debate of what new car to buy - TriStateTuners.com :: Home of Tristate Auto Enthusiast

antlip · 09-10-2006, 12:21 AM

well in the next month i will be purchasing a new vehicle. it has been narrowed down to 3. the 2006 awd leather pontiac vibe, the 2007 honda crv all wheel drive (fully loaded what ever model it may be), and the 2007 jeep compass 5spd limited all wheel drive. i want something with all the options, leather, power and all things along them lines. all 3 of these get excellent gas mileage for a suv. its going to be for traveling to the mountains to snowboard. i will buy the hitch attachment for the snowboards and the trunk will have all our other gear and will still have 5 seats. so whats everyones opinion on these suvs, does anyone own one of these? just looking for some input to help me pick one. alittle info on the warrenties.

2007 hond 22/28 mpg auto
2006 vibe 26/31 mpg auto
2007 jeep compass 5spd 25/29 mpg

this might involve selling my 95 gsx auto 6 bolt swap. depending on how high the monthly payments are and if i will need to put down a downpayment to lower my monthly payments.

ToyotaTat · 09-10-2006, 12:27 AM

don't personally own any, but the vibe is a twin to the matrix ( at the least they share a chassis), yea pontiac and toyota have twin cars, crv's are no fun to drive and handle like **** but still its a honda so it still isnt a p.o.s., don't have anything to say about the compass except it looks pretty good although i've only seen the commercials, havnt seen any the road yet

Cypher · 09-10-2006, 12:36 AM

jeep!! jeeps are badass and are impossible to kill.

poolmike · 09-10-2006, 07:16 AM

You can't go wrong with a Honda for a daily driver.

antlip · 09-10-2006, 08:45 AM

thanks for the coments guys but does anyone actually own one or have drove them or rode in them? any mechanices in here that worked on these cars? i want to pick the one thats going to have the least amount of problems down the road.

i did test drive the jeep compass, super quiet ride i couldnt tell the thing was running when i was standing next to it. the ride was smooth. the car handled really well. but i got stuck test driving a auto stick one.

bastid · 09-10-2006, 10:45 AM

I had a Toyota Matrix for a few years when they first released them (2003). It saw the shop only for routine oil changes. 33,000 on the clock after 2 years and absolutely nothing went wrong.

elmer1987 · 09-10-2006, 11:32 AM

i dunno about that jeeps are hard to kill, i had a grandy for my first car and i loved it but it killed it self

james_ls · 09-10-2006, 01:38 PM

Honda...FTW.

WRX27 · 09-10-2006, 01:50 PM

My dad has a 2006 AWD Vibe and he likes it alot. Ive driven it and its nice. He didnt have any issues in the snow and he put a k&n in it and its got a nice little growl to it. I believe the motor is from a celica

smoger · 09-10-2006, 01:56 PM

the compass is nice,.. nice ride(yes ive ridden in one), probably cheaper than the honduh and roomier than the vibe.

if youve been researching then you know it has the new World engine developed by DCX/Mitsubishi/Hyundai so parts should be plentiful and cheap in the future

keep in mind though the compass is not "trail rated" so jeep doesnt really stand behind its off road ability. not to say it cant go offroad.. its probably as capable as the other 2 cars you listed, just not as capable as a typical jeep is.

ToyotaTat · 09-10-2006, 04:02 PM

i've drove and rode in a crv...nothing special

92dxman · 09-10-2006, 05:55 PM

The Compass drives alright but the interior is too overpowered by plastic and cheapness. The headrests in the front seat are simply awful also. That is one car I found it was more comfortable in the backseat than the front. It is kinda ugly too. I'd just go with the Dodge Caliber because it looks better.

The Vibe is a great car. My dad uses one as his courier vehicle and loves it. Only problem with the awd ones is that they lose some horsepower because of the exhaust setup and the awd setup with the 120 or so hp it does has is very sluggish. If you were to get one, just get a 2wd and slap some snow tires on it.

CRV's are nice and its a Honda but the 07s are really ugly. Its gonna be reliable till the cows come home but I just cant get past how ugly they got. I'd say an Element ftw but its a 4 seater and you need 5 seats. Also, not sure if you love or hate the styling of it.

