whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Jul 30, 2014 20:26:05 GMT -5
Buy what works for your family! You keep cars a long time so get what you want. Look for a lightly used one. oohhhh, I like that part. I think I am going to apply to everything
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motherto2
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Post by motherto2 on Jul 30, 2014 21:01:52 GMT -5
I say go for bigger. Before you know it, one or two kids are going to want to bring a friend along wherever you are going. And in my opinion, it doesn't matter how old the kid is, they still have a ton of stuff! We had a Suburban we bought used when I was married and had a stepson. Believe me, you will be thankful for a third seat pretty shortly. I can't tell you how many soccer girls and their huge bags that I toted around when DD was playing travel soccer. Or how many field hockey girls with their huge bags (to include a goalie and her REALLY huge bag) with DD's travel team. Or how many baseball boys with their huge bat bags when DS played travel baseball. Or Taking one long vacation one year where me and DD toted DS to Cooperstown for baseball, along with all of his reenactment stuff so we could head to Gettysburg to participate in the reenactment over the July 4th weekend. Worth every cent. Of course, the gas mileage was horrible. Hopefully they have come a long way. I also second looking at Mazdas. I currently have a Nissan Altima (and yes, it's been a great car, so if you go that way, I vote Nissan) but I want to get something that sits a little higher next go round (bad knee). DD just bought a certified used Mazda 3 (2013) in March, and because the dealership hadn't titled it until December 2013, she bought a brand new car with about 20 miles on it, and received an extra year warranty for a total of almost 4 years. I love the way it drives, and while doing research, I realized the Mazda CX5 gets about 32 mpg. It's the highest mileage of the small SUV's that I've come across. My Altima gets 33.4 mpg. I am hoping to get another 4 years out of my Nissan before having to buy a new car. I'd check out the CX9.
Bet you're wishing you hadn't asked opinions!
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TheHaitian
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Post by TheHaitian on Jul 30, 2014 21:25:18 GMT -5
You are going to hate the gas bill but I say Tahoe.
If you are getting the backup camera make sure to add a TV/DVD player in there.
As for camera, my last boss said that even with one his wife had an horrible time parking their car. She would be the one taking up 4 parking spaces and saying "fuck it" I am done trying to park this right.
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Lizard Queen
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Post by Lizard Queen on Jul 31, 2014 9:50:47 GMT -5
The cost of gas to drive a 25mpg car 100,000 miles is $15,000 @ $3.75/gallon. To drive a 15 mpg car is $25,000. Now, you tell me, how quickly will you get to 100,000?
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cktc
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Post by cktc on Jul 31, 2014 9:52:12 GMT -5
while doing research, I realized the Mazda CX5 gets about 32 mpg. It's the highest mileage of the small SUV's that I've come across.
That's my current dream family vehicle. Gas prices aren't likely going down anytime soon, and if you are going to have a car for 10+ years, that could be a huge difference in cost over the life of the vehicle. If nothing but Tahoe appeals to you, maybe get something super fuel efficient for your DH now, stash the savings, and trade in the Subaru in 3-5 years if the mpg on a Tahoe is still palatable, if not improved.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2014 10:05:41 GMT -5
How much you're going to drive that Tahoe is huge. I loved my F250, but man, filling that thing up got real old. It had a 26 gallon tank and I remember the first $100 fill. That only took me about 400 miles. I went from that to a Prizm that took me as far on 10 gallons! Now, even the minivan seems like a hog in comparison.
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constanz22
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Post by constanz22 on Jul 31, 2014 10:05:52 GMT -5
If you've had good luck with Nissan, how about a Pathfinder? My BFF got one recently and is happy with it. They are a very big family, all over 6' tall (parents and 2 kids) and they find it comfortable and lots of room for them and their stuff. And it comes with a back up camera. Not sure what they retail for, but I doubt it's anywhere near 40k.
