Used CUV/SUV suggestions? Rogue, Rav4...?
 

Hi folks, I'm new to Vancouver and looking to get an used car (don't have any atm). I had made up my mind for the Nissan Rogue 2009+ SL AWD for around ~15k, but I would like opinions.

My budget is around 15~18k+tax. I still have to save the money, though, but since I have to make up my mind first, shouldn't be an issue.
I have found a few 2009 Rogues with about 80k km for 15-16k. And no, I haven't driven it yet. What I'm looking right now is only technical (maintenance, reliability etc).

It's only me and wife, we don't need 2 cars. No kids yet, but I plan to use this car in the future after we have them. No pets either. For both cases, I prefer leather seats because it's easier to take care of, one of the reasons I chose the SL version of the Rogue. We will be using this car for trips (BC, US etc), groceries, airport pickups for guests... but for everyday usage we'll be using the bus/skytrain. (Downtown + car = headache)

Also, should I be looking for private or dealerships? (or both?)
Craigslist and autotrader?

Thoughts?

tl;dr: want an used car for around 18k+tax not for everyday use but future-proof (kids?pets?family?). <100k km.

Thanks.

I did a few hundred KM around central Alberta in a rental Rogue when I was out there for business a couple years ago... was a really nice ride and I wouldn't hesitate to get one if I was in the market for that type of vehicle.

I was going to say the ne F-pace but for used, If can find one older Used LR2 or Discoveries are nice as well!

The Rogue, Rav4, and CR-V all rate very well in Consumer Reports for what it's worth. To a lesser extent, Hyundai's offering.

No

Thanks for the replies so far!

Aw, I was already taking a look at LR2's... aren't they reliable? Was about to ask about Land Rover's maintenance. Probably more expensive than Nissan, I'd presume?

The Rogue is V4, 170hp, should be enough and economic, but being economic is not a big concern as the purpose here is not an everyday commuter. It's nice to have, though.

Acura RDX may be something you want to look into as well. Only thing I CAN say is to stay away from American CUV's...from my experience lol.

Get a brand new rogue for 5k more? :troll:

Not really. Brand new SL AWD 2015 is 35k. The naked S is 24k.
Would rather get all the premium features and pay a lot less...

^ and a CVT failure with it too

I daily a rogue and its a misery but its the best car to rob a bank with. They are everywhere.

sure LR has a bad rep but a large majority of the lr2s i see coming in are for gravy work...

and regardless of any car you get, if something big happens its going to be expensive to fix regardless of make

if you want true better reliability get a mid 00's crv

but really it boils down to is what you like both style and performance

When I bought my 2007 CRV, I cross shopped the Rav4, Rogue as well.

I went with the CRV because it had a better interior (At the time, only the CRV had the rear back up camera option which my wife wanted), legendary K series motor and being a Honda, DIY maintenance would be easy.

The Rav4's interior really sucked ass. I love the power of the V6 but was concerned about fuel economy and the wife didn't really need 269hp. I wasn't a fan of the Rouge's CVT and I was worried about issues further down the line with it as I needed the car to last 10+ years.

I have 144k kms on it now and it was been pretty reliable. The wife drives it from Richmond to New West for work and averages 9.xL/100km. The only issues I've had with it were:

- Rear differential noise - TSB released about changing the diff fluid earlier due to possible contaminator during assembly. Some folks had to get their rear diff replaced under warranty. I took my car in and the dealer changed it at ~10k kms.

- Intermittent issues with front wiper motor (Honda released a newer part # to fix this issue) - $270 locally for the part from Honda or $50USD from the states. Easy DIY

- AC clutch/compressor failure. There is a TSB for this one but mine was out of warranty. Had to bite the bullet and pay $800 for this to get fixed.
Seems to be a common problem and expensive repair for the 2007-2011's. Read there could be a class action lawsuit in the states, which is why Honda extended the warranty to 7 years.

Lastly,
2007-2009's have 166hp
2010-2011's have 180hp.

I thought Nissan gave 10yr/200k km warranty on their CVT drivetrain... That wouldn't be an issue, I guess? But then again, I have no experience with that...

Thanks. I'll take a look at it, from the others opinions it might be better to go CRV, even if it's not a 2000/06 one.

The 10-year, 200000 km CVT warranty only applies to certain vehicles.

See the chart here for qualifying vehicles:
NissanAssist.com

2008-2010 Rogues would carry the extended warranty on the CVTs, but 2011 and newer models would still carry the standard 5-year, 100000 km warranty.

Also of note on those Rogues:

Why not look at Outlander XLS or LS (V6 trim) from 07 and onwards? They seem to fit your bill and come with Mitsubishi's 10 year/160,000 powertrain warranty.

Thanks. Didn't know where exactly to look for this information.

Thanks. I don't know much about Mitsubishi (maintenance etc), that's why. I know Toyota and Honda are good ones, not sure about the others.

No CX5?

I'm driving a passed down 98 CRV. Other than one of the window motors making a funny noise, not a single thing has ever gone wrong. :fullofwin:

Have you considered a Forester?

Possibly... not crossing that out, was trying to narrow it down to one car/manufacturer but it seems it'll be more like "get the best available car" instead. Of course I'll need to drive them first, but technically speaking for what I've seen here they are all reliable and therefore do not need a lot of maintenance, at least for the main manufacturers.
So it comes down to Mazda, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Honda and maybe Hyundai.

CX5, Outlander, Rav4, CRV... They're all good. I'm thinking 2008~2010. Now I have to search about the specific problems for each one of these for the specific built years.

I have a co-worker who hates his Forester (had to do lots of maintenance). Then again, I know each car is different from each other and there's a lot of luck involved. Personally I don't like the looks either... so adding all that up, don't think I'd consider it, but thanks!

https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-m...0/DSC_0202.jpg

Forester would be an excellence choice :sweetjesus:

for me, crv, rav4 or cx5. also the toyota venza prices are quite low too.

but have you seen the luxury offerings from infiniti or lexus? they are around your budget but maintenance do cost twice as much and fuel economy are slightly worse. the upside are comfort and features. for ex, 2005 lexus rx330 ~ $15900. ~130000kms.

CX5 always seems to be praised for its good handling in it's reviews, so I'd say def worth checking out as an enthusiast. The 5spd is supposed to be a very good gearbox/shifter, but unfortunately that only comes in FWD.

I'd look at a CX5, Forester, older RAV4 with the V6.

Premium make = premium fuel = premium maintenance... I did take a look at them, but nah, I'm not a fancy guy. If I had more experience with car maintenance doing it by myself, I'd def consider it. But paying a lot only because of the make makes no sense to me...

What about maintenance on Mazda?
I quite like the CX-5 GS (w/ luxury package) and the GT. It's a bit more than what I was aiming for originally, though.. but I can always try to negotiate once I have the money ready with no financing.

My family has pretty good luck with Mitsubishi's as we have a 2008 Lancer, 2011 RVR, and a 2005 Lancer Ralliart in the garage. So far, there have been two or three TSB repairs under warranty for the 2008 Lancer and RVR. Other than that, these cars have only been back to Mitsubishi for regular servicing and maintenance.