Author Topic: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4  (Read 3292 times)

mdjohnson18

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Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« on: February 15, 2018, 12:26:34 PM »
Hello,

I'm interested in vehicle suggestions for a family of four (2 adults and 2 kids (7 and 9 years old)).  We live in New England and I have to drive up a big hill every morning to get to work so 4 wheel drive is a must.  Also, where is the best place to find these used vehicles?  We live in Massachusetts.  Thanks

ketchup

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #1 on: February 15, 2018, 12:53:20 PM »
Does this "big hill" have a paved road on it?  Why are you assuming it requires 4WD?

moof

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #2 on: February 15, 2018, 01:54:26 PM »
Buy snow tires for winter.  It will cost you roughly $1k with rims and you'll blow by stuck 4x4's with all-season tires.

If you can't get up the hill safely with snow tires on a FWD, then you should not be out in those conditions.

mdjohnson18

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #3 on: February 15, 2018, 02:04:53 PM »
Ketchup/Moof,

I guess I didn't realize that was an option.  There are four of us now but we are in the process of trying for a third child.  If 5, what type of vehicle would you suggest?  Thanks

dd564

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #4 on: February 18, 2018, 11:24:43 AM »
I'd recommend an SUV or 4 door pickup with 4 wheel drive.
Shop around to find your best deal.  I recently bought an SUV that I purchased 4 states away to save about $4,000.

I buy brand new and keep for 10-15 years.  That way I know the history of the vehicle.  (Know if the vehicle had oil changes constantly, or if there were any periods where the car maybe ran long periods with low oil.

I'd stick with Honda or Toyota

innkeeper77

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #5 on: February 18, 2018, 11:34:15 AM »
If 4WD is a must, I would get a cheaper used Subaru and throw some snow tires on it. BUT- our FWD Civic (with snow tires) greatly outperforms our AWD Subaru (with all season on it) when it snows. And the subaru even has a limited slip rear differential! (We are in the Denver area where it doesn't snow much. We don't bother with snow tires, but they came with the used civic we bought) - The Subaru will eventually be replaced with something more sensible. Snow tires make a huge difference, and are far far cheaper than keeping an AWD beast running. (Caveat- I have never driven a modern vehicle with traction control in snow- that may help as well)

A AWD Subaru with snow tires would be nearly unstoppable compared to most other commuting vehicles. Don't feel like you actually need a truck or SUV. (You may need to put some ballast in the back though- my subaru needed that when I lived in the midwest)

sokoloff

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #6 on: February 18, 2018, 11:43:27 AM »
DW is very happy with the 2005 CR-V I found for her on Craigslist, though I’ll warn that was a long slog through a bunch of BS before we found it. Lots of noise there; different type of noise with dealerships.

As the family wrench-turner, I also like it. Oil changes, brakes once, wipers, a couple headlamp bulbs, and a serpentine belt and tensioner over 6.5 years. It’s due for a valve adjustment and power steering pump. All-in, that’s probably $600-$700 in parts and a small amount of easy labor. Add $500 in decent all-season M&S tires and it handles all the Massachusetts snow that you probably ought to be out in. It’s not as rowdy and ready for snow as my old Jeep ZJ, but is way more reliable and economical to run.

I’d go small Japanese crossover SUV. We’re very happy with ours. Worry more about rust than miles, IMO. We bought ours with ~160K on it, has almost 200K on it and I bet New England tinworm will kill it before anything mechanical.

tyrannostache

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #7 on: February 20, 2018, 04:39:59 PM »
I'm jumping on to this thread, as I'm in a very similar situation. We're a family of 4 that includes 1 baby and 1 elementary school kid. We have 2 very old cars, and one needs to be replaced soon.

We currently have just $3k in our car replacement fund, and we'll start funneling more money into it this year.