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constanz22
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Post by constanz22 on Jul 31, 2014 10:06:12 GMT -5
If you've had good luck with Nissan, how about a Pathfinder? My BFF got one recently and is happy with it. They are a very big family, all over 6' tall (parents and 2 kids) and they find it comfortable and lots of room for them and their stuff. And it comes with a back up camera. Not sure what they retail for, but I doubt it's anywhere near 40k.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Jul 31, 2014 11:10:56 GMT -5
We have 4 kids, as you know they're older now. In my experience, our cars got SMALLER as the kids grew up, not bigger! The first time we went away when DS3 (our 4th) was 6 weeks old, we only had a five-seater, so we rented a minivan for two weeks. And we bought a bike rack and took the bikes. I know your kids are still little but remember, soon you won't need to drag along as many car seats / diapers / strollers / cribs / portable high chairs etc etc etc. as my kids got bigger, they also bring friends along, and their sports equipment gets bigger.
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MJ2.0
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Post by MJ2.0 on Jul 31, 2014 11:26:28 GMT -5
CK, I definitely wouldn't want a prior rental. Some people do drive like maniacs in a rental. When I traveled a lot for work, we had two sayings for rental cars: 1. No curb is too high for a rental and 2. The fastest car in the world is your friend's rental. The second fastest is your rental. In a rental, people generally don't care because they are only going to have it for a few days and won't have to pay for damage. A colleague of mine was in a rental with another person and the person decided that the best way to stop on a freeway was throwing the car into park. They were going 65 mph and he just didn't want to use the brakes so as they got close to a toll plaza, he threw the car into park and they slid into the toll booth. I may or may not have sped, gone off roading, and hit many curbs with rental cars. Please tell me the next time you're on the road in a rental car! I am WAY nicer to stuff I'm borrowing than my own stuff. Besides, I thought you did have to pay for damage on a rental....?
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Jul 31, 2014 15:51:01 GMT -5
The cost of gas to drive a 25mpg car 100,000 miles is $15,000 @ $3.75/gallon. To drive a 15 mpg car is $25,000. Now, you tell me, how quickly will you get to 100,000? OK, I think i just threw up a little bit.....
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Jul 31, 2014 16:48:57 GMT -5
The cost of gas to drive a 25mpg car 100,000 miles is $15,000 @ $3.75/gallon. To drive a 15 mpg car is $25,000. Now, you tell me, how quickly will you get to 100,000? OK, I think i just threw up a little bit..... On the up side, my '07 Grand Caravan seats 7, plus plenty of cargo space behind the third row of seats, and gets 27 - 28 mpg on the road if you keep it down to 72 or 73 mph. And the newer ones do a bit better on the gas. Not as stylish as an SUV that has similar hauling capacity. Just cheaper to buy and more economical to drive. (Tskeeter puts on his YM halo. )
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Jul 31, 2014 18:16:14 GMT -5
OK, I think i just threw up a little bit..... On the up side, my '07 Grand Cara van seats 7, plus plenty of cargo space behind the third row of seats, and gets 27 - 28 mpg on the road if you keep it down to 72 or 73 mph. And the newer ones do a bit better on the gas. Not as stylish as an SUV that has similar hauling capacity. Just cheaper to buy and more economical to drive. (Tskeeter puts on his YM halo. ) There is that word again.... Why are all my favorite posters are so mean to me
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ՏՇԾԵԵʅՏɧ_LԹՏՏʅҼ
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Post by ՏՇԾԵԵʅՏɧ_LԹՏՏʅҼ on Jul 31, 2014 18:23:52 GMT -5
I'd say, for DH, I'd say sell the Nissan and let him take over driving the Subaru - since he sometimes needs it for the 4WD anyway.
Since your kids are young, the Tahoe is a good choice, but I'm a faithful supporter/owner of Ford products - so I would be looking (if I was in the market and with kids) at either a Ford Explorer or Expedition.
