Anyone own a 2013/2014 Subaru Crosstrek or Chevrolet Trax?

[toytech]

Get a Japanese car , better parts , better engineering I work for Toyota and own a Subaru and a Suzuki they are better cars then a gm could ever be . Our used car guy works next to me so I see all the domestic stuff that traded in and you wold be shocked at how much is wrong with a car with only 40k km . audis are great cars but expensive to maintain and repair . Buy used if you can , save the taxes . Why don't you look at like a 2010 4cyl rav 4 , bullet proof cars and it would save you a bundle to buy something a little older .

[sphelps]

If you think a car is too small just for fun compare interior space. For example the Trax you're considering is smaller inside than a Mazda 3 hatch back which is I would consider a very small car. The 3 has more cargo volume with seats up and down compared to the trax along with more leg and side room in both front and back. The only advantage the trax has is an extra inch or so in head room which realistically means nothing unless you're well over 6 feet tall. This again is typical of so called compact SUVs, they are actually small cars with a little extra ground clearance and headroom. Now I'm not saying buy a mazda 3 but I bet it's cheaper and has better options plus a better sales and track record. By pursuing only these compacts and making assumptions that cars are just too small you're really limiting yourself to small selection of vehicles which only offer clever marketing. Since you're use to a truck most vehicles won't feel natural at first but people have the ability to adjust and adapt. It goes the other way as well, people use to smaller cars may find trucks uncomfortable at first as well.

Also if your truck has value left in it why not buy a car a little older, perhaps eliminate your loan requirement all together. A ford focus can very economical, a 2013 base can be found for around $13K, that's up to $10K less than you expect to pay for a compact of the same year. Again the focus is basically the same size inside as the trax.

[Coralgurl]

Originally Posted by sphelps

If you think a car is too small just for fun compare interior space. For example the Trax you're considering is smaller inside than a Mazda 3 hatch back which is I would consider a very small car. The 3 has more cargo volume with seats up and down compared to the trax along with more leg and side room in both front and back. The only advantage the trax has is an extra inch or so in head room which realistically means nothing unless you're well over 6 feet tall. This again is typical of so called compact SUVs, they are actually small cars with a little extra ground clearance and headroom. Now I'm not saying buy a mazda 3 but I bet it's cheaper and has better options plus a better sales and track record. By pursuing only these compacts and making assumptions that cars are just too small you're really limiting yourself to small selection of vehicles which only offer clever marketing. Since you're use to a truck most vehicles won't feel natural at first but people have the ability to adjust and adapt. It goes the other way as well, people use to smaller cars may find trucks uncomfortable at first as well.

Also if your truck has value left in it why not buy a car a little older, perhaps eliminate your loan requirement all together. A ford focus can very economical, a 2013 base can be found for around $13K, that's up to $10K less than you expect to pay for a compact of the same year. Again the focus is basically the same size inside as the trax.

Totally agree with this. I had a Mazda 3 4 door, no hatchback, but it had a ton of room. I drive 500 kms a week - cost me $40 - $60 every 2 weeks to fill up (depending on season). I got 8.5L/100 in the city and 6-7 on the highway. Was a standard 5 speed, bought a set of winter tires (full set with steelies for $1,000) and had no problems getting around. I LOVED that car. I don't get SUV's personally. Don't like trucks. My husband drives a mini van and its worse on gas than his truck. I now get 13.3 L/100 city driving (summer), still 500 kms/week and it costs me $75-$100 per week to fill. Talk about blowing cash....

If you are set on an SUV - I'd go for the Rav 4 as well. Old boss had one and loved it - you can't go wrong with a Toyota.

[Coasting]

I did a lot of comparing today with some wagons and the crosstrek and forester as well as that mazda. Dont think i can give up that ground clearance height i get with the crossover.

Im going to have to go out with the dog i think and compare with her in the back of the vehicle as well.
So the Trax is out it seems. But i still really like that crosstrek. But still have to test drive that one.

My Boyfriends a GM tech and he really likes the idea of the subaru, but its a little hard getting him to come look at vehicles with me lol.

