything.*






*As long as your transmission works

 

[mvbighead]

Don't buy an older Jeep. Terrible gas mileage, for no apparent reason.

When you say older... what age range are you referring to? I do know that my old 92 got about 16 or so on average with a lot of highway driving.

Thanks for all the suggestions guy. One thing I should add is that I am kinda leaning towards a Jeep, especially something with a receiver for a towing hitch. I won't be using it all that often, but my ole man has boats, campers, etc. that are used all year round, and if my vehicle was capable of towing something, it would give him another option for getting his stuff home from a family camping trip.

Anyone have any input on the smaller variety of Toyota pickups (Tacoma I think)?

Personally, I am not much for the station wagon type of vehicle, so most Subaru's are not my cup of tea. I do like the looks of the legacy (I think), but the only one I've found in my area has been all "tricked" out and I would much prefer the nice, solid high end model look without personalizations that draw attention.

 

[jlee]

A Tacoma should give you enough room up front, but I'm not sure how the rear will be..and I think you'll have a hard time finding a double cab in your price range.

I love my Forester XT, but that probably doesn't fit your preferred looks at all. Quick little rig, though

 

[thepd7]

In the title is what I am looking for. Decent mileage I expect around 20 mpg on average, so roughly 18 or so would be alright. I need something with a decent amount of space as I am 6'3", and don't fit into most smaller/tighter compact vehicles. SUV or sedan, but must have 4 doors and room for 4 actual passengers (IE - no crammed up back seat).

Throw me some ideas. Currently looking at used Jeeps, but I fear the mileage might be a bit too crappy. I did have a 92 Jeep Cherokee Laredo that I fit into pretty well, and was able to take it from 130k miles to roughly 215k before I sold it.

I was thinking Jeep as soon as I saw your title. I just picked up a 2004 Grand Cherokee Limited completely loaded (V8, leather, nav, 4x4, 72k miles) for $11,600. If you went with a Grand Cherokee Laredo 4x4 you could get a 2003-2005 with 100k or less for $10k.

The other option is to go with the Liberty, those are cheaper but I like the size and features of the Grand Cherokee.

 

[Throckmorton]

When you say older... what age range are you referring to? I do know that my old 92 got about 16 or so on average with a lot of highway driving.

Thanks for all the suggestions guy. One thing I should add is that I am kinda leaning towards a Jeep, especially something with a receiver for a towing hitch. I won't be using it all that often, but my ole man has boats, campers, etc. that are used all year round, and if my vehicle was capable of towing something, it would give him another option for getting his stuff home from a family camping trip.

Anyone have any input on the smaller variety of Toyota pickups (Tacoma I think)?

Personally, I am not much for the station wagon type of vehicle, so most Subaru's are not my cup of tea. I do like the looks of the legacy (I think), but the only one I've found in my area has been all "tricked" out and I would much prefer the nice, solid high end model look without personalizations that draw attention.

Probably any Jeep with the old 4.0L will get bad gas mileage.

 

[mvbighead]

Probably any Jeep with the old 4.0L will get bad gas mileage.

Well, for what it's worth, that was the engine I had in the 92. Solid engine, but the gas mileage does suck.

As for more recent Jeeps, what are their more reliable engines? I am not looking for Hemi-type engines, but a solid V6 would be perfectly fine. Just don't want to purchase a model with a bunch of mechanical issues. I have seen some of the newer body style Grand Cherokees fall into my price range, but there are plenty of 01-04 models that cost about right as well.

 

[v8envy]

As a data point my 3.7 (the 4.7 v8 with 2 cylinders lopped off) has been very reliable. Absolutely no complaints. Can't say the same thing about either the first or second transmission though.

Gas mileage is horrific -- about 20 the way I drive my 6 speed mixed city/highway, and a co-worker with an automatic wrangler reports 16 mpg. Another with a slushbox Grand Cherokee gets 14.

That's your only choice for a 6 banger in the Jeep line (other than the venerable 4.0).