Have you considered a Hyundai Tucson? You can get the awd with a stick and its not a half bad looking vehicle either. Very comfortable and practical on the inside also. The warranty and pricing are unbeatable also.

A Mazda Tribute can be had with a 5 speed and awd...
Suzuki is coming out with a vehicle in the next month or so called the SX4: http://www.suzukisx4.com/?ref=1 It has a 3 mode awd system and its going to start just under $15k.

lagos · 09-10-2006, 09:11 PM

my mom has an automatic toyota matrix awd. its a realiable car and awd works well in the snow. only downside is that it really lacks any type of performance. its just a slow daily driver thats good on gas. other then that, we have had it since 03. o2 sensor went bad and threw a CEL (common issue), then at 30k the radiator developed a leak. dealership wanted 700$ to replace it! lol ... i did it myself for 1-200 bucks (cost of new radiator).

BlackBulletTSi · 09-10-2006, 09:20 PM

agreed, I would suggest a caliber though there really nice have you maybe considered one of those. I drove one and liked it alot.

antlip · 09-10-2006, 09:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 92dxman

The Compass drives alright but the interior is too overpowered by plastic and cheapness. The headrests in the front seat are simply awful also. That is one car I found it was more comfortable in the backseat than the front. It is kinda ugly too. I'd just go with the Dodge Caliber because it looks better.

The Vibe is a great car. My dad uses one as his courier vehicle and loves it. Only problem with the awd ones is that they lose some horsepower because of the exhaust setup and the awd setup with the 120 or so hp it does has is very sluggish. If you were to get one, just get a 2wd and slap some snow tires on it.

CRV's are nice and its a Honda but the 07s are really ugly. Its gonna be reliable till the cows come home but I just cant get past how ugly they got. I'd say an Element ftw but its a 4 seater and you need 5 seats. Also, not sure if you love or hate the styling of it.

Have you considered a Hyundai Tucson? You can get the awd with a stick and its not a half bad looking vehicle either. Very comfortable and practical on the inside also. The warranty and pricing are unbeatable also.

A Mazda Tribute can be had with a 5 speed and awd...
Suzuki is coming out with a vehicle in the next month or so called the SX4: http://www.suzukisx4.com/?ref=1 It has a 3 mode awd system and its going to start just under $15k.

it defently has to be a awd or 4x4. im not going to settle for a fwd with snow tires. if im in the moutains and its snowing i want to have all 4 wheels going rather than just the front.

the suzuki is alittle no small and i just stopped lookn.

the tucson i looked at it but didnt really give it much thought. its only getting 21mpg city. its close to the honda but im not sure. i looked at it but its just not really jumping out at me.

i will have to test drive a vibe if its as sluggish as you say then it would be out of the picture. but on the other hand its the best by far on gas.
im still loving the vibe for that reason hopefully the awd isnt too sluggish.

in my opinion i dont think the new honda is ugly. i cant wait until they come out with pricing for them.

the element has no chance.

finaly the mazda. i did check it out but wasnt as high on mpg again. the vibes highway is 31 which is awesome for a awd. the jeep 29. im going to have to do more research on these that you mentioned, check out options on everything, warrenties, the whole 9 yards and see how big of a part mpg plays in.

anyone selling a really low mileage awd vibe?

antlip · 09-10-2006, 09:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lagos

my mom has an automatic toyota matrix awd. its a realiable car and awd works well in the snow. only downside is that it really lacks any type of performance. its just a slow daily driver thats good on gas. other then that, we have had it since 03. o2 sensor went bad and threw a CEL (common issue), then at 30k the radiator developed a leak. dealership wanted 700$ to replace it! lol ... i did it myself for 1-200 bucks (cost of new radiator).

didnt even know they came in awd. doestn show that on the website. but seems like too many problems with only 30k on the clock.

Cypher · 09-10-2006, 10:15 PM

check out the tucson. i love that lil thing. comes with the beta2 motor and 4wd i believe! that things kicks ass and you can't beat the warranty.

antlip · 09-10-2006, 11:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cypher

check out the tucson. i love that lil thing. comes with the beta2 motor and 4wd i believe! that things kicks ass and you can't beat the warranty.

only 19/24 mpg city highway. too low for me.