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tskeeter
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Post by tskeeter on Jul 31, 2014 18:54:27 GMT -5
On the up side, my '07 Grand Cara van seats 7, plus plenty of cargo space behind the third row of seats, and gets 27 - 28 mpg on the road if you keep it down to 72 or 73 mph. And the newer ones do a bit better on the gas. Not as stylish as an SUV that has similar hauling capacity. Just cheaper to buy and more economical to drive. (Tskeeter puts on his YM halo. ) There is that word again.... Why are all my favorite posters are so mean to me Being a saintly YMer just ain't no fun, is it? Oh, the heck with it. Sin a little. The reason sin is so popular is that it's more fun than the alternative. Buy what you want and have some fun. You'll figure out how to compensate for the additional cost as you go along. After all, you're a YMer. All you've got to do is cut out one restaurant meal a month, and gather leaves from the yard instead of buying toilet paper. (Tskeeter not only owned three cars for a household with one driver, but one of those cars was an RX-7. And he didn't even resort to leaves.)
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jul 31, 2014 20:48:37 GMT -5
You have 3 young boys, if I were you I'd get an SUV if I could afford it. Especially if you plan on keeping this vehicle for years and years. Your boys are going to get bigger, you'll be chauffering them and the necessary equipment to activities as they get older, they'll have friends that you'll want to go on outings with your kids, blah blah blah.
I thought my little car would be fine for just me and my 2 kids. Then my son grew to over 6 feet tall and had to almost do contortions to get in the back seat. And if I had other passengers, he couldn't sit in the middle of the back seat unless he hunched over so his head wouldn't hit the roof of the car. Oops!
If I thought the SUV would make life more comfortable as my kids got older and bigger and I could afford it, I'd buy it. Yes, it's a lot of money for a vehicle, but years of stuffing your family in a too small vehicle when you have other choices doesn't sound like fun to me. I'm a bad YM'er though.
I'm a fan of the back-up cameras. A lady in an Expedition backed into my car on a parking lot. She didn't realize she'd hit something until she couldn't back up anymore. She didn't SEE me until she got out of her car. She was so upset and apologetic (my son was in the backseat), that I couldn't even be angry with her.
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Jul 31, 2014 22:02:26 GMT -5
What model year Tahoe were you going to buy. A commercial ran on the tv. Ford is offering 0% financing on Expeditions for 72 months.
I googled Tahoes and it appears that, at least in my area, they have a 0% financing for 60 months +2K bonus for a 2014 model. In your situation, I'd probably jump on that.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Jul 31, 2014 22:56:55 GMT -5
What model year Tahoe were you going to buy. A commercial ran on the tv. Ford is offering 0% financing on Expeditions for 72 months. I googled Tahoes and it appears that, at least in my area, they have a 0% financing for 60 months +2K bonus for a 2014 model. In your situation, I'd probably jump on that. I don't think I am mentally ready to spend that much money right now.....
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Sunnyday
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Post by Sunnyday on Aug 1, 2014 10:39:54 GMT -5
I guess that I would be the odd man out, but if you have trouble parking or driving such a large vehicle perhaps you should get a smaller vehicle that is easier to handle. It'll be safer for you and every one around you, and kinder on the budget.
$40K! eeek! that's some people's yearly salary. But if you've got the money and you want it! go for it!
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wvugurl26
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Post by wvugurl26 on Aug 1, 2014 11:17:42 GMT -5
My mom had a Tahoe. It was a really nice SUV but the gas bills were terrible. Minivans are luxe on the inside because no one wants to drive them and perfectly set up for kids. I'm intrigued by the one with the vacuum built in but not sure I want to take a 20k loss on my vehicle to get it. That Honda minivan with the vacuum is the high end models ie costs as much as the Tahoe. My brother's a car person and has owned a ton of GM stuff. He says as far as V8 SUVs go, GM has it pretty well down so to buy the Tahoe. Gas costs what it costs and unless you are driving a lot of miles per year or that close to the edge, I wouldn't consider it to much. For myself yes but I bought my Mazda 6 2/17/14 and rolled over 15,000 miles yesterday.