We need something that is good in snow, and I don't necessarily mean AWD. We live in a small, hilly town with a serious snow removal problem--roads are frequently glare ice with potholes for 2-4 months of the year, plow piles get tamped down and solidified at many intersections. We use studded snows all winter. So, we need something that can handle snow (unlike, for example, my bro's Matrix, which was a total dog even with good snow tires). We've been driving a subaru outback (which I love) and a Mazda Protege (which has been a little workhorse, and does OK)

I'm fantasizing about a used Prius or a Sienna. Any thoughts on either of those? I want to have a pretty narrow list before we get started on shopping. Since we live in a smallish town in an incredibly rural state, used cars of all kinds--especially Priuses--are in short supply, and we don't have time to be driving all over tarnation to check out used cars from Craigslist. We'll either have to do a shopping excursion to the nearest city (6+ hours away) or use a local car-buying service.


Just Joe

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #8 on: March 21, 2018, 12:08:10 PM »
We went with CarMax last time we bought a vehicle. Vehicle has been perfect for over a year, was 100% like new inside and out. No price negotiation. Their price was $5K-$6K cheaper than the dealers wanted to start negotiating at. Plus I'd need to drive all over our state to do said negotiating. I'm not negotiating over the phone or email for a car I have not seen.

Went to CarMax one evening (after finding what I wanted on their webpage), drove the car and had zero pressure from the sales associate. He got paid regardless of whether I bought it or not.

We liked it and made plans to return with a cashier's check the following night.

~45 mins first night, ~45 mins the second night. Good short term warranty. Could have purchased longer term warranty from them or our bank (I think) or our insurance agent (I think). Did not do so.

Benefits of CarMax and their cousins is there are many different brands on the lot at any given time to choose from. I'm well educated about cars so I know what I want and seldom need to look at a dozen different cars to make a decision. I did ALOT of research online before I ever went shopping so that I knew the differences between the three year old examples and the five year old examples. Any brand has generations of vehicles and the newer generation may not meet your needs as much as the next older generation.

Use CarFax details provided by CarMax to see that the car had never been wrecked, was a former lease vehicle, one owner, what state it was used in, etc. CarMax also allowed me to walk under it on the lift so I could inspect it from below to look for body repairs, rust, leaks, etc. I took my trusty flashlight with me for that. I'm an engineer and been a DIY mechanic for ~40 years.

Easiest transaction I ever did. Years ago we bought a car from a traditional dealer and everything that could have been difficult was difficult. Lies, cheats and so forth. Car was good, dealer experience was not.

Shop carefully. The car we bought was perfect inside and out. Its twin right next to it was similar in age and miles but the interior and exterior had a hundred tiny scratches or imperfections. Looked like they had hauled dogs or kids who just picked at stuff. All the plastics were scratched up inside. We try to have one daily driver car and one nice travel car. Daily driver car is ancient now but reliable. Mostly we carpool but often enough to justify the second car, we need to go in separate directions for work or play.

Just Joe

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #9 on: March 21, 2018, 12:14:28 PM »
Oh forgot - look at a used Honda CRV, Honda HRV, Acura RDX or Acura MDX. All can be had with AWD or FWD. All durable in my experience. More versatile than a car if you have a small trailer or expect to need something larger in the next decade.

We keep cars forever. We took a family trip 3-4 hours away in a smallish car and our teens have just outgrown the backseat. It was time for something larger/quieter/more comfortable/newer. Plenty of mid-size cars will get the job done.

One friend swears by their plugin hybrid Ford Fusion. Runs around town in all-electric mode. Another swears by their Chevy Bolt BEV. Another swears by their Dodge minivans - they've owned a string of them purchased with north of 100K miles for cheap. Drives them 75K-100K miles and sells them. Have friends who buys Prius - they've owned about three of them. RAV4 is a popular one with another friend.

Plenty of large vehicle enthusiasts too but I won't recommend them. 

Just Joe

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Re: Best Used Cars for a Family of 4
« Reply #10 on: March 21, 2018, 09:12:50 PM »
Also Ford C-Max hybrid. A friend seems to have fallen in love with their's. Its a little people hauler somewhere between a car and a minivan.