I just noticed that the title of this thread includes “when”. Perhaps you’d like advice from my Dad, who considered cars to be transportation and nothing more.

“The time to replace your car” he would say, “is when the monthly cost of repairs exceeds the monthly payment on the replacement.” He would then go on to point out that “This almost never happens.”

He kept his cars forever.

So do I.

Hyundai

Steve, that would make sense if we were going to buy the same kind/class of car. But our current car (Honda Fit) is too small in terms of safety and for longer trips.

piqué, I hadn’t heard about suvs being more expensive to repair, thanks for mentioning it!

The main reason we’re considering an suv is because of all the trucks (Both pick-ups and semis) on the road, I was thinking we would feel (and be?) safer in a bigger car like that. But even a sedan would be safer than our little car.

Daniel, I don’t think there’s any way Mr. SK would consider a Hyundai. They get so much bad press in Japan, and they also recently (like, just this month I believe) had a big recall that he was just telling me about.

They could be great cars, but we’ll never know!

quote:

The main reason we’re considering an suv is because of all the trucks (Both pick-ups and semis) on the road, I was thinking we would feel (and be?) safer in a bigger car like that.

SUV's are high profile vehicles so they are inherently less aerodynamic and less stable. Therefore, you feel the impact of big trucks going by even more in an SUV. If this is your main issue, I'd definitely go with a larger sedan rather than an SUV. Lower to the ground and aerodynamic is what you want.

If you got into a crash with a semi, doesn't really matter what you are driving, unless its a tank.

quote:

Originally posted by piqué:

quote:

The main reason we’re considering an suv is because of all the trucks (Both pick-ups and semis) on the road, I was thinking we would feel (and be?) safer in a bigger car like that.

SUV's are high profile vehicles so they are inherently less aerodynamic and less stable. Therefore, you feel the impact of big trucks going by even more in an SUV. If this is your main issue, I'd definitely go with a larger sedan rather than an SUV. Lower to the ground and aerodynamic is what you want.

If you got into a crash with a semi, doesn't really matter what you are driving, unless its a tank.

I beg to differ. I feel much safer and more secure sitting higher off the road than the typical sedan sits. When we owned a subaru WRX I found it very disconcerting for my head to be at bumper level with all the ford explorers and expeditions etc. And while yes, if you smash into a semi truck head on it isn't going to matter what you are driving, there are plenty of accidents that can involve semis where having some extra mass and sitting a little higher off the road will help immensely -- just look at the photos from my accident this spring where I hit the semi truck fuel tank that was laying in my lane. I basically set off my airbags and dented the bumper of my minivan, but in a smaller lower car, that would have been so much worse. I have personally seen (as in happened right in front of me) a car get clipped by a semi while it was changing lanes and again, I'd rather be in something larger and higher and heavier than a toyota camry when that happens. Just my 2 cents.

Shiro, if comfort on longer trips is a factor as you said, I'd suggest you look at Nissan Rogue or Murano. Nissan has what they call zero gravity seats.

I bought a Murano because I drove one as a rental for three weeks, 16 hour commute each week between here and Madison, WI. I could drive the Murano for five hours straight, stop for gas and my back wouldn't even be stiff when I got out.

Very comfortable for long drives, lots of safety equipment, absolutely no hiccups.

quote:

piqué

piqué and Lisa, these are exactly the questions we have about safety.... we need to do some reading about it, but I think being up higher will give us a better "profile" and make me feel a little better about driving myself...

Also, the more I think about it, the more I want a bright red car! Cars need to be bright and I think red would make it more visible than the understated grays that are so popular right now.

Mik, thanks for mentioning the Murano! I didn't have it on my list, but we've seen them around town and they are nice looking cars.

Do you have any experience with how the Murano and the Rogue compare?

quote:

Originally posted by Lisa:

quote:

Originally posted by piqué:

quote:

The main reason we’re considering an suv is because of all the trucks (Both pick-ups and semis) on the road, I was thinking we would feel (and be?) safer in a bigger car like that.

SUV's are high profile vehicles so they are inherently less aerodynamic and less stable. Therefore, you feel the impact of big trucks going by even more in an SUV. If this is your main issue, I'd definitely go with a larger sedan rather than an SUV. Lower to the ground and aerodynamic is what you want.

If you got into a crash with a semi, doesn't really matter what you are driving, unless its a tank.

I beg to differ. I feel much safer and more secure sitting higher off the road than the typical sedan sits. When we owned a subaru WRX I found it very disconcerting for my head to be at bumper level with all the ford explorers and expeditions etc. And while yes, if you smash into a semi truck head on it isn't going to matter what you are driving, there are plenty of accidents that can involve semis where having some extra mass and sitting a little higher off the road will help immensely -- just look at the photos from my accident this spring where I hit the semi truck fuel tank that was laying in my lane. I basically set off my airbags and dented the bumper of my minivan, but in a smaller lower car, that would have been so much worse. I have personally seen (as in happened right in front of me) a car get clipped by a semi while it was changing lanes and again, I'd rather be in something larger and higher and heavier than a toyota camry when that happens. Just my 2 cents.

