We tested a Rav4 and a Highlander. The Rav4 is weaker on the hills and we live atop a good sized hill. It’s all about the power.
And the higher SUVs allow my lousy knees and bad back easier access to my butt hitting the seat. I am VERY excited. Saturday morning I got up, planned to run some errands, when DH asks what am I doing today. When he told me his plan to go test drive my dream car, ie SUV, I jumped at it. We tested two at one dealer, then DH called his mechanic and he recommended another dealer. We went there and it was love at first sight. It’s a smoky blue with a tan interior. Cloth seats, not a lot of extras, but it’s solid. I forgot to check if it had power doors, but it has powered locks, windows and seat adjustment. Only saw it and drove it Saturday. Pick up is tonight. I need to get it equipped with an automatic starter before winter.
Don’t forget that I am retired and lucky to be getting a new-to-me car. It’s a 2007, and dang cheap at that. The dealer does not haggle, he prices his vehicles to sell. Most go within 24-48 hours of hitting the lot. He moves volumes of them on that tiny lot. Southern cars, which we all want up here in the frozen tundra.
you will love it! xsteen has a Rav and i like it, but prefer something a little bigger, which the highlander is. Our driveway is a Toyota lot: xshub has the 4runner and xsboy the FJcruiser.
Once you get up in an SUV, you don’t want to go back down to a sedan again. That’s for sure.
Congratulations!
I have wanted an SUV, or a minivan, since they first came out, but my husband prefers big, traditional, 4 door sedans. Being an engineer, he always has a lot of facts and figures on gas mileage, horsepower, price, etc. to back up his preferences, so we always buy big, used, 4 door sedans. Even our antique Model A is a big, 4 door sedan.
I am always threatening to buy a 4 door pick up truck next time around, but I’m not sure that I could climb into one any more. We rented a Ford Escape (I think that was the model) on one of our trips to CA this summer, and I really liked that.
We always buy low mileage used cars and look for a model with the most luxury accessories. We need front wheel drive because we live on a hill too. It can be slippery when it ices up in the winter. Many of the car manufacturers have dropped front wheel drive, so that eliminates them. We evolved from 2 large Chryslers to 2 full sized Cadillacs over the past 5 years because Chrysler droppped front wheel drive on its large sedan.
Cadillac has just dropped its popular DeVille chassis and has gone to a new, smaller model with a fold down back seat — sort of incorporating the trunk into the seating compartment. I suspect that I am driving the last Caddy that I shall ever own. Even my current 2008 Luxury 3 model, has modified, or dropped, some features that my 2003 model had. They are little things in the great scheme of life, but I really liked them.
For instance, you can no longer activate the “lock” button from the rear doors. So, if you are unloading packages, you have to go back to the front doors to lock the car or use your key fob (when your hands are already full of “stuff”). My newer Caddy does not have lighted “vanity” mirrors in the back seat, even though the accessory packages that were included are top of the line. The side “map” pockets in the doors are so shallow that they are unusable, and the cupholders have reduced the spacing in the front seat so that it is difficult to place 2 cups of coffee, etc. in them side by side. The back of the front seat pickets have no gussets, so nothing fits in them.
None of these changes were noticeable until we had bought the car and driven it for a while. And the worst thing of all? It has a black leather interior. I lose everything in there. Seriously. This is not Cadillac’s fault — just my stupidity. I’ve lost the car manual, the dog’s leash, etc., ad nauseum. Things just disappear in plain sight, especially when the car is in the garage. The side windows are tinted, and you pop out to the garage and peek in the car looking for something — no, it’s not there, look some place else. 2 days later you find it right in the car where it was the whole time. Maybe if I remembered to keep the sun roof interior shade open I could see things, but I never remember.
So, when the 2003 model needs replacing, I’ve got to look for a different car. Maybe I’ll get my minivan, finally.