<p>Any Buick suggestions? H has always liked that brand. </p>
<p>Mom and dad are fine getting in and out of regular sedans.</p>
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<p>This probably isn’t a popular option in Hawaii.</p>
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<p>It’s this feature which makes my RAV4 the preferred vehicle for driving my elderly parents. They have to climb up to get into vans and larger SUVs, which is hard for them. Even harder is trying to hoist them out of a sedan. The RAV’s seats are at perfect butt-level.</p>
<p>I’d encourage you to look at the Buick Encore. It IS a new model this year though. It’s a car that is shaped like an SUV but it is smaller than an SUV. What I really like about it is that the seats can fold down and give you some decent cargo space (for a car) for those times when you need to get something bigger or longer home. If you prefer a typical sedan, the Buick Regal is pretty nice now. Everyday I look at the Encore and drool though. I’m pretty sure it will be my next vehicle, unless I decide to go for the Chevy Cruze Diesel. I waffle because of the great gas mileage I would get with the Cruze Diesel. I do like to be able to fit bigger stuff in my car when I need to though. </p>
<p>*Disclaimer- GM biased person here.</p>
<p>Hmmm, the Buick La Crosse also has seats which fold down and seems plush. Unfortunately many have commented about its puny trunk, especially for the hybrid with e-assist electric engine and 4 cylinder gas engine. Thanks for the tip.</p>
<p>Yes. The Taurus badge is now on a full-size luxury car. Really nice car, but I agree with UCB about the low roofline and small windows. Felt oddly claustrophophic. Drove nice, but it was a bigger car than I needed.</p>
<p>The mid-size (think Honda Accord) size car from Ford is the Fusion. Same platform as the Mazda 6, although i think it has been stretched a little bit.</p>
<p>I’ve had one for about a year now – with the 3-liter V6 engine and all-wheel drive. I’ve been quite impressed. The new restyled Fusion just introduced is gorgeous. Ford has discontinued the V6 option, replaced by a 2-liter turbo Ecoboost engine.</p>
<p>H is also considering the Buick Encore, which is a smaller SUV. I’d like something smaller than my van, while this vehicle seems to have quite a bit of storage.</p>
<p>If you like the Buick brand, you have two and a half choices. The Buick Verano is their small four door sedan that shares the same underlying architecture as the Chevy Cruze. The Cruze is GM’s replacement for the Cobalt which used to be the Cavalier. As cars seem to grow, the Verano and Cruze share the same 184” length.</p>
<p>The Buick Lacrosse and the Chevy Malibu are the same 198” length. I remember when any car approaching 200” in length was considered a full size vehicle. Malibu sales have tanked this year because it looks like a rental car. GM, at least in the lower 48, has big incentives lying on the hood to move the 150 day supply off dealer lots. The Malibu is actually a pretty good car according to the car reviews…if it wasn’t for the bland styling. GM is in the process of re-styling the Malibu for this fall after refreshing it a year ago. Honda did the same to its Civic model (2012) when car critics slammed the re-design.</p>
<p>Be sure to let your salesman know you are cross shopping between the Cruze/Verano and the Lacrosse/Malibu. </p>
<p>The half Buick is the “Cute-ute” Encore. It’s a GM/Daewoo product. Chevy sold the same vehicle under the name Captiva. GM never spent any marketing money on it. I had to look it up on the internet when I saw used car ads for it in the local papers. On further investigation, GM never officially sold the Captiva in the US. Select GM dealers sold the Captiva under a certified used car program. I have no idea what that means. See if your local Chevy dealer has any in stock. Again, the Captiva and the Encore are built on the same chassis. The Captiva is sold around the world. If you were able to drive to Uzbekistan, any GM dealer can service it! And that would be true for the Buick Encore. </p>
<p>For an outside the box choice, consider the Chevy Impala. With a front bench seat, you can uncomfortably seat six. Every seven of ten Impalas sold by GM went to the rental car companies at steep discount. Re-sale values are low for lightly used Impalas. Since depreciation is high, you can get great deals on a two year old Impala… Save thousands by removing that damn “E” label off the rear bumper!</p>
<p>HImom, I was thinking earlier today about your putting-the-grandparents-in-the-car issue. I’m going to suggest, then, that you avoid the Hyundai Sonata, and anything else with a similarly “swoopy,” aerodynamic silhouette. That profile really is great for reducing wind resistance, but it makes it darn difficult to get into or out of the back seat without whacking your head on the door frame.</p>
<p>Thanks for these thoughts. Very helpful. We are planning to go test driving today. 
