Best commuter car?

[Fleetmon]

We commute 150 miles per day (3 to 3-1/2 hours per day depending on traffic) and when we first started, we used a compact car....didn't take long to unload it due to the noise and uncomfortable ride. We now commute in BMW's and find not only is the ride comfortable, the fuel mileage isn't too bad....28 MPG in our 528i and 27 in our X5d.

If you've never done long distance commuting before, spoil yourself and get something you won't mind spending hours in. It's not worth arriving home after a days work feeling beat up.

 

[glock19]

Originally Posted By: Fleetmon
We commute 150 miles per day (3 to 3-1/2 hours per day depending on traffic) and when we first started, we used a compact car....didn't take long to unload it due to the noise and uncomfortable ride. We now commute in BMW's and find not only is the ride comfortable, the fuel mileage isn't too bad....28 MPG in our 528i and 27 in our X5d.

If you've never done long distance commuting before, spoil yourself and get something you won't mind spending hours in. It's not worth arriving home after a days work feeling beat up.


I agree, except I would say get a Volvo. You'll want to live in those seats.

 

[Fleetmon]

yep, Volvo is another good one...

 

[rjundi]

To me a midsize like Mazda6, Honda Accord, Toyota Camry and potentially Malibu.

They all have decent reliability and low service costs balanced with decent comfort. You cannot pick a certain car as most important thing is comfort and that is person specific. My personal experience with "little" cars(Civic, Focus, Corolla) in these cases is highway MPH not much better than mid size and comfort not as great, lastly they simply don't hold up long term in higher miles.

It mucky weather is a concern winter tires help.

 

[accent2012]

Accent, Elantra, Civic, Corolla, Focus

 

[supton]

I have not driven any of the new compacts, but I'd err towards the mid sized (Camry, Accord, etc). Lots of miles at 60mph+, I'd want the nice quiet on the open road. Runny from light to light, a subcompact instead, better mpg I'd think.

 

[eljefino]

Yeah midsizes rock but a compact with the classic form factor might do all right. By "classic form" I mean good visibility, not super high roofline, etc.

Everything a yaris or smart car is not.

I liked eating up miles in my cutlass ciera. Only thing that would have improved it would have been better seats. But then that is a big deal!

 

[hattaresguy]

Originally Posted By: sciphi
Originally Posted By: hattaresguy


The problem with compact cars is they are very loud and don't drive well on the open road.


Beg to differ. My compact Cruze is very quiet, and is the best car for windy days that I've driven. Large gusts need only a minor correction in the steering wheel. Semis don't buffet this car one bit.

Go test-drive one, you'll be quite surprised.


Yeah I had one for a rental, also a Buick Regal, both were quite good for what they were.

But its still a smaller car and lacks the passing power and quite effortless glide of the above mentioned larger cars. SWB cars ride more choppy, they don't have the length to really absorb all the highway imperfections.


An LS430/460 is a tomb on wheels at 80, I know a few people who use them for commuter cars and they love them.

 

[rjundi]

The defacto one in my neighborhood is the Prius. People don't but them to drive locally as the Suburban/Pilot/Sienna does that duty. They use Prius for the 45min - 1hr commutes and hauling kids around for hockey and other long distance team sports etc.

 

[mcrn]

Originally Posted By: MrHorspwer
Cruze Diesel.

To everything that sciphi mentioned about the Cruze Eco, the diesel adds one important feature: Power. The diesel keeps the good fuel economy of the Eco, but brings with it a heap of usable power.

That it only comes with an automatic transmission is a good thing, since you'll be commuting through DC traffic. Again, it only comes with up level trim (leather seats, etc.), but for a cushy commuter, this is a plus. Why spend hours a day in a penalty box?

For year round use, don't pay the AWD penalty. Buy a set of snow tires and carry on your winter commute.



Agreed...or a VW diesel or a Prius

 

[Hokiefyd]

This question is like what's the best oil, or what's the best color, or what's the best day of the week?

In all likelihood, our daily drivers are our "commuter" cars, at least for most folks. So one could probably get a good idea of folks' answers by looking in their signature, if they have one. The bottom line is the ideal car for 100 miles a day will be different for everyone. I suppose you could try to narrow down the type of car that is ideal for only that, assuming you could supplement that car with something else that is perhaps more useful on the weekends, but many either don't have the means or don't have the desire to own more cars than they feel is necessary. So in all reality, most people's commuter car, if they have one, is also their ONLY car, or at least the one they primarily drive.

With the above in mind, I'll give you my answer. I've been driving sedans for years and finally switched to a small SUV and it's a better vehicle for me in too many ways to count. Small SUVs today are so car-like, there's not a great difference in how they drive compared with similar sedans (not talking BMW 3-series or IS350s here). I took a fuel economy hit in doing so, but I also achieved a greater level of comfort (more upright and comfortable seating). The sedan was too limiting for my lifestyle...I tow a small trailer on the weekends and haul lawn mowers and yard mulch and we take our 80 pound dog with us sometimes and I like to throw the bike in the back and go riding... There were too many things that were made more difficult than necessary by the sedans I drove, so I simply choose to not drive sedans anymore.

