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Congratulations on going with the Murano; it's a very nice SUV, and I'm sure you'll both enjoy it.
I'm not sure about the Murano just yet as Consumer Reports doesn't give the 2007 high marks for reliability. To her chagrin I want to drive something I actually like instead of the earlier CRVs and RAV4s so I'm trying to get her to agree to raise the budget to around $12K so I can get a Lexus RX or Infinity FX. Something a bit more pleasant to drive and look at with the same reliability as a Toyota, Honda or Nissan.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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can't beat a $3000 minivan. Cheap to run / insure, and very handy for moms and kids. (and expendable in the 'rust belt / NE USA').
Fly her to San Antonio or Austin for Valentines Day and bring home a rust free $3,000 TX minivan !!!~
The last one we had as a family lasted for 13 yrs and 200k trouble free miles. (I did have to replace the Water Pump at 180k $14.00). It got a set of plug wires, / plugs, and Bilstein shocks at 140k.
Camping, traveling, shopping, family / grandparent visits / cross country sojourn, packing around plywood / project materials / furniture / refrig... people (especially older people)... All so EZ in a minivan.
The Low entry, insurance, and Maint costs sell me! You can get them a dime a dozen.
BTW I am not at all keen on Nissans with CVT. I have rented many and always been very disappointed in performance and economy. YMMV.
You have to be sure not to go too old on the RX as there were transmission issues. I would also look at a Highlander, especially a Limited, as you would get near-luxury, but I do not believe the transmission issues were as common, and the price point is lower at the Toyota dealership. A newer RX should not have the same propensity for transmission issues, that were not always acknowledged by the Lexus dealer from friends/family I have known with RX. Even the RX330 had issues with the adaptive transmission. Check out some of the threads on the Lexus forums before considering an RX300/330.
The LX and its cousin the venerable Land Cruiser are vehicles that I would consider even if older, but given the crossovers that you have been considering, these vehicles are heavy with thirsty V8 engines, and are about as far from car-based crossovers are you can get. So, likely not vehicles that I would recommend to you, since they're not what you're considering, but are the only Lexus/Toyota products that I would consider by condition, not generation. For an RX, to get a more trouble-free vehicle, you'd likely need to double your proposed raised budget to find a choice example, and it's probably not worth it for your needs to go that route.
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All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
I never gave the Highlander any consideration but it looks to be a good choice. The 2004 and 2005 Limited models with mileage between 80k to 100k are in my price range. Thank you for the suggestion!
My wife and I currently own a 1997 Honda Civic DX 4 door with approx 120K miles on it. We just moved out of NYC and feel we may need a second car. Considering the age of our current car which is in decent condition, should we buy a beater car for a second vehicle or spend more to buy a new or late model used car and use the Civic for our second car? I'm leaning towards a newer car as we have a infant child and the Civic doesn't have the latest and greatest in safety features, plus it's beginning to show its age.
Your primary car is a "beater". Time to upgrade to something better.
I never gave the Highlander any consideration but it looks to be a good choice. The 2004 and 2005 Limited models with mileage between 80k to 100k are in my price range. Thank you for the suggestion!
You're welcome. A key item to be sure has been done by age and also likely by mileage at this point with an 04-05 Highlander is the timing belt. The Highlander has an interference engine, so if the belt snaps, you will likely have severe engine damage up to an engine replacement. I would have it changed immediately if the dealer/current owner cannot vie you an exact date/mileage of replacement, and would make my offer with the deduction for a timing belt replacement (and water pump) if the records were not detailed. Call a couple of Toyota dealers for quotes as it's a standard item that can be quoted. If you know of a Toyota auto specialist, who can be verified as such, not just their sign, then I would trust that level of independent who to do the job properly, but I'd never trust a chain that does mufflers, tires, batteries, etc. to do the timing belt correctly.
If you had the timing belt changed on your Civic at a Honda dealer, that might not be a place that could help, but if it was a good independent mechanic, you might go back with a Highlander, even if it's out of the way, since it's an important service for the continued life of the vehicle.
__________________
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
~William Shakespeare (As You Like It Act II, Scene VII)
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