My least favorite thing to do - buying a new car

DasTex

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Buying my wife a new car - she is wanting an SUV w/ 3 rows, same as she has now.

So far what she has looked at but yet to make a choice:

GMC Yukon
Acura MDX
Toyota Highlander
Jeep Wagoneer (These are new, haven't got to see one in person yet)
Lincoln Aviator

I would normally look for a good used vehicle but their prices are just as crazy as new right now.

Any thoughts?
 

DBOY3141

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Buying my wife a new car - she is wanting an SUV w/ 3 rows, same as she has now.

So far what she has looked at but yet to make a choice:

GMC Yukon
Acura MDX
Toyota Highlander
Jeep Wagoneer (These are new, haven't got to see one in person yet)
Lincoln Aviator

I would normally look for a good used vehicle but their prices are just as crazy as new right now.

Any thoughts?
My wife has 2009 MDX. 158K miles...great...great...great car. she wants a new one, but loves this one so much, she hates thinking about getting rid of it.
 

Idgit

Fattening up
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Carvana isn’t a bad route to go if you’re buying used. Painless.
 

cowboyec

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Buying my wife a new car - she is wanting an SUV w/ 3 rows, same as she has now.

So far what she has looked at but yet to make a choice:

GMC Yukon
Acura MDX
Toyota Highlander
Jeep Wagoneer (These are new, haven't got to see one in person yet)
Lincoln Aviator

I would normally look for a good used vehicle but their prices are just as crazy as new right now.

Any thoughts?
went thru the same.
my wife liked and we got a toyota highlander.
its really nice.
we looked at all those...and its the best.
if it fits...solid choice.
 

DasTex

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went thru the same.
my wife liked and we got a toyota highlander.
its really nice.
we looked at all those...and its the best.
if it fits...solid choice.
Did you get the Hybrid model?
 

RJ_MacReady

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We have a Highlander Limited (2013) and it's been dead reliable (96K miles). The new ones are just an improvement. Timing Chain V-6 mated to a bulletproof 6-speed auto and with one of the best AWD systems in the game. If you have a kid that beats up cars, Toyotas are good for taking the abuse and not showing wear. We almost considered a 2022 Highlander (new design and a bargain at ~$40K), but my Wife wanted something new. She wanted a Chevy Traverse and I was like "Uh...NO!". We're trading it in for a Lexus GX460.
 

Big_D

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I have the Chevy equinox and love it. I had the Honda CR-V before that. Like the Chevy better. I usually look for a 3 year old coming off a lease. That system has worked ok the past few times. You could probably get a good deal on an 18 or 19?
 

1LoyalCowboyFan

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Buying my wife a new car - she is wanting an SUV w/ 3 rows, same as she has now.

So far what she has looked at but yet to make a choice:

GMC Yukon
Acura MDX
Toyota Highlander
Jeep Wagoneer (These are new, haven't got to see one in person yet)
Lincoln Aviator

I would normally look for a good used vehicle but their prices are just as crazy as new right now.

Any thoughts?

My thoughts are resale value, pedigree, land low maintenance cost. The Honda Pilot has all the features we wanted including captain chairs. The third row is the most comfortable for adults. There are only two features they don’t have from a value perspective that the MDX does have. 360 camera and something else I can’t recall.

the infotainment that Honda provides is slick looking. I recommend your wife check out the Honda Pilot elite.

We didn’t look at The big SUV’s like Yukon’s class. We looked XC90, MDX, Ascent, and a Mercedes I can’t recall.

We got the 2019 about two and a half years ago for 46k. Hope this helps. End of the day you end up buying the car you see yourself driving.
 

DasTex

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My thoughts are resale value, pedigree, land low maintenance cost. The Honda Pilot has all the features we wanted including captain chairs. The third row is the most comfortable for adults. There are only two features they don’t have from a value perspective that the MDX does have. 360 camera and something else I can’t recall.

the infotainment that Honda provides is slick looking. I recommend your wife check out the Honda Pilot elite.

We didn’t look at The big SUV’s like Yukon’s class. We looked XC90, MDX, Ascent, and a Mercedes I can’t recall.

We got the 2019 about two and a half years ago for 46k. Hope this helps. End of the day you end up buying the car you see yourself driving.
We looked at the Pilot and like it but they are changing body style in 2023 and she didn't want to buy something new that's changes the following year.

Like I said, my least favorite thing to buy.
 

Bigdog

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We have a 2014 Honda Pilot and it has been very reliable. We got it used in 2016 with only 31,000 miles on it. It’s my wife car and she loves it.
 

triplets_93

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The new car I got last year came with this stupid innovation, where when the car comes to a stop at a traffic light, the engine turns off. Then, when you accelerate, the engine turns back on.

The most infuriating thing, is that that system is always on by default, so every time I start the car, I have to remember to toggle that system off.

Also, the new car came without any spare.

(VW Jetta S).
 

Rockport

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Buying my wife a new car - she is wanting an SUV w/ 3 rows, same as she has now.

So far what she has looked at but yet to make a choice:

GMC Yukon
Acura MDX
Toyota Highlander
Jeep Wagoneer (These are new, haven't got to see one in person yet)
Lincoln Aviator

I would normally look for a good used vehicle but their prices are just as crazy as new right now.

Any thoughts?
Since it’s your wife’s car, no advice other than may God be with you.
 

Creeper

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Coincidentally, I am in the market for a new SUV to replace my 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee. I wanted to keep the Jeep until one of us dies, me or the car, but things are failing on the Jeep pretty regularly now and every time I take it to be fixed if costs me $3000. A few weeks ago I got a new message that the air suspension system failed and needs immediate repair. All of the Jeep dealers around here told me the soonest they can take the car in for service is the end of October or early November! The claim they have a shortage of mechanics. Where did they all go? I Googled the warning message and it appears the fix for the air suspension is probably going to cost me at least $2000. I am not interested in a new Jeep. The dealers around me are lousy at servicing their vehicles. Every time I have had to bring my Jeep in for a recall, something else goes wrong with the car. Once It was recalled for a potential short and fire in the passenger side vanity mirror/light. They fixed the potential short problem but broke the mirror and didn;t bother to replace it before returning the car to me! Another time they had to fix something around the water pump and managed to break a fuel injector - which they wanted to charge me to replace! I am done with them.

Anyway, I am thinking maybe it is time to replace the Jeep. I started looking and to me, everything is ugly or over priced. I don't need 3 seats, and I use the SUV like a truck as much as a car and I want something that is a true utility vehicle but is also a decent means of transportation - which rules out a large percentage of the SUVs I have looked at. I am told the Toyota 4Runner is a good truck, but it might be too much of a truck getting only 19 miles per gallon on the highway. My Jeep is actually a good combination but I would dread buying another Jeep.

My priorities are:

It needs to have enough power to get up hills without feeling sluggish.
I must have 4 wheel drive for the snow we get in the North East and for other things that require extra power to the wheels.
I want maximum space in the cargo compartment. If I can't get a 4' x4' sheet of plywood in the back with the seats folded down, it is too small.
I want a spare tire. No one offers a full size spare anymore, they just give you the donut but it is something. The Jeep has a full size temp tire at least or it did in 2011.
I don't need 3 rows of seats so either they have to be optional, no existent, or they have to fold away without seriously diminishing the cargo space.
Blue tooth for my phone - I think all cars have this now.
The cargo compartment has to be rugged so when I fill it full of building materials the damage is minimized.
I would love a fold down rear gate like in the old days of SUVs. I don't think anyone makes an SUV with a fold down gate anymore.
 
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