There are more efficient vehicles in which one could commute, but I'm with some of the others here...if you're going to spend time on the road, why do it in something you don't enjoy?

 

[Smokescreen]

It all depends on the commute.

If it has sweeping turns, hills and valleys, variation of some kind then a car suited to enjoy that would be in order if you are so inclined.

If it is a boring, dead straight drive with no variations, anything other than a basic car designed for that purpose, will be a waste of money and very frustrating...for me anyway. No sense having a car that you are only using 5% of its potential day in day out, never get to enjoy it. Kind of like driving a crotch rocket 10 blocks to work every day. What's the point?

 

[Mykl]

I think the first car I'd go look at for this use would be a new Mazda 3. It seems like a good mix of everything I'd want in a car for this purpose.

If it's nothing but traffic and straight stretches of freeway I'm convinced that a new Altima 2.5S would be very good at $18k. Quiet, comfortable, gets great fuel economy.... the main downside is that it's about as much fun to drive as a 1978 Cadillac.

 

[strat81]

Compact - Mazda3 or Civic
Midsize - Accord (4 cylinder only) or Camry
Full Size - Avalon or Lucerne (w/ 3800)
SUV - CR-V or RAV-4

I love my current vehicle, a Buick Rainier V8, as a long haul highway cruiser but it's a gas hog with spotty reliability.

 

[FL-400S]

I do a similar drive daily. Pontiac vibe most of the time. Great car, but it's my extra vehicle. got to get around to selling it.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted By: strat81
I love my current vehicle, a Buick Rainier V8, as a long haul highway cruiser but it's a gas hog with spotty reliability.


That brings up an interesting side bar. I still love my Jetta, but in all honesty its high mpg savings was spent on repairs, so it really doesn't save much over a 30mpg penalty box. BUT its long cruising range means I typically stop to fill up every couple weeks, not every 3 days. My wife's Camry can be similar; it has a gas tank sized to get 350miles for the V6/automatic; as an I4/manual it gets something like 500 mile range.

For me I like that extra range, and not having to fill up so often. Everyone likes something different, but figured I'd point that out.

 

[kkreit01]

Ram 2500 CTD

Seriously, about any new midsize or smaller sedan gets in the mid-upper 30s on highway. Your options are almost endless.

 

[thrace]

Lots of good choices. How much you like to drive any particular car is important. Seats, ride, noise, any particular annoyance, all count. I would not like the Fit. Too noisy for my ears.

 

[M1Accord]

OP here. I have both the Accord and Fit. The Accord has 150k miles and the Fit has 25k miles. With 100 miles commute daily, I am looking at 2-3 years until a lot of money will be needed to keep the Accord since it has a timing belt. Additional things like tires, brakes, water pump, etc will be needed as well. While the engine is still great thanks to Mobil 1 diet since new, the rest of the vehicle will fall into that 200k-mile club of needing minor repair here and there. This will be my last timing belt vehicles. Timing chain can go for 250k miles before being changed or adjusted.

It snows a lot here every other year. There was barely any snow last year but this year has been bad with snow and ice and the plow crew here are horrible. I see plow trucks driving around with plow up, charging by the mile. But with commute of 100 miles for one person and 80 miles for the other, a 4WD or even AWD is hard to justify since they rarely get 30 mpg. I thought about having an extra vehicle and even attempted but the cost of insurance, registation, tax, and fees make it the poor choice. It is much cheaper to have 2 good vehicles than to have 3 average vehicles in Virginia.

It would be nice to have a Hilux diesel to commute for 80 miles and let my wife use it for her 100 miles commute when weather is bad since I have flexible work hours and plenty of paid vacation hours while she gets paid strictly by the hours with no benefit with her consultant job (just started so salary is only 1/3 of what I make).

Decision, decision, decision. I have 2 years to think about it as we tend to get vehicle new and drive them for at least 200k so until it can't pass inspection or no longer reliable. Then I put them on my farm for farm use.

It would be nice to have s Subaru or a Jeep the last few days. It got stuck in the snow at work since they didn't plow the parking lot. Plenty of wheel spin and probably worn down my tires uneccessarily. I wonder if it is more cost effective to have a set of snow tires for each vehicles to use in the winter instead of actually having an actual 4WD or good AWD like a Subaru. For the record, I don't think RAV4, CR-V, and those toys 4WD like Kia and Huyndai are worth it. A 4Runner, Pilot, Ridgeline, or something with good snow terrain capability will be too wasteful in gas during 9 months of the year.

 

[surfstar]

Originally Posted By: M1Accord
I wonder if it is more cost effective to have a set of snow tires for each vehicles to use in the winter instead of actually having an actual 4WD or good AWD like a Subaru.


YES!
Read some of the winter tire threads - a car with a proper set of tires will run circles around a 4WD/AWD w/ all seasons.