That's okay. Nimbleness and not getting blown around by crosswinds make me feel safer.

quote:

Originally posted by ShiroKuro:

Also, the more I think about it, the more I want a bright red car! Cars need to be bright and I think red would make it more visible than the understated grays that are so popular right now.

You can google around for "car colors most likely to be in accidents", but I wouldn't pick red because it seems safer; the research I've seen hasn't borne that out.

Some studies seem to indicate that white cars are less likely than some other colors (including red) to be in accidents. My guess is that white is easier to see both day and night.

Black is the most likely to be in accidents. I don't happen to like black cars because they show the most dirt and every scratch just jumps out at you.

Also something to consider regarding SUV's. There are really two different groups of SUVs--

1) SUVs that focus on the U (utility). They have AWD or even 4WD that you have to turn on, high clearance, etc. They are intended for driving off-road, or in routinely bad conditions, etc.

2) SUVs that focus on the S (sport). These are for people who like the shape/form of an SUV (higher up, bigger, etc.) and are less concerned or even not at all concerned with clearance, AWD/4WD, etc. These are basically cars with the SUV profile. Some of these have no AWD/4WD at all.

You will pay more for a true utility vehicle with AWD or 4WD, both out the door, for insurance, and in maintenance down the road. If you don't need all that razzmatazz, don't buy it. Make sure you know what you're getting when you are looking at SUVs, because some models have various drive options.

Also if you are unlikely to need AWD/4WD except on rare occasions (like a ski weekend), you can always rent for that need and save a ton of money in the long run.

Agree with the car colors. I think the most visible cars, IIRC, are those neon yellow and neon green ones. There's a reason why many fire trucks are no longer red.

(I cross-posted with Nina)

If expressway driving is your concern, then I second the idea of renting a car for a few days to test it out. You are investing a lot in a new vehicle and it's well worth it to spend a little up front to be sure you're getting what you want.

Not all SUVs are created equal. I know the buffeting and lousy handling that pique is talking about; we had that on our 1993 Ford Explorer.

You really have to take these puppies out for a real world test. I mentioned it before....looking at the specs on the Subaru Forester and the Subaru Outback, we thought they would be pretty similar in ride and handling, but they really weren't. The Forester is a bit taller than the Outback, and even on 40 mph roads we felt a clear difference. The Forester didn't seem as stable on the road and we preferred the slightly lower profile of the Outback. YMMV.

I had a thought....how much highway driving are you planning on doing? Does the Fit work for you for most of your needs, and do you just want something different for the occasional longer trips?

If you're talking about occasional trips, is it more cost effective to just rent a vehicle for that travel and keep the Fit for your everyday use?

Might be cheaper in the long run....

1. Buy a copy of Consumers Reports 2021 New Car Buying Guide. CR is objective and factual.

2. Go to an annual international auto show located in a big city near you. If you live in the southeastern U.S., there should be one in Atlanta and Washington DC. It’s a great way to see all the car makes and models under one roof with NO sales pressure. Auto maker’s reps will be around to answer your questions but not to pressure you to buy. Because of COVID, auto shows may have been cancelled or postponed. Chicago’s is in February. The Feb. 2021 show has not been cancelled yet but it has been postponed until sometime in the Spring. Check before you go to see which auto makers will be present. For example, at last February’s 2020 Chicago auto show, these auto makers were noticeably not present: Mitsubishi, Tesla, BMW, Volvo, and Mercedes Benz. Some auto makers provide test drives at the show. In previous years I test drove a Mazda CX-5 and a Subaru Outback. The test drive is about 10 minutes in an adjacent parking lot. Auto shows are crowded on weekends. Go there on a week day.

Nina, is there an easy way to tell if a car is more sport or utility?

Well, Wiki calls Rav4 and Honda CR-V compact crossover SUV, and it calls the Nissan Murano a mid-size crossover SUV... So maybe is it say to assume that these cars are all more sport than utility?

WTG, re renting a vehicle for travel, that's something to think about. Although, in my experience, renting a car gets real expensive real fast unless it's a pretty short trip.

The bigger question is how much should we worry about safety for daily driving. Because that's the most time we spend in the car (i.e., we drive around town a lot more than we drive for long car trips). Although, don't they say most car accidents happen close to home? Or is that old and no longer accurate these days?

Although, we will probably do more highway driving once we have a car that I feel safer in. While we were piano shopping last summer, I ended up not going to Atlanta to visit any piano dealers down there because Atlanta driving is utter madness. (It never occurred to me to rent a car!! OMG!) Anyway....

Re the car colors, a very quick and dirty google suggests red is sort of in the middle. Black is the worst, then gray (which is what we have now).

If I could get a yellow car, I probably would but I rarely see them here.

When we lived in Japan, I almost bought this Subaru:



But ended up getting this one instead:



Don't be fooled though, these are teeny tiny cars, Japanese kei cars, the engine is 660cc.

QL that's an interesting suggestion, but realistically, I'm never going to go to a car show!

I do like the idea of renting a car for a few days to drive it around. If we end up getting something like a Camry or Civic, I probably won't do that. But if we decide to go the Rav4/CR-V option, I will definitely consider that.

Thank you to everyone who's contributing to this thread, I really appreciate it!