Cypher · 09-10-2006, 11:54 PM

you sure thats not the delta (2.7)?

antlip · 09-11-2006, 12:13 AM

the 2.0 is a stripped down base model. 5-speed manual (city/highway) 4WD 21/26. no leather, no sunroof, no heated front seats. cost 19,300 for 4x4 2.0.

09-10-2006, 12:21 AM	#1
antlip Tri-State Aficionado Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: jersey Member #1298 My Ride: 70 Chevelle iTrader: (0)	debate of what new car to buy well in the next month i will be purchasing a new vehicle. it has been narrowed down to 3. the 2006 awd leather pontiac vibe, the 2007 honda crv all wheel drive (fully loaded what ever model it may be), and the 2007 jeep compass 5spd limited all wheel drive. i want something with all the options, leather, power and all things along them lines. all 3 of these get excellent gas mileage for a suv. its going to be for traveling to the mountains to snowboard. i will buy the hitch attachment for the snowboards and the trunk will have all our other gear and will still have 5 seats. so whats everyones opinion on these suvs, does anyone own one of these? just looking for some input to help me pick one. alittle info on the warrenties. 2007 hond 22/28 mpg auto 2006 vibe 26/31 mpg auto 2007 jeep compass 5spd 25/29 mpg this might involve selling my 95 gsx auto 6 bolt swap. depending on how high the monthly payments are and if i will need to put down a downpayment to lower my monthly payments. Last edited by antlip; 09-10-2006 at 12:24 AM.

09-10-2006, 07:16 AM	#4
poolmike Tri-State Post Whore Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Richboro Member #543 My Ride: '68 Kaiser M715/ '37 Ford truck/'47 Dodge truck iTrader: (0)	You can't go wrong with a Honda for a daily driver. __________________ 2012 Honda Accord Touring 1968 Kaiser M715 FrankenJeep 1947 Dodge 1.5 Ton Resto-mod 1937 Ford pick-up 1950 Crosley Farm-o-Road

09-10-2006, 10:45 AM	#6
bastid Tri-State Addict Join Date: Apr 2006 Member #1732 My Ride: 2008 BMW M3 iTrader: (0)	I had a Toyota Matrix for a few years when they first released them (2003). It saw the shop only for routine oil changes. 33,000 on the clock after 2 years and absolutely nothing went wrong. __________________ *2008 BMW ///M3 Coupe: Alpine White on Extended Fox Red Novillo Leather Factory Options:* Premium Package : M-DCT : 19" Alloys : Technology Package : Bi-Xenon : Heated Seats : EDC : Premium Audio : iPod/USB Adapter Modifications: APE Performance S65B40 Air Filter : Fabspeed X-pipe : Remus Race Muffler

09-10-2006, 01:38 PM	#8
james_ls TST Ruined My Life! Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Warrington Member #1614 My Ride: 1998 Acura Integra LS//VTEC iTrader: (0)	Honda...FTW. __________________ *Heller Dope* - When the ** is doper than Hellen Keller; it's Heller Dope To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures. BUY MY STUFF!** To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures.

09-10-2006, 01:50 PM	#9
WRX27 Tri-State Post Whore Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Work Member #363 My Ride: 2004 Subaru WRX Sedan iTrader: (0)	My dad has a 2006 AWD Vibe and he likes it alot. Ive driven it and its nice. He didnt have any issues in the snow and he put a k&n in it and its got a nice little growl to it. I believe the motor is from a celica __________________ You could grow old during the V8's turbo lag, but then the twin blowers wake up with the fireworks of a thousand Guy Fawkes nights - Top Gear on the Ferrari F40 Robert Esche: Needs 14 rebounds to pass Charles Barkley for 3rd place on the Sixers All Time Rebounds list

09-10-2006, 08:45 AM	#5
antlip Tri-State Aficionado Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: jersey Member #1298 My Ride: 70 Chevelle iTrader: (0)	thanks for the coments guys but does anyone actually own one or have drove them or rode in them? any mechanices in here that worked on these cars? i want to pick the one thats going to have the least amount of problems down the road. i did test drive the jeep compass, super quiet ride i couldnt tell the thing was running when i was standing next to it. the ride was smooth. the car handled really well. but i got stuck test driving a auto stick one.