I know i need one with a back cargo area. So a sedan type car wont work either.
I havent used the back seats of either of the trucks ive had as actual seats in years. In my Ram i have now, the one im trying to sell, the back seats stay up and ive shoved a 8"thick piece of foam in the back to make the entire back area a bed for the dogs. I Know my girl is really uncomfortable when she has to sit on an actual seat so thats why the cargo area or cargo plus folded down seats is a must. Now we have driven in the cobalt with the back seats down and allowed the dogs to use that flat area plus the trunk as their bed area while we drove and she was even more uncomfortable.

So its about her comfort. My comfort in the drivers seat. Awd capabilities (ground clearance) they like to not plow around here as well sometimes during the snow haha. Fuel economy.
I feel really uncomfortable being in small vehicles. Ive tried driving cars and wagons. Some like the pontiac vibe is so bad i.get car sick jist driving it, 10x worse when im a passenger in it.

Thanks for the replies so far guys

[sphelps]

Another option for something new is the FIAT 500L, bigger than you might think as it's comparable to the crosstek or even a bit roomier. Would offer some good fuel economy with an Italian heritage. The good thing about Chrysler too is I know from experience the major dealers compete on volume and you simply look at the dealer invoice price and offer them 5% below that and get a deal, especially on last years inventory.

Next if you really want to save money on fuel there's the Prius V which I've been told will actually do 4L/100km so basically runs for free. Did I mention it's also in the same size range you're looking at

[sphelps]

Has your boyfriend worked on a Subaru before? The flat engine design means nothing is easily accessible and thus a real pain to work on. It's one of the main reasons I don't like them so much.

If AWD is a requirement then most of my suggestions are pretty useless although keep in mind that some of these compacts aren't really AWD, they are front wheel driven with a tiny shaft that sends about 5% of the power to the rear and there's no intelligence behind it. Basically just uses more gas than anything else.

[Coasting]

Yes i believe he has and his biggest comment about the subarus however is that even on the older ones they never seem to need more then their regular maintainence.

That issue with the crappy AWDs is why subaru was at the top of my list. My brother has an 03 wrx and seems to be happy with it. no issues thus far.
In my mind I wouldnt have totaled my Silverado last winter if i had it in 4x4 but the conditions didnt seem to merrit it as the roads were clear. And i think if i had something with good awd that kicked in on its own, that wouldnt have happened.
Our Pontiac Aztek was great for that. Fantastic awd and did great in the snow. You could feel the awd kick in and help. Since then my mother traded that one in for a Ford Edge and she says its awd is nothing in comparison and she misses her aztek.

[WarDog]

We have a 2013 Venza V6 awd. Huge amount of cargo space for our two dogs. The awd is great with snow tires, however this thing drinks gas. It does come in 4 cyl, but I don't know the L/100. My folks just bought a new Rav4 and they are very happy with the space and milage. I stopped buying domestics eons ago, they are just garbage IMO. Japanese cars are only second to German made, but as toytech stated, are expensive to maintain... I still don't trust Korean cars yet, but they look like good value.

[Slick Fork]

Originally Posted by WarDog

... I stopped buying domestics eons ago, they are just garbage IMO. Japanese cars are only second to German made, but as toytech stated, are expensive to maintain... I still don't trust Korean cars yet, but they look like good value.

I've always had great luck with Domestics, lots of miles and I'm not really gentle with them. Maybe I've been lucky. I've also found them to be typically more feature rich for the same price point than imports. Toyotas in particular have been having a rough go of it lately as far as quality control goes, judging on the amount of recall stories you'd hear in the news the last few years.

[FishyFishy!]

Originally Posted by Slick Fork

I've always had great luck with Domestics, lots of miles and I'm not really gentle with them. Maybe I'issuee been lucky. I've also found them to be typically more feature rich for the same price point than imports. Toyotas in particular have been having a rough go of it lately as far as quality control goes, judging on the amount of recall stories you'd hear in the news the last few years.

Toyotas recalls are nothing short of standing by their product. There has been nothing major, and 95% of the recalled vehicles dont have any issue with the "defective product".

Ive worked for many different dealers. And i'll stand by a Toyota product before any domestic. Chevy and ford simply mask their issues and after warranty, you're completely screwed. When I worked for ford, I would have 10 appointments a day with the same problem. Ford recognized the issue but never did anything about it. Toyota on the other hand, realizes an issue big or small, and offers customers support. Better than most other companies for sure.