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cktc
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Post by cktc on Aug 1, 2014 11:26:51 GMT -5
My mom had a Tahoe. It was a really nice SUV but the gas bills were terrible. Minivans are luxe on the inside because no one wants to drive them and perfectly set up for kids. I'm intrigued by the one with the vacuum built in but not sure I want to take a 20k loss on my vehicle to get it. That Honda minivan with the vacuum is the high end models ie costs as much as the Tahoe. Sticker price yes, but more in gas and probably insurance. Maybe call your insurer and run some numbers on the cars you are considering.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2014 12:44:40 GMT -5
If you really want the Tahoe, stop being cheap and buy it.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Aug 1, 2014 12:47:41 GMT -5
What model year Tahoe were you going to buy. A commercial ran on the tv. Ford is offering 0% financing on Expeditions for 72 months. I googled Tahoes and it appears that, at least in my area, they have a 0% financing for 60 months +2K bonus for a 2014 model. In your situation, I'd probably jump on that. I don't think I am mentally ready to spend that much money right now..... I spent $34,000 on a minivan. Even if you wanted cheaper, if you buy new, you're going to spend at least $30,000 to get what you want.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2014 12:52:53 GMT -5
I agree with everyone else - just buy what you want. if you settle for something else you're going to regret it. besides, I thought your DH made a ton of money and you live in a low cost area.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2014 12:57:17 GMT -5
I agree with everyone else - just buy what you want. if you settle for something else you're going to regret it. besides, I thought your DH made a ton of money and you live in a low cost area. ...and she lives in a mansion and her husband has no idea just how much money they have, so it is not like he would even notice if she spent that much on a vehicle.
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yogiii
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Post by yogiii on Aug 1, 2014 13:40:28 GMT -5
I agree with everyone else - just buy what you want. if you settle for something else you're going to regret it. besides, I thought your DH made a ton of money and you live in a low cost area. 45 min from Boston is HCOLA not LCOLA
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Opti
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Post by Opti on Aug 1, 2014 13:43:01 GMT -5
My mom had a Tahoe. It was a really nice SUV but the gas bills were terrible. Minivans are luxe on the inside because no one wants to drive them and perfectly set up for kids. I'm intrigued by the one with the vacuum built in but not sure I want to take a 20k loss on my vehicle to get it. That Honda minivan with the vacuum is the high end models ie costs as much as the Tahoe. My brother's a car person and has owned a ton of GM stuff. He says as far as V8 SUVs go, GM has it pretty well down so to buy the Tahoe. Gas costs what it costs and unless you are driving a lot of miles per year or that close to the edge, I wouldn't consider it to much. For myself yes but I bought my Mazda 6 2/17/14 and rolled over 15,000 miles yesterday.
I'd consider the increased costs mainly because they are planning to keep it long term and their budget isn't stable given they have three young kids. So if gas prices go way up and they have to replace 22 inch tires versus 17 inch ones they might freak out. Or not. Depends on how easy they can adjust financially and mentally if the costs are more than they are used to because they will be.
I find it telling when I clicked on a URL for the Tahoe it advertised the highway mpg but I could not find the city mpg. Most people with Tahoe's need to care more about the city mpg, but the highway one must hook more folks into buying when not disclosing both. Plus just looking at mpg and mileage will not give you your true gas costs. You burn gas starting up your car, stuck in traffic, or those times you leave it on and dart into a store or warm it up because its winter. Your gas costs will be higher.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Aug 1, 2014 13:56:25 GMT -5
I agree with everyone else - just buy what you want. if you settle for something else you're going to regret it. besides, I thought your DH made a ton of money and you live in a low cost area.what gave you that idea?
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Aug 1, 2014 14:07:53 GMT -5
I agree with everyone else - just buy what you want. if you settle for something else you're going to regret it. besides, I thought your DH made a ton of money and you live in a low cost area. 45 min from Boston is HCOLA not LCOLA ok but she always talks about how she's glad to be gone from the high cost of MD so that would indicate that she's in a lower cost of living than she used to be.
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whoisjohngalt
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Post by whoisjohngalt on Aug 1, 2014 14:11:19 GMT -5
45 min from Boston is HCOLA not LCOLA ok but she always talks about how she's glad to be gone from the high cost of MD so that would indicate that she's in a lower cost of living than she used to be. No....I always talk about how I am glad to be done with MD. Period. Has nothing to do with cost, actually.
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