09-10-2006, 11:32 AM	#7
elmer1987 Tri-State Addict Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Pottstown,PA Member #2424 My Ride: 13 Mazdaspeed 3 iTrader: (0)	i dunno about that jeeps are hard to kill, i had a grandy for my first car and i loved it but it killed it self

09-10-2006, 01:56 PM	#10
smoger Tri-State Post Whore Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: philly Member #64 iTrader: (1)	the compass is nice,.. nice ride(yes ive ridden in one), probably cheaper than the honduh and roomier than the vibe. if youve been researching then you know it has the new World engine developed by DCX/Mitsubishi/Hyundai so parts should be plentiful and cheap in the future keep in mind though the compass is not "trail rated" so jeep doesnt really stand behind its off road ability. not to say it cant go offroad.. its probably as capable as the other 2 cars you listed, just not as capable as a typical jeep is. __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures. , To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures. \| 2000 Black Acura 3.2TL To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures. .. all car enthusiasts are welcome

09-10-2006, 05:55 PM	#12
92dxman Tri-State Addict Join Date: May 2005 Location: Lansdale, PA Member #470 My Ride: 10 Mazda 5. iTrader: (0)	The Compass drives alright but the interior is too overpowered by plastic and cheapness. The headrests in the front seat are simply awful also. That is one car I found it was more comfortable in the backseat than the front. It is kinda ugly too. I'd just go with the Dodge Caliber because it looks better. The Vibe is a great car. My dad uses one as his courier vehicle and loves it. Only problem with the awd ones is that they lose some horsepower because of the exhaust setup and the awd setup with the 120 or so hp it does has is very sluggish. If you were to get one, just get a 2wd and slap some snow tires on it. CRV's are nice and its a Honda but the 07s are really ugly. Its gonna be reliable till the cows come home but I just cant get past how ugly they got. I'd say an Element ftw but its a 4 seater and you need 5 seats. Also, not sure if you love or hate the styling of it. Have you considered a Hyundai Tucson? You can get the awd with a stick and its not a half bad looking vehicle either. Very comfortable and practical on the inside also. The warranty and pricing are unbeatable also. A Mazda Tribute can be had with a 5 speed and awd... Suzuki is coming out with a vehicle in the next month or so called the SX4: http://www.suzukisx4.com/?ref=1 It has a 3 mode awd system and its going to start just under $15k.

09-10-2006, 09:11 PM	#13
lagos Tri-State Post Whore Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Philadelphia, PA Member #989 My Ride: Toyota Celica GT-Two iTrader: (0)	my mom has an automatic toyota matrix awd. its a realiable car and awd works well in the snow. only downside is that it really lacks any type of performance. its just a slow daily driver thats good on gas. other then that, we have had it since 03. o2 sensor went bad and threw a CEL (common issue), then at 30k the radiator developed a leak. dealership wanted 700$ to replace it! lol ... i did it myself for 1-200 bucks (cost of new radiator). __________________ To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures. The accelerator on my toyota has always been stuck to the floor.. To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures.

09-10-2006, 09:20 PM	#14
BlackBulletTSi Tri-State Post Whore Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: L~Town Member #224 My Ride: 99 Eclipse GSX iTrader: (3)	agreed, I would suggest a caliber though there really nice have you maybe considered one of those. I drove one and liked it alot. __________________ Check my music out at To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures. Recently joined record label Strike Division, new tracks to come soon. New DJ community being built, To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 signatures. COMING SOON!!

09-11-2006, 12:13 AM	#20
antlip Tri-State Aficionado Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: jersey Member #1298 My Ride: 70 Chevelle iTrader: (0)	the 2.0 is a stripped down base model. 5-speed manual (city/highway) 4WD 21/26. no leather, no sunroof, no heated front seats. cost 19,300 for 4x4 2.0.

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