<p>Our 1998 Volvo and 2000 Toyota can are showing their age. We just had ABS disabled in our van because it malfunctioned and needed to be disabled or replaced (no snow or ice in HI anyway). </p>
<p>Are starting to think of a replacement vehicle. We need it to comfortably seat four or more and have good trunk space. Spoke with our mechanic and he’s recommending Fords and Cheverolets over other brands on reliability </p>
<p>We drive VERY little (about 5-7500/year), mostly short 2-10 mile drives a few times a week. Would love suggestions. Are ok with new or slightly used (up to 3 years).</p>
<p>I replaced a 2000 Volvo S70 SE with a 2012 Volvo S60…and I love it. Also drove the Fusion, Prius, Altima, Sonata, Camry, Accord…and Mazda CX5, Forester, CRV. If I hadn’t gotten another sedan, I would have gotten the Mazda CX5.</p>
<p>The newer Volvo is a nicer, better version of my older Volvo. I’m glad I got it!</p>
<p>Take a look at the Ford Fusion. We recently had one as a rental car, and it was very nice. My H normally drives a Lexus, but he was quite taken with the Fusion. I would consider it if the reliability ratings are good.</p>
<p>We bought a hybrid Camry two years ago. We love it. We also had a Toyota Corolla, but our new college grad is buying it from us. Both Toyota vehicles have exceeded our expectations. I will need a replacement vehicle soon because my Honda van is slowly falling apart; I foresee another Toyota–I’d like to get a Camry for the space and fuel efficiency-- in our future.</p>
<p>H drives a Ford Fusion. Very nice car, seats four very comfortably, large trunk capacity. We have found Fords in general to be extremely reliable over the past couple of decades. The Fusion is just turning 3 and has had no problems whatsoever.</p>
<p>Buy American. Especially when it is a great product.</p>
<p>We got a new mazda - 4 door with Hatchback. We love having the hatch, and the seats can fold down so the back has tons of room for packing for moving kids into college. The new engine gets great mileage and dh love driving the car. Zoom zoom.</p>
<p>I am a die-hard fan of GM products (I come from a GM family), and I like the Cruze, Malibu, and Impala. I really like the Envoy! I will admit that Ford has some great products out now - the Fusion and Focus are good choices. GM and Ford are reliable and easily serviced.</p>
<p>Great suggestions all. Please keep them coming. Will start shopping more seriously in August when H “really retires.” He retired for 4 weeks, only to take a full-time 6 month job. We are collecting ideas and pondering options. </p>
<p>It can take us quite a while to make vehicle choices and decisions, especially if the cars keep running OK. The mechanics say both continue to be sound. </p>
<p>Our only reliable Volvo mechanic says he would NOT recommend we buy a Volvo as he has a lot of difficulty getting new parts. My bro & SIL love Honda Accords as well. </p>
<p>Not sure we drive enough to make a hybrid or e-car worth it (for the extra cost), but are not ruling it out if pricing is competitive. We do have photovoltaic, so could plug in, as we usually create more energy than we use every month. </p>
<p>Am leaning more toward a mid-size or larger vehicle as I don’t feel safe in sub compacts or compacts.</p>
<p>Our family has become Hyundai-centric recently.</p>
<p>We love our 2012 Tucson for space, mileage and comfort.
Our son bought a 2010 Elantra. It is great for commuting.
