car aficionados - which should i buy...

[enigma]

of course a new one would be ideal, but i am trying to be somewhat thrifty and would prefer to have someone else take the year 1 depreciation hit for me. we found and drove an 06 MPV and she really likes it - but as mentioned above, the space concern we have is quite real. these boys are growing all the time, and the big mutt isnt keen on the available space either. so it ended up being a great car, but not for us.

i was a bit surprised by the kia backlash - everything i have read online about them since the redesign in 06 is extremely positive (jd power, edmunds, etc) and the one i drove was every bit as powerful and a bit quieter than the honda. i know kia has been slowly improving, but seems the 06 revision was really a turning point. this former rental has 38000 and 4 years remaining on the comprehensive factory warranty - ironically, the montana only had 3/36 when i bought it new. :-)

and yes, the honda 04 tranny is in recall for the 2nd gear thing, also, it was permanently corrected in 05. like i mentioned before, i am not sold on the powered doors and fear all of the extra gadgetry from the perspective that is seems like just more things that can go wrong if you are keeping it for 10 years. as always time will tell...

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[deckeda]

[quote enigma] ...

i was a bit surprised by the kia backlash - everything i have read online about them since the redesign in 06 is extremely positive ...
So read some magazines devoted to this? My impression from reading for example Car and Driver awhile back about the Kia was along the lines of "it's OK but about a generation or so behind Honda/Toyota, and this manifests itself in added weight, less sophisticated ergonomics, less sophisticated suspension design ..." << don't quote me on those specifics I mentioned, I'm paraphrasing the sentiment I read.

re: MPV size. This is a matter of degree, not absolute difference. The thing --- and I think you'll agree with me --- isn't so different in size that "well, we'll have to Jimmy or the dog at home I guess ..."

Consider that in many countries a van the size of the Mazda 5 is normal and that an MPV would be considered huge. Americans are touted as being big and fat, is your family big and fat?

We are exposed to bigger in the U.S., so it's perspective that often competes for dollars, and the notion that bigger is not only better but necessary.

You say the MPV's not big enough, OK, fine --- but permit me to also be a little skeptical because of your quick assessment about differences in size that are NOT large.

I'm NOT implying some moral irrresponsibility here, just noting that I think your eyes glazed over a bit at the bigger van, allowed that to rationalize a "need" for capacity and unfairly discounted the positive experience your wife had driving the MPV. It happens.

Like I said, I've owned the Honda. Front seat room and third row seating is very similar in size to the MPV. Biggest difference is in middle seat room and legroom, where you have another 2 or inches with an Ody or similarly-big van. With the 3rd row down and even a 65-lb dog in back, he/she won't know the difference --- the bigger vans aren't so very much bigger back there.

Over the years I've quickly dismissed 4 vehicles as ugly/impractical/low value and found myself buying them later, original perceptions all reversed, after the "obvious" choice turned out not be wise in the end.

ugh i hate spending a few hours making decisions i have to live with for years!

You expect it to be easy and quick, like buying a toaster? If vehicles are just appliances to you, you'll be happy with anything, so rest easy.

On the other hand modern vehicles are sufficiently subtle often that one test drive, or 3, ain't gonna reveal everything. If you don't trust yourself to make the choice, then don't. No sin in that. Just because "you're the man" doesn't mean you have to Declare the Choice. If your wife has a strong opinion, go with it and rest easy. Why should you have to venture into this if it's not something you relish? But if you care enough to ask for outside opinions and thoughts, I recommend more that just an afternoon for this search.

And that's my 2 cents.

[h linamen]

[quote h linamen]We LOVE our '04 Mazda MPV. Drives like a car and has everything. Never the first problem and we have about 70,000 on it now. Get around 22 city and 27 highway mpg. It is slightly smaller than other vans, but that's a p;lus in my estimation.

As I said previlusly we love our Mazda MPV. Regarding the Kia... some folks immediately ditz the Kia and Hyundai because of a reputation 10 years old... and not reflective of current models. Last September we also bought a new 2007 Hyundai AZERA and love it also. The quality is superb and yet some folks wouldn't give it the time of day because it is a Hyundai. They wouldn't give the new Kias and Hyndais long warranties if they were still junk.

Before you make any decisions on any car, check the user comments on that year model at www.edmunds.com Very informative.

[N-OS X-tasy!]

[quote h linamen]They wouldn't give the new Kias and Hyndais long warranties if they were still junk.
VWs during the '90s came with 100,000 mile warranties for just that reason - they were junk (comparatively speaking). Instead of fixing their quality problems, they figured they could get people to buy their cars by providing warranties long enough that owners would not have to worry about bearing the financial burden of fixing VW's crappy product.