[Balaji31582]

friends,
Need your valuable suggestions. My colleague is in San Jose and he is considering to buy the Toyota Highlander XLE, basically he looks for a SUV. Can you please let me know if this is a good option or is there any alternatives to this?
Also, apologies if i have re-posted a same question that was done by some other fellow Bhpian.

Thanks
Balaji Babu

[ninjatalli]

Hello folks,
So here's another BHPian who has (for the time being) moved to the US of A and is now looking out for another set of 4 wheelers to give him company. I do wish I could just get my Vento from India to here

So my budget initially is being set at $10k. Am open going above the limit too, but don't really see the point in upgrading to a better segment for the time being. Maybe next year, possible. I'm sticking to Japs for now, and the basic models (Civic, Corolla, etc) would do just fine.

A friend suggested that a colleague of his is looking out to sell his 2007 Civic - the car has done about 1 lac miles and apparently is in decent condition. While I have not yet reached out to the owner, but would like to know what to watch out for.

KBB tells me the price should be between $7k to $7.5k depending on the condition being good to excellent.

Looking forward to inputs. I'll be able to share pics and other details once I connect with the seller (I am not even aware of which model version it is as of now).

Open to suggestions

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Hello folks,
So here's another BHPian who has (for the time being) moved to the US of A and is now looking out for another set of 4 wheelers to give him company. I do wish I could just get my Vento from India to here

So my budget initially is being set at $10k. Am open going above the limit too, but don't really see the point in upgrading to a better segment for the time being. Maybe next year, possible. I'm sticking to Japs for now, and the basic models (Civic, Corolla, etc) would do just fine.

A friend suggested that a colleague of his is looking out to sell his 2007 Civic - the car has done about 1 lac miles and apparently is in decent condition. While I have not yet reached out to the owner, but would like to know what to watch out for.

KBB tells me the price should be between $7k to $7.5k depending on the condition being good to excellent.

Looking forward to inputs. I'll be able to share pics and other details once I connect with the seller (I am not even aware of which model version it is as of now).

Open to suggestions

Welcome to the states. Civics from that generation are fairly bullet proof, I have never owned one, but there are at least 3-4 people in my immediate friends circle who have one and have owned them pretty long. I know there is a rusting issue for which Honda offers a longer paint warranty. Other than that if the car was regularly taken care of (oil, tires, brakes etc.), you should be good for another 100k miles on it.

On the other hand, if you have an upgrade bug waiting to bite you next year, then you probably are going to be better off getting something even cheaper for now, and look to get something nicer/ newer next year once you have a good degree of credit history etc to get you decent car loan rates.

Originally Posted by Balaji31582

friends,
Need your valuable suggestions. My colleague is in San Jose and he is considering to buy the Toyota Highlander XLE, basically he looks for a SUV. Can you please let me know if this is a good option or is there any alternatives to this?
Also, apologies if i have re-posted a same question that was done by some other fellow Bhpian.

Thanks
Balaji Babu

PM me on the Highlander XLE - I have one bought about 6 months back. The only other two cars I would have considered along with the Highlander were the Acura MDX or the Dodge Durango. The American competition from Ford and GM weren't good enough. I didn't like the Nissan Pathfinder either. Hyundai and Kia had dicey crash scores (I was looking for a car right after a crash that totaled my previous car!).

[Raajiv]

Techno,

Any particular reason not to have the Ford Edge Sport and the Dodge Durango on your shopping list?

[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by Raajiv

Techno,

Any particular reason not to have the Ford Edge Sport and the Dodge Durango on your shopping list?

No particular reason, like I said before, I had always liked the MDX plus it was a luxury brand compared to others.

Though i must say that I haven't heard good reviews about the Chrysler V6 engines compared to Honda's(a friend has 2014 Chrysler Minivan & a 2013 RDX). Also there are too many Police Ford Edges where I live

[josejoseph]

Originally Posted by Technocrat

Though i must say that I haven't heard good reviews about the Chrysler V6 engines compared to Honda's(a friend has 2014 Chrysler Minivan & a 2013 RDX).

May I know what negative reviews have you heard about the Chrysler engine? I rented a Chrysler T&C for a week and was impressed with it's performance.

I'm in fact considering getting a T&C as the next upgrade. Your feedback will be helpful for my decision. Thanks!

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by josejoseph

I'm in fact considering getting a T&C as the next upgrade. Your feedback will be helpful for my decision. Thanks!

We were nearly sold on the T&C last year. But didnt go for it because it was not available in 8 seat configuration. Besides, we already have a Chrysler product in the house.
The T&C had nice power, very comfortable seats with tremendous under thigh support all around and the stow-n-go seats for the second row.

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by josejoseph

I'm in fact considering getting a T&C as the next upgrade. Your feedback will be helpful for my decision. Thanks!

I have read on edmunds forums and all that the Pentastar V6 has long term reliability issues. I don't remember off the top of my head what the exact issues were. You should be able research more online.

Originally Posted by Technocrat

No particular reason, like I said before, I had always liked the MDX plus it was a luxury brand compared to others.

Though i must say that I haven't heard good reviews about the Chrysler V6 engines compared to Honda's(a friend has 2014 Chrysler Minivan & a 2013 RDX). Also there are too many Police Ford Edges where I live

The Honda/Acura v6 is bullet proof. They just run on and on forever. Do you mean the Ford Explorer and not the Ford Edge? Ford Edge is a smaller vehicle.

[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by josejoseph

May I know what negative reviews have you heard about the Chrysler engine? I rented a Chrysler T&C for a week and was impressed with it's performance.

I'm in fact considering getting a T&C as the next upgrade. Your feedback will be helpful for my decision. Thanks!

I think T&C is great as an overall package but my friend who owned both said that the Honda/Acura engine was more enthusiastic driving oriented than the Chrysler one as in he doesnt enjoy driving it as much as he did his RDX or even to the Odessey that he compared while shopping.

However he got an awesome lease deal on T&C which was too good to pass

Originally Posted by vineethvazhayil

Do you mean the Ford Explorer and not the Ford Edge? Ford Edge is a smaller vehicle.

I meant Ford Edge only as there are quiet a few of those as Police cars around where i live as well, i think they call them interceptors

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by vineethvazhayil

I have read on edmunds forums and all that the Pentastar V6 has long term reliability issues. I don't remember off the top of my head what the exact issues were. You should be able research more online.

There was recently a recall issued for all Chryslers that had the V6 with the 8 speed automatic. I believe it was related to alternator failure.
http://www.nwitimes.com/business/loc...eb1b87f36.html
There was an issue with the Pentastar cylinder heads too for a brief time which the current production does not suffer from. Keep in mind that it is still a relatively new engine (came out in 2011) so it is bound to have some issues.

It was one of the reasons i chose the solid as rock V8 with the tried and tested 5 speed transmission over the pentastar with 8 speed.

The V6 in Hondas on the other hand has been doing duty for ages. In fact, if there is anything you can fault Acura for is that they have not come out with anything fresh for some time (not counting the hate-it-or-love-it front nose change they came out with a few years back)

Originally Posted by Technocrat

I meant Ford Edge only as there are quiet a few of those as Police cars around where i live as well, i think they call them interceptors

At first i also thought you meant Explorers, because that is what they use as interceptors here in New Hampshire. But then i googled and saw some images of Edge as a police car too. So i stayed shut

[Technocrat]

Originally Posted by amitoj

The V6 in Hondas on the other hand has been doing duty for ages. In fact, if there is anything you can fault Acura for is that they have not come out with anything fresh for some time (not counting the hate-it-or-love-it front nose change they came out with a few years back)

True, actually I am surprised why they discontinued the 3.7 Motor which my MDX has, its super grunty & pulls the Heavy SUV effortlessly, now I wonder what fun it would be in the TL SH-AWD where it had 5 more horses.

The only reason I can think of is mileage, it seems to be performance oriented engine as it has no VCM tech, no eco button or light(which my Accord had).

Gotta drive the new one sometime to see if it has the same grunt or not.

At first i also thought you meant Explorers, because that is what they use as interceptors here in New Hampshire. But then i googled and saw some images of Edge as a police car too. So i stayed shut

Yeah, also I think I misunderstood the question, I did not consider any other cars than a TL, 535xi & Highlander, that too briefly. I was mostly fixed at the MDX.

Btw the paddle shifters came in very handy on ghats & highway. On the Accord I would shift to D3 so that I am in power band & was missing it initially on the MDX, then I started using the Paddles the same way I would have on a manual & man I saw it flying even with all the luggage. Interestingly the highest mileage I got was 22mpg(did I mention it has no mileage saving tech ) which is one high than EPA estimated

[vineethvazhayil]

Originally Posted by Technocrat

The only reason I can think of is mileage, it seems to be performance oriented engine as it has no VCM tech, no eco button or light(which my Accord had).

Yes, that was primarily the reason, and of course with the new gen, the car became lighter so lesser power could move the car effortlessly. Apparently people are getting higher 20s mpg on the 2014 MDX. It was just out of my budget range, else it was our top pick.

Interestingly the highest mileage I got was 22mpg(did I mention it has no mileage saving tech ) which is one high than EPA estimated

Yes, the 21 highway is what bothered me. My Infiniti has similar rating, but it barely gets 20 highway if you are driving at 75-80. Of course the previous gen SH-AWD itself was a heavier mechanism, so lower FE is kind of expected.

[VLOCT]

I'm sorry, whenever I read that someone is willing to pay $7 to $8k for a used Corolla, Civic, Accent, etc, I just go . I know it's probably the market value but, someone with a $10k budget would spend this kinda money on these vehicles, in this land of choices, is beyond belief.

Couple of years ago, saw some photographs of my friends Corolla (w/ < 25,000 miles), after his wife rear ended a Volvo station wagon at probably less than 30 mph on a resident street. I almost threw up, every 'body' part, other parts too, to the front of the windshield including both front fenders, came apart and was lying on the road. And please don't tell me it's a part of the crash protection. It's not, not at <30 mph. It's just pure junk, that's all it is. The insurance company actually wanted to 'total' the car. The Volvo had a scratch on its rear bumper and I'm not sure, if the bumper was even dented.

I swore, if I could help it, no member of my family or even friends, will ever step foot in these vehicles, especially not here, where highway speeds are easily over 75 mph. Are we crazy? No, thank you.

[kraft.wagen]

Just to add to that, I have a colleague at work who drives a 1995 Subaru Legacy which has 182k miles. He commutes fearlessly from San Francisco downtown to Santa Cruz that is close to 60 miles one way! He mentioned he gets around 28-30mpg

[kraft.wagen]

Interesting read, these guys covered 834 miles on single tank in Audi A3 Diesel. Running at 38mph with no AC, windows closed from New Mexico to San Diego wow I would never sign up for that

Link