Help my friend decide on a compact SUV/Crossover. He's deciding between the Rogue, Rav 4, CR-V, and Tribute. I told him to drop the Tribute and consider the Tiguan. He doesn't want to spend too much.

 

Rav-4 or CR-V.

can't go wrong with either.

personally, I would talk your friend out from getting a SUV..

 

I told him to get a Mazda 3speed.

 

I drove a fully loaded CR-V today and thought it was great. Relatively flat through the corners and good steering feel. The interior was a nice place to be and the experience is worlds better than the last one I drove about 5 years ago.

 

Saw the Tiguan at my local VW dealer about 3 weeks ago. That thing is all cheap looking inