Since the last post, I received some new information about vehicle requirements which are summarized below:
- The tayteemobile must have a high ride — this assumption was right — but a Honda CR-V would be high enough.
- A five-seater is big enough, no need to fit seven.
- Price: $10–12K.
The price target will be hard to hit, but we can try to get close.
Early 2010s Toyota Venza
To be honest, I’m not very familiar with this car. It has good reliability ratings, shares a platform with the Toyota Camry, Toyota Highlander, and Lexus RX. Ride height is lower than a Highlander, so it might be more of a station wagon than SUV.
- $13,000. Year: 2012, Mileage: 110-125k miles, 4-cyl engine. FWD/AWD. Option 1. Option 2 (Rochester, MN).
Toyota Highlander (Redux)
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We went over this car last week, but let’s revise the options with ones closer to the price target.
- $11,000. Year: 2008, Mileage: 139k miles, V6, front-wheel drive, mid-trim. Link.
- $14,000. Year: 2011, Mileage: 136k miles, V6, all-wheel drive, 7-seater. Link.
Mazda CX-5
The CX-5 is a popular car that’s typically a bit more sporty and gas efficient than its peers, but is not as quiet or comfortable. On the other hand, because it’s not a Toyota or Honda, it doesn’t maintain its value as well, so you can find better deals. Reliability ratings for 2015+ CX-5s are very good.
- $12,500. Year: 2015, Mileage: 104k miles, 2.5L 4-cyl, all-wheel drive, mid-trim model. Link.
That’s all for this week. We’ll continue next time, hopefully in about a week.
(EDIT) Late Addition: 2014 Nissan Murano
Good reliability ratings for this year, and better value than other Japanese peers. I don’t love the style though, but the entry below is really good value.
- $13,500. Year: 2014, Mileage: 107k miles, clean title, no accidents, V6, all-wheel drive, mid-trim model. Link.
One of the things I wasn’t paying much attention to in the earlier options was the vehicle history. Many of those options are salvage title or have been in accidents of some sort. That is why the prices were as low as I’ve found. When you look for better history, the prices go up. I will focus on this more in future posts, but this particular car seems to be especially good value considering its history.