I need some serious car buying advice ...

[FastCougar]

So, I had to wait till April 2nd to post this some people would take me seriously.

I'm going to be a father ... AGAIN!

So, I have a serious car situation here. Currently, the wife drives a 2002 Mercury Mountaineer and loves it! I can't stress this enough ... LOVES the truck ... ****ty gas mileage and all. I have managed to get her to agree to getting a Minivan FINALLY after days of pestering ... I started in on her about this long before finding out she was pregnant. But wait ... in a last ditch effort to keep the truck, she said something that made a ton of sense. See, she doesn't drive stick and my 2005 Corolla is a manual. So, she says ... why don't you get an automatic that still gets good highway miles and she will run her errands in that on the 4 days a week that I work from home. The one day a week that I commute in, she can use the truck and whalla, problem solved.

While this makes great sense, we are still stuck with a dying breed of a vehicle (SUV's will completely change/die over the next 5-7 years) that can only muster 15-16 MPG in roughly 75% city driving. If trends head the way I think they will, I won't be able to sell the truck in 4-5 years for much if anything, so why not now when I could probably get around $10K for it? Not to mention, she will be much safer in a Minivan according to statistics and ironically enough, a Minivan is more utilitarian than an SUV.

So, here are the scenarios as I see it:

1) We sell the truck and buy her a Minivan ... cost out of pocket roughly $8K-$10K depending on options for either a 2004 Toyota Sienna or a 2005 Honda Odyssey. Fuel economy over the truck would increase roughly 40% and Insurance should drop as well, representing an additional savings. Last but certainly not least, it's safest for the family!

2) We keep the truck and I buy a new car ... "fleet" fuel economy goes down because even if I buy another Corolla, the automatic zaps 3-4 MPG there alone. However, we have much more flexibility now since we can swap vehicles depending on needs. Out of pocket costs vary widely depending on my choice of car ... most likely a 4 cylinder automatic to keep fuel economy high.

And yes, I have resigned myself to not owning an enthusiast vehicle for quite some time now

So, what would you do?

[kustomcougar]

i learned this a while ago, listen to the women

[freednighthawk]

Why not look into something with one of the auto sequential gearboxes, or whatever you want to call it?

And in terms of Minivans... You're gonna hate me for saying this, but check out Kia. I'm probably gonna start annoying people if I continue to talk about Kia, but the Sedona is absolutely great. I was planning on picking one up, before I got into S10 Blazers.

I've driven the Sedona a few times, and its easy to drive. Its got good power (I think it came out to 250ish hp for the 6 cylinder) pretty good gas mileage, at, IIRC 24mpg. Its got the sequential gearbox. And was rated the highest in safety. Ohh, and it's really comfortable.

[Unknown2k]

Well if your going to get the car I'd say a jetta TDI. 4 doors, looks nice and gets 50+ mpg

[UserDrew]

...

Did I just read you right??? You want a minivan?!?

Sorry I can't offer any real advice.

[fordrule]

are u trying to stay in the newer used realm of commuter cars? or a new car?

[skater]

I think your prediction about SUVs is wrong. I hope it's right, but I doubt it. SUVs will continue to be popular for a very long time, unfortunately.

However, there's another angle: keep in mind that you're still getting value out of it now by using it (and keeping your wife happy ). Sort of like how I don't care about the resale value of the Impala because I intend to drive it until it's completely dead which I'm hoping is a very long way off; I'm getting my money's worth out of the car by using it, not by resale value.

On the minivan thing: My brother has a Pontiac Montana and it's a decent vehicle. It's comfortable to drive and ride in. Also, he uses it to move arcade games around, and it handles that job quite well, and it's fairly efficient (not as good as my car but certainly better than SUVs). His wife has an Avalanche, so you'd think that would be my brother's first choice for moving stuff, but instead he prefers the minivan because of its lower loading height. Definitely not your mother's minivan.

[fordrule]

being married now for 3 yrs, 2.5 of them spending apart..... ( damn army...), i have learned one thing.....keep the wifey happy is always a good point, on certain aspects........if she likes her car and its not hurting anything dont change it if u can afford it. the mountaineer is a good enough size to have a 2 car seats and a stroller. the van would be nice for versatility.

[Jorgen]

Congrat on having another little one.

I recently bought my wife her explorer, she doesn't mind th bad gas mileage it gets and the even worse mileage it gets on E85 when she fills with that. I know at this point I won't be able to steer her into a mini van even after a couple little bastards are running around. I would personally take the wifes idea and keep the SUV maybe consider the switch to an auto commuter so she could drive it. Is there a reason behind her never being able to drive a stick? Has she just never learned or does she just not want to ever learn.

If you really want to get into better mileage for her would she consider something in the Volvo station wagon or XUV range? Those would both get better mileage but are keeping up with the utility and giving good safety.

[Bigtime2112]

I'd try and keep your lady happy and keep the truck, but if you buy a new car you don't have to resign yourself to a non enthusiast vehicle. good gas economy and safety doesn't mean you can't have a fun car.

The Mini Cooper S with an automatic transmission gets 23/32 with an average of 27mpg. thats a reported claim of 422 Miles per tank (13.2 gallon tank)

It also performed well in crash tests (2005 MINI Cooper Crash Tests | Used 2005 MINI Cooper Crash Test Results & Safety Ratings at Automotive.com)