OT. Used SUVs for vacation home

[sfscott]

Looking to finalize an offer on a second home in the Utah mountains.

If we get the house,need to start thinking about a car to leave at the house. We are in CA and would likely be flying to the house on most occasions but certainly would be making trips back and forth to ferry stuff or for misc reasons.

My regular cars are leased new and are German, so I was figuring a used Tahoe/Suburban/Yukon would fit the bill. Holds a lot of gear, 4WD for snow and ubiquitous enough that repair and maintenance is easy and there’s ample supply to find some good deals. Also figured that being ‘Mercian, they would be amply powered vs Japanese options.

Not having bought a used car like this, wondering if people have ideas on how old is too old, how many miles is too many, differences among them and other dos and donts. Car will be in a garage most of the time but it needs to be reliable, have usual creature comforts like good A/c, heated seats and satellite radio. Primary uses are getting around, shopping/hauling stuff, drive to ski areas and airport runs.

I’ve had bad luck with Ford in the past.

[exapkib]

Plenty of people will have plenty of opinions on this one. My experience: a Toyota 4Runner of the right vintage is pretty hard to beat. What's the right vintage? Personal question, but I'd vote for a later 3rd generation 4Runner (pretty much 1999-2002).

[dustyrider]

Don't over think it.
Assuming you're not going to want to work on it yourself. Go to some local mechanics once you get there and see if they know of a car that could fit your needs. Mechanics like working on cars they've worked on before and they always know someone thinking of selling. Single owners with low miles will cost more, but I'd rather pay up than later.

I'm a Ford and Subaru guy. They all have their quirks; I just appreciate their's more than the rest. Whereabouts in Utah are you looking?

[gdw]

+1 for a 3rd generation 4Runner. They are very reliable low maintenance vehicles that can carry lots of gear over rough terrain.

[Ralph]

When I buy new....I look for vehicles that depreciate less than others.

When I buy used.....I look for vehicles that HAVE depreciated more than others. Why pay almost new prices for a used vehicle?

I assume you want a larger 4WD Ute for lots of people and stuff. And that fuel economy not a big deal. Tahoe's are great. So is the GMC version. So are Ford Expeditions, and other large SUV vehicles. I think they are all reliable if in good condition. Ones with fewer gadgets probably have fewer small problems....especially a vehicle that is not used for long periods.
For your use....I might also be open to idea of a 4 door full size pickup....with a cap over back for stuff....if you see one used. But that might not fit in a garage. A friend of mine bought a Gasoline V8 Dodge Ram 4 WD with a cap on it used, couple years ago with about 55,000 on it. Has 155,000 trouble free miles on it now (He drags an Air Stream around behind it) . Same story for Ford and Chevy pickups. Very reliable. Getting vehicle new enough to have tire pressure monitors probably a good idea for vehicle sitting a lot.

[Ken Robb]

My sister and her husband live in San Diego and have a second home at Lake Tahoe. They leave a 4 wd Suburban near the Reno Airport and use it as the OP would. I think it's one they drove for 150,000 miles here before putting into semi-retirement as a vacation vehicle. Now that their 7 "kids" are all adults they don't need such a big vehicle for everyday use but they got spoiled by all the room for people and "stuff".
As Ralph, pointed out, depreciation is the major expense for a newish vehicle so a 10 year-old Suburban will already have got about as cheap as it will get due to age. From this point on its price will be a result of its condition. For those of us used to the high cost of German parts GM parts will seem almost free.

[HenryA]

Toyota Sequoia, about a 2005 (old body style) with maybe 100,000 miles or so.

[xjoex]

I say buck the SUV trend! I leave a 69 beetle in my place in Moab. The bike is on the roof in case it breaks down.
P8180144 by Joe, on Flickr

But in all seriousness, I'd buy a used Subaru Forester.

Cheers,
-Joe

[carpediemracing]

budget?

[ripvanrando]

I'm a Toyota Land Cruiser guy but given the requirement for Sat radio, one presumes you are looking at newer used vehicles.

The Toyota Sequoia is based off the Tundra and with 5.7L and about 400 hp, it has plenty of power and lots of interior space. Put the right tires and with 4WD, you are good to go almost anywhere.

[54ny77]

How rural will you be? If the nearest mechanic is 20 miles away, and he only works on Chebbys and Fords, you don't want to be that guy who rolls up sporting Rapha gear with your carbon fiber rig tucked gently in the back of an X5, then riding home.

[gdw]

How many wives and children will you be transporting?

[54ny77]

Originally Posted by gdw

How many wives and children will you be transporting?

[azrider]

I was in market for "weekend truck" to go exploring and escape AZ heat and I landed on a '97 Montero from recommendation of buddy who is long time gearhead type a guy.

Mitsu 6G74 is super reliable and easy engine to work on. Plus the Montero platform stock from factory makes it more capable than most others in its class. Not many know these came standard with 9.5" axles Add the fact it's got locking front/rear diff's and this thing literally goes anywhere. All for under $4500.

Happy hunting!

[IMG][/IMG]

[tylercheung]

I am by no means an SUV but my early car choices were SUVs due to parental concerns re "safety":

Ford Explorer: 2002 vintage, underpowered, random glitches in braking(!), transmission, ignition


Toyota Highlander - 2006 (the vintage 2006 and before were built in Japan in Fukushima, the latest ones in Kentucky and are...different). Most reliable car I ever had!!! In 10 years, only things I had to spend on it were routine oil/fluids, tires, and a light bulb. No, it's not w/ razor sharp throttle responses like a BMW, but it made ample power for what it was worth (276 hp V-6), decent gas mileage for an SUV at the time (18 city/26 highway), and I could stuff 2, maybe 3 road bikes w/ the wheels off in the back! (Lexus had a version as well, i forget, RX300 or something like that, basically the same car w/ leather instead of cloth seats or something)