 

[kornphlake]

Maybe an AWD mini-van? Just about anything large enough to comfortably seat 4 adults with AWD is going to fall well below 20mpg or cost much more than $10k You might look at the Trailblazer/Envoy, Durango and Explorer. They should all fall in your budget, but might be a compromise on mileage depending on the engine and gearing.

 

[Bignate603]

Probably any Jeep with the old 4.0L will get bad gas mileage.

I've got a '97 cherokee 4x4 with an automatic and the 4.0L and top 20 mpg on the highway. Sure, if you cruise up past 70 mph it will start to drink gas but it's honestly not too terrible on the highway. If I had the 5 speed manual I could probably squeak out a little bit more.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

Chevy Blazer the 4.3L V6 doesnt do too bad in mileage plus its roomy and extremely reliable.

Jeep Patriot & Caliber AWD

Matrix AWD or Vibe AWD

Ford Five Hundred AWD or Mercury Montego AWD (massive interior & trunk)

 

[jaydee]

Forester

 

[mvbighead]

Man, I am assuming people will think I am nuts, but here goes...

http://www.allpar.com/model/jeep/grand-cherokee-2005.html

Reading the above article suggests that the Hemi v8 is the only engine with the fuel saving design where half of the cylinders shut off to maximize fuel economy. Not sure how realistic that is, but figured it's worth checking with anyone who has experience. I don't necessarily need all the power, but if it isn't going to kill fuel economy... why not?

Gear heads... what say you?

Also, are there significant tranny issues with the 05+ model of Jeeps? Based on prickly pete and some limited web perusing, it seems like transmissions might be an issue.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Why 4x4?

 

[mvbighead]

Why 4x4?

Omaha, NE... last winter was pretty bad. There were times where the city did a piss poor job of cleaning the steets (especially the residential road I live on), which made getting from A to B pretty difficult, despite surrounding roads being clean and clear. It could be done, but a 4 wheel drive vehicle would've made travel much easier.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Omaha, NE... last winter was pretty bad. There were times where the city did a piss poor job of cleaning the steets (especially the residential road I live on), which made getting from A to B pretty difficult, despite surrounding roads being clean and clear. It could be done, but a 4 wheel drive vehicle would've made travel much easier.

What do you drive now? Honestly, a decent set of snow tires would probably make a world of difference.

 

[mvbighead]

What do you drive now? Honestly, a decent set of snow tires would probably make a world of difference.

I drive an 07 Impala that does pretty well in snow. The wife drives an 06 Solara that doesn't. We are looking at selling her car to get another car with 4 doors, and preferably something that can:

tow stuff, or have a tow package added.
can get around well in all conditions.

Given that her family lives in BFE on a ranch in west Nebraska that we drive to for holidays (IE - winter weather) and my family lives in the country in Iowa on a rock road up hill, having something that is a little safer and gets around better would be ideal for winter months. Everything I have read suggest the grand cherokee are some of the safest vehicles out there, and having had experience with jeeps and 4wd in the past, I know it makes a pretty big difference when accelerating up hill in snowy/icy conditions. I get where you're coming from, but at this point, I really would like something that can stop and then go up hill, and not have to worry about ice slicks that prevent me from moving forward (possibly sliding back into the person behind me).

 

[JulesMaximus]

I drive an 07 Impala that does pretty well in snow. The wife drives an 06 Solara that doesn't. We are looking at selling her car to get another car with 4 doors, and preferably something that can:

tow stuff, or have a tow package added.
can get around well in all conditions.

Given that her family lives in BFE on a ranch in west Nebraska that we drive to for holidays (IE - winter weather) and my family lives in the country in Iowa on a rock road up hill, having something that is a little safer and gets around better would be ideal for winter months. Everything I have read suggest the grand cherokee are some of the safest vehicles out there, and having had experience with jeeps and 4wd in the past, I know it makes a pretty big difference when accelerating up hill in snowy/icy conditions. I get where you're coming from, but at this point, I really would like something that can stop and then go up hill, and not have to worry about ice slicks that prevent me from moving forward (possibly sliding back into the person behind me).

