SWMBO was looking at a Prius to replace her Grand Prix, it was perfect on paper. 40+ MPG, good with double rear-facing car seats, hatch to change the kids in. Except it's slooooow. She went from a 2.3T Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, to a Grand Prix GT. She likes torque, and the Prius is lacking.
What else is there? Everything else is either compact, so too small, or a sedan, or an SUV. Needs to be 05 or newer, automatic, cloth, and the aforementioned 4/5-door hatch/wagon thing.
TDI wagon?
MCarp22 wrote: TDI wagon?
We're selling the Grand Prix because we're tired of always fixing things on it. I don't think a diesel VAG product would be an improvement...
I would think the prius would feel very torque-y, given the electric motor.
The 3rd gen isnt that bad in power mode. Honestly who cares? It has enough power to safely pass and merge in traffic, what else do you really need in a commuter/kid hauler?
Have you checked out the volt? They are coming off lease and have depreciated nicely.
Cx5 or Mazda3 hatch?
If she likes torque, I'd agree with old_ - the Volt is where it's at. Not super fast on paper, but they feel much quicker from the butt dyno.
My wife loves her cmax. I have to admit that for a hybrid its surprisingly quick.
Mazda 3 hatch with the Skyactive. Not "fast", but quick enough and should still get good mpg.
My WRX meets some of your requirements, but certainly does not get decent MPG. Not sure how it would be to get car seats in the back seat, but based on everything else you said, I don't think it is the car you are looking for.
Javelin wrote:MCarp22 wrote: TDI wagon?We're selling the Grand Prix because we're tired of always fixing things on it. I don't think a diesel VAG product would be an improvement...
I have put a set of tires, one extra tire due to blowout, one bent rim ($170 for a steel wheel!?!?!? Seriously, ridiculous.), 4 oil changes ($55/each for the filter and VW spec oil at the dealer), one fuel filter ($40 at the dealer), and one unexpected dealer trip for a no start condition in 45k miles this past year on my Jetta TDi.
I find fault in "unreliability" or "always something to be "fixed"".
And I am not a guy who is a VW fanboi, I'd rather be driving a manual diesel Cruze over the Jetta, even though the Cruze is a Daewoo. I'd rather have domestics in the driveway.
CMax is like a prius, but with 2.5x the torque and a nicer interior
Did you test a 2nd gen or 3rd gen? Both the gas and electric motor in the 3rd gen are significantly more powerful. It's still not a rocket, but for commuting/appliance duty its more than adequate.
In reply to Ranger50:
I don't know if I would call "no start condition" reliable. I get that it only happened once but I have heard from many owners of the 08+ TDIs experiencing the same thing. Not internet hearsay either. More like, "my Mom's Jetta has left her stranded 4 times in the last 3 years" stuff from friends. With that said, it will likely be more reliable than a Pontiac!
Go out and try the TDI or even the regular one. It's pretty torque. My local dealer does b2b for 2 years and drive train for 100k miles when you buy a CPO VW from them.
The Pontiac has never not started. It's doing the typical GM stuff falling off bit. The fuel sender quit, the rack and oil pan started to leak, and it's in shift adaptive. It's only been stranded once, when the plastic cooling elbows split. They are metal now. I should also mention it has 150,000 miles on it.
I drove the 3rd Gen Prius. It was peppy from a start, but an absolute dog at merging onto a freeway. The fuel economy game was fun to play.
Volt is definitely on the radar, but up here they seem to he worth a premium. That said, we have two friends with them that love them.
Mazda3 is too small, as is an Impreza/WRX. The car seats push the front seats all the way forward. CX-5 might be a good option if we're forced into SUV land.
The C-Max has a very inefficient interior and gets non-hybrid mileage in the real world. We'd be better off with another Mazda5.
I'd call a no-start at 45k miles unreliable... SWMBO said no diesels anyway.
Escape Hybrid? + a 2-4" drop?
Is the Volt hatch area big enough?
In reply to ProDarwin:
I like that idea, too bad the escapes are piles of rolling dung.
Javelin wrote: I'd call a no-start at 45k miles unreliable...
Geez, then I'd hate to hear what you would say about my old Ranger that had to be taken into the dealer 4 times over brakes and wonky handling under braking before 15k miles...
I figure my no-start was from where I had parked for the day and either froze the IC solid, probable but unlikely, or gelled fuel in the filter, along with an ice cold battery. It was a cold blustery day pointed into the wind on top of the parking garage in the middle of winter.
No mass produced project will be perfect or work perfectly for everybody every time. Just all leads to how much bullE36 M3 you will put up with over its lifespan. So far, I feel I am ahead of the curve....
As to the original question, might as well either live with "bad" MPG or no room. I'm currently living with a '12 'Burb that gets 19mpg. MPG was the sacrifice because what you want doesn't exist unless you build it yourself. I've looked.
How is the backseat of the latest Fit?
Chevy Volt
wagon + torque!
You didn't name a price, so Tesla S.
You won't get the mpgs, but as a wild hair idea, did they offer the HHR SS in auto? I've got a cloth 5 speed in base LS trim. Tons of cargo room, decent interior, carries 5. Fuel mileage is right at 28-30mpg mostly highway (with some heavy Atlanta traffic in that mix).
CTS-V wagon.
Or just get the Prius and drive it like she stole it.
I'm going to pile on and say Volt. Put the shifter in L, select Sport, and drive around for a bit. Particularly, try burying the accelerator from a stop.
If you have sporting intentions, know that traction and stability defeat didn't arrive until 2012.
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