How about the slightly larger Sonata?</p>
<p>The warranty on Hyundais is a draw as well.</p>
<p>I categorically do not recommend a hybrid for someone who drives less than 8000 miles per year. And I just bought a hybrid. Hybrids are expensive to buy, and with that kind of mileage: (1) you’ll never make up the difference in price with savings on gasoline, and (2) you’re already driving so little that you’re not really the problem when we talk about American dependence on foreign oil!</p>
<p>Another point: it’s easy to say “buy American,” but it can be complicated to do that. What’s more “American,” a Ford Fusion that’s assembled by Mexican workers in Mexico, or a Toyota Camry that’s assembled by American workers in Kentucky?</p>
<p>All that having been said, the hardest part of buying a good, safe, comfortable mid-size sedan can be choosing one. That segment of the market is flooded with really good products. My favorites include the Hyundai Sonata and the Ford Fusion. The last Camry I drove was a good, reliable, comfortable car, though not at all interesting to drive. I haven’t driven a Honda Accord since it got redesigned; I think it might be a better can than the rather bland (but again, comfortable, safe and reliable) one I drove a couple of model-years ago. GM in general, and Chevrolet in particular, seems to have had a great year last year in terms of reliability. Personally, I would pass on anything from Chrysler: they tend to build great-looking cars that break down too much and get bad mileage.</p>
<p>If some of your 7500 driving miles occur in bad weather, you might want to look at a Subaru, since they’re all-wheel drive. If not, with gasoline nearing (and I believe eventually passing $4.00/gallon), I don’t see much reason for dragging around a heavy all-wheel drive system in your car.</p>
<p>Don’t believe I’ve ever driven a Kia vehicle, even rental. Not sure if my mechanic repairs them. One avenue to consider. I know my favorite mechanic definitely works on US and Japanese cars and NOT European. Never asked him about Kias.</p>
<p>The worst weather in HI is rare heavy rains. Have never had difficulty handling this in any of our regular cars or the Toyota van. Have never had SUV or all wheel drive and no need of either.</p>
<p>The good news for you is that there’s a plethora of models that would fit what you want. Virtually every car manufacturer builds a car that will meet your needs in type, comfort, reliability, etc. You’ll need to make your decisions somewhat on styling, appeal, etc. in addition to the basics. It’s no longer the case that GM is way better than Ford (or vice versa), or that Japanese is always better than domestic, or that European is somehow better than others.</p>
<p>For anecdote - one family member has a Hyundai Sonata which is very reliable, has the best warranty going, has comfortable seating, a large trunk, has plenty of performance (turbo 4), gets good gas mileage, handles nicely, has a luxury feel, and is relatively inexpensive, and is even made in the USA.</p>
<p>Another family member has a Toyota Corolla that also is nice. It’s a bit smaller than the Sonata but it actually has a fair amount of room inside and in the trunk. It was also made in the USA.</p>
<p>But there are suitable vehicles from most manufacturers.</p>
<p>Some considerations - repair cost and the cost of replacement parts can be a factor. This area can be more expensive for European cars especially and just assume that the more expensive or exclusive the car, generally the more it’ll cost for repairs/fixes. Also, insurance can cost more for some cars than others so you might want to check with your insurance company on the cost for the few models you’re considering if that’s a factor for you.</p>
<p>Our current insurance rates are incredibly low–$600/year for the 2 of us with 2 vehicles. Expect it will likely rise somewhat and that would be ok. </p>
<p>Lots to think about. Appreciate everyone’s insights. Will likely speak with my friend who recently purchased used Toyota for his S in LA. The friend favors Toyotas.</p>
<p>I went from a 2000 Avalon with 250K miles to a 2012 Camry LE last year. The Camry gets great gas mileage (coming from the Avalon), handles nicely (electric-assist steering) and feels sturdy and solid (lots more welds in the frame) though not as sturdy and solid as the Avalon (Avalon weighs 600 pounds more). The trunk space is good but not great (Avalon had a huge trunk) but it has fold-down back seats. The newer car came with all sorts of electronic toys which I like. The Avalon had seating for six, the Camry has seating for five. The Avalon is definitely larger. Some times I think that I should have bought the new Camry but I go into Boston from time to time and the Camry is a lot easier to park. I’m very happy with the Camry and miss a bit of the luxury from the Avalon.</p>
<p>I think that there are a lot of cars in the ballpark these days. Other cars that I considered were the Accord and Outback. I would have considered a Lexus too but we don’t have a local dealer. I like the small Accura too but it would have been too small for our needs. If I were looking today, I would probably take a look at the Focus. It has received a lot of good reviews and is selling well.</p>
<p>My Avalon and Camry were built in Kentucky and I’ve visited the factory to watch how they build cars from rolled steel into finished products. The cars built in Kentucky have very high US-materials content.</p>
<p>There is one Toyota seller on our island and customer services there has gone from bad to MUCH worse, making me reluctant to buy a Toyota, even tho our van was pretty reliable ever the 14 years we had it. Thanks for your thoughts. </p>
<p>We are really not much into cars other than a way to safely get from one place to the next. Luxury cars don’t do much for us–have turned down 3 used Mercedes in the past 12 months. Want a reliable, safe, low maintenance car. </p>