Originally Posted By: Char Baby
Originally Posted By: VicVinegar
She has no interest in Jeep, and her sister and her husband had a Dodge Durango that crosses that brand off the list as well.
I actually would prefer going the CPO route, but for the Pilot, they did make some notable improvements in the refresh for '12, in particular regarding noise reduction.
I still might look at another Highlander and see if the one I looked at was just a poor example, but right now the Pilot is #1 on the list. The feedback on Pilots I've read over the 'net doesn't reveal too many issues though. The Highlander forum did have some interesting issues popping up that seemed very un-Toyota-like.
Yeah, there are alot of un-Toyota-like things popping up at Toyota lately! I think it's time to move on to other vehicles, as least IMHO!
Over the last 25+ years, I've been driving lots of Honda's Toytoa's and recently Nissan & Mazda but, they're not the big splash in the pool anymore. There are too many good choices to stick with or only consider them(HonYotaSanZdaBaru). The tide is turning and the domestic vehicle are on the rise...Finaly!
I was mad at the domestic vehicle MFG's for not building the vehicles that they should have been building and I stuck with'em for a long time. Finaly, I cured my car problems by swithching manufactures and went with the Asian MFG's over the past 1/4 century.
Now, I'm turing back! I drive lots of vehicles and at one time the Asian vehicles had more of what I liked. Not anymore! Now, they feel cheap and poorly put together compared to some of the better domestic vehicles. I think that the reliabiltiy thingy is more of a hit and miss now with any of the MFG's including HON/YOTA
I'm inclined to agree about Honda and Toyota slipping. Honda in particular is failing with their new designs. You would think an owner of an essentially trouble-free 12 year old Civic would be a lock to buy Honda again, but for my needs the current Civic and Accord are just not doing anything for me. Maybe I'd consider a Fit. If I needed a larger sedan, the only other new "Honda" I'd consider would be a TSX. Other than that, I'd be looking used. 2007 TL, 2008 TSX (I like it better than the new one) or an older Accord or Civic. IMO the interior materials in my Civic are better to anything in the Honda CR-V, Pilot, Toyota Highlander and 4Runner I checked out over the weekend. The door panels and dash materials just feel more expensive. Like I said in an earlier post, I felt like Subaru was still delivering the goods on quality materials in the Outback.
The Pilot's design is pretty neutral for me. I mean it is a big box essentially. I think it was Motor Trend that referred to it as a "modern Isuzu Trooper". My wife likes it for the size it offers, flexibility with seating and as a potential baby hauler in the future and dog hauler in the near term. They might be not be as bulletproof as past Civics and 4-cyl Accords, but they aren't nightmares either. Cost of ownership should still be pretty low compared to the competition. I might look at a CPO MDX, but feeding it premium gas at worse gas mileage isn't an exciting prospect.
I have no problem considering domestic, but in this case I just don't see anything. Everything I've read about the Traverse/Acadia/Enclave is pretty average, and I've seen more reports of quality issues (even with the grain of salt you have to take from internet research). The Explorer is nice but quite a bit bigger than the Pilot. I don't think it would fit in my garage. The Durango is also a larger truck and supposed to be much improved, but the memories of "old" Dodge and my buddy's problematic 2005 Durango Limited are too fresh. Also that same friend's brother was just informed his 2006 Commander Hemi requires a new motor after 50k miles. Not sure what the details are on that, but it doesn't make you want to drop $40k on a new one. Never mind that the domestics still suffer from greater depreciation (deserved or not, it is reality) when buying new and I'd have to buy new for the Durango or Explorer since they are new. We do plan to keep the truck for a while, but Honda still delivers good resale even after 8 years.
Originally Posted By: VicVinegar
She has no interest in Jeep, and her sister and her husband had a Dodge Durango that crosses that brand off the list as well.
I actually would prefer going the CPO route, but for the Pilot, they did make some notable improvements in the refresh for '12, in particular regarding noise reduction.
I still might look at another Highlander and see if the one I looked at was just a poor example, but right now the Pilot is #1 on the list. The feedback on Pilots I've read over the 'net doesn't reveal too many issues though. The Highlander forum did have some interesting issues popping up that seemed very un-Toyota-like.
Yeah, there are alot of un-Toyota-like things popping up at Toyota lately! I think it's time to move on to other vehicles, as least IMHO!
Over the last 25+ years, I've been driving lots of Honda's Toytoa's and recently Nissan & Mazda but, they're not the big splash in the pool anymore. There are too many good choices to stick with or only consider them(HonYotaSanZdaBaru). The tide is turning and the domestic vehicle are on the rise...Finaly!
I was mad at the domestic vehicle MFG's for not building the vehicles that they should have been building and I stuck with'em for a long time. Finaly, I cured my car problems by swithching manufactures and went with the Asian MFG's over the past 1/4 century.
Now, I'm turing back! I drive lots of vehicles and at one time the Asian vehicles had more of what I liked. Not anymore! Now, they feel cheap and poorly put together compared to some of the better domestic vehicles. I think that the reliabiltiy thingy is more of a hit and miss now with any of the MFG's including HON/YOTA
I'm inclined to agree about Honda and Toyota slipping. Honda in particular is failing with their new designs. You would think an owner of an essentially trouble-free 12 year old Civic would be a lock to buy Honda again, but for my needs the current Civic and Accord are just not doing anything for me. Maybe I'd consider a Fit. If I needed a larger sedan, the only other new "Honda" I'd consider would be a TSX. Other than that, I'd be looking used. 2007 TL, 2008 TSX (I like it better than the new one) or an older Accord or Civic. IMO the interior materials in my Civic are better to anything in the Honda CR-V, Pilot, Toyota Highlander and 4Runner I checked out over the weekend. The door panels and dash materials just feel more expensive. Like I said in an earlier post, I felt like Subaru was still delivering the goods on quality materials in the Outback.
The Pilot's design is pretty neutral for me. I mean it is a big box essentially. I think it was Motor Trend that referred to it as a "modern Isuzu Trooper". My wife likes it for the size it offers, flexibility with seating and as a potential baby hauler in the future and dog hauler in the near term. They might be not be as bulletproof as past Civics and 4-cyl Accords, but they aren't nightmares either. Cost of ownership should still be pretty low compared to the competition. I might look at a CPO MDX, but feeding it premium gas at worse gas mileage isn't an exciting prospect.
I have no problem considering domestic, but in this case I just don't see anything. Everything I've read about the Traverse/Acadia/Enclave is pretty average, and I've seen more reports of quality issues (even with the grain of salt you have to take from internet research). The Explorer is nice but quite a bit bigger than the Pilot. I don't think it would fit in my garage. The Durango is also a larger truck and supposed to be much improved, but the memories of "old" Dodge and my buddy's problematic 2005 Durango Limited are too fresh. Also that same friend's brother was just informed his 2006 Commander Hemi requires a new motor after 50k miles. Not sure what the details are on that, but it doesn't make you want to drop $40k on a new one. Never mind that the domestics still suffer from greater depreciation (deserved or not, it is reality) when buying new and I'd have to buy new for the Durango or Explorer since they are new. We do plan to keep the truck for a while, but Honda still delivers good resale even after 8 years.