H is happy!</p>
<p>Well, the encore is rarely around in our state, and none are available to test drive at all in the state. They still have 2012 and 2013 new models of the La Crosse. H said it drove OK but the low fuel light came on so we weren’t able to drive it very far. All in all, it was a pretty disappointing visit today. I was surprised they had new cars for 2012 left on their lot–doesn’t sound good for them. </p>
<p>Found some results of national safety tests ranking Ford Focus and Homda Accords highly, as well as Suburu Forester and Mitsubishi Sport. </p>
<p>Will have to decide if we prefer mini SUV or sedan. Hmmm. This is all pretty challenging. The only other times I bought a new car was 1986 and 1999. Can you tell I dislike shopping for vehicles?</p>
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<p>In the US, the Chevrolet Captiva Sport is the rebadged Saturn VUE that is being offered to fleets (since the Saturn brand was discontinued). Eventually, fleets sell their old vehicles, so the Captiva Sports show up on the used car market.</p>
<p>[Chevy’s</a> Vue-Like Captiva Sport is for Fleets Only - WOT on Motor Trend](<a href=“http://wot.motortrend.com/chevys-vue-like-captiva-sport-fleets-only-37847.html]Chevy’s”>http://wot.motortrend.com/chevys-vue-like-captiva-sport-fleets-only-37847.html)
[2013</a> Chevy Captiva Sport | Compact Crossover | Chevrolet](<a href=“http://www.chevrolet.com/captiva-sport-crossover.html]2013”>Chevrolet SUVs and Crossovers Lineup: 5-9 Passenger)</p>
<p>OK, am currently leaning toward the Honda CRV with leather seats. H really wants leather. I found the dealer in the state with 4.9 * on yelp (the other two dealers have only 3*). Will see how things go and if we make it for a visit to test drive. They do have a vehicle with beige leather seats, so that should mark H happy!</p>
<p>Was toying with idea of evehicles, but just read about Leaf offering to change battery for $100/month, which would really irk me after having paid for the vehicle!</p>
<p>Really don’t feel I drive enough to make it worth the hassle and extra cost, as everyone already mentioned. Like that this vehicle can hold lots of “stuff” as needed. Am still keeping options open. It has similar length and width to the Volvo S40 we gave D that I had really enjoyed driving.</p>
<p>You might want to check out the Hyundai Tucson as well if for no other reason than comparing value of features/styling for the cost between the two.</p>
<p>Shopping for a Honda CRV two yrs ago is how we bought our 2012 Hyundai Tucson.
CRV HAS a great record for reliability but we found it kinda basic and plastic-y. At least for the trim level we were shopping.
The Tucson felt more comfy. The seats are REALLY great for our old backs. Everything feels and sounds solid.</p>
<p>And the included heated front seats are lovely in NJ. Obviously not a key feature in your neighborhood though.</p>
<p>You are echoing what my neighbor just said About her Honda FIT. She says its the first car she and her H have ever been unhappy with. It feels too plasticky to them too. Her H looked around to find something on the body of the vehicle to secure his kayak but could only find plastic, much to his dismay. She says they generally keep their vehicles forever, but they think they may get rid of this car sooner than later. :(. Since these are both Hondas, I will look carefully.</p>
<p>Thanks for the heads up on the Hyundia. I have no experience with that brand. Will investigate further. This may be a rather long process. H may make it one of his retirement projects. ;). Something to start in August when his job has ended.</p>
<p>I have a 2012 Honda CRV with the leather seats, nav system and all wheel drive and I have never been happier with a car. It is extremely comfortable to get in and out of and the seats give me great lumbar support which I need due to back problems. I’ve got nearly 19k miles on it already and am averaging about 28 mpg in the economy mode (which you can use or not, but I love it). Honestly, it’s far easier to get in and out of than my DH’s BMW sedan and it was very useful when I need to bring home a very large (and beautiful) leather chair I found for a great price at a Pottery Barn outlet 150 miles away.</p>
<p>Best Car EVER, lol.</p>
<p>Wow, that is a ringing endorsement! Thanks for that! H has back issues and probably would appreciate lumbar support as well (though driving is pretty limited on our island). I am so glad to hear from a happy owner. Our friends also have a CRV. They enjoy it as well, except that they say it’s not so comfortable for longer-legged, taller folks (which isn’t an issue for me & most of my extended family). They are otherwise quite fond of the vehicle. </p>
<p>My H wants the leather seats in whatever we get next, but not needed to have seat warmers (or coolers) in HI. Mostly, we’re pretty OK–cooling for seats would likely be MUCH more appreciated than warming (especially when we park in the sun). </p>
<p>Probably won’t have a chance to work on this too much for the next little while, but think H will enjoy investigating the options and maybe test driving. He really enjoys driving, especially mountain roads and along coastlines. I drive as a means to get from one place to another, but he ENJOYS the journey, as long as he’s in the driver’s seat!</p>
<p>I was surprised and concerned that they have so much inventory of the CRV in our state and thought that was a bad sign that perhaps there’s something wrong with the car. Probably it’s more a sign of our economy still being pretty bad and gas prices being still higher than many can absorb.</p>
<p>Watch out, leather seats can get pretty hot if the car is parked in the sun.</p>