You aren't going to find a decent tow vehicle with AWD that gets good mileage. Honestly, I'd just get a 4WD pickup. You could probably find a used Ford or Chevy truck or maybe even a Tundra 4x4 close to your price range.

Here's a nice 2004 Tundra double cab 4x4 Limited for $14,500 with 104k miles. A little out of your price range but a little haggling might get you a grand or more off. Not sure of the market where you are but within 50 miles of me I found 195 used Toyota Tundra pickups for sale (2001-2006 model years).

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.j...06&pager.offset=125&cardist=37&standard=false

 

[v8envy]

Man, I am assuming people will think I am nuts, but here goes...

http://www.allpar.com/model/jeep/grand-cherokee-2005.html

Reading the above article suggests that the Hemi v8 is the only engine with the fuel saving design where half of the cylinders shut off to maximize fuel economy. Not sure how realistic that is, but figured it's worth checking with anyone who has experience. I don't necessarily need all the power, but if it isn't going to kill fuel economy... why not?

Gear heads... what say you?

Also, are there significant tranny issues with the 05+ model of Jeeps? Based on prickly pete and some limited web perusing, it seems like transmissions might be an issue.

If you read up on the variable displacement in the real world you'll see it adds at most 10-20% in MPG. So you'll go from 12-13 to an astounding 15 mpg. Yay? Sure, in the long haul that's a $ savings, but you pay for that in increased complexity, more moving parts and having to use low viscosity oil (no discount oil changes for you!).

Also, the Patriot is *NOT* awd. It's 4wd. It has no center differential, unlike the AWD Caliber. They may be the same platform, but it's not precisely the same system. Here, look at this: http://www.expeditionswest.com/equipment/reviews/patriot/index.htm Look at some of the places that little car went with no trouble. It's quite a capable stock offroader, really. I've taken my wife's on slightly hairy off-road trails and it did a fantastic job with 2 adults, 2 children and camping gear in the car (so long as I didn't have to wade through streams or power through deep mud pits). But not being full time AWD it's not as capable on dry pavement or racetrack -- an excellent trade off IMO.

 

[mvbighead]

You aren't going to find a decent tow vehicle with AWD that gets good mileage. Honestly, I'd just get a 4WD pickup. You could probably find a used Ford or Chevy truck or maybe even a Tundra 4x4 close to your price range.

Here's a nice 2004 Tundra double cab 4x4 Limited for $14,500 with 104k miles. A little out of your price range but a little haggling might get you a grand or more off. Not sure of the market where you are but within 50 miles of me I found 195 used Toyota Tundra pickups for sale (2001-2006 model years).

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.j...06&pager.offset=125&cardist=37&standard=false

The gas mileage thing I started to kinda figure that 20 mpg hwy was about the tops of what I was going to get. While I agree that getting a truck would be the best bet, my wife doesn't. The other issue is that, for what I want (4 doors and 4 actual seats), a truck is going to be a bit longer than a Jeep, and thus won't fit into my garage. For me, not getting the car in the garage is a bit of deal breaker, as I really don't care to get up 15-20 minutes early and go fire up the vehicle and scrape snow, etc. to be ready to drive off to work. Honestly, if I my garage was bigger, I'd push a lot harder for a Silverado or Tundra.

 

[v8envy]

I drive an 07 Impala that does pretty well in snow. The wife drives an 06 Solara that doesn't. We are looking at selling her car to get another car with 4 doors, and preferably something that can:

tow stuff, or have a tow package added.
can get around well in all conditions.

My parents camry (same thing as solara) was awful in the snow and ice with the stock tires. We're talking worse than a 69 firebird formula 400 with skinny front tires and DOT-approved slicks, not much better than Miata with Z rated 40 series awful. Toyota put rock hard compound tires with low rolling resistance tread for gas mileage and low harshness and it really showed in the snow.

Got a second set of rims with real snow tires (studded) and it became a complete snowcat. Now it's up there with either of my jeeps with all seasons even after a several foot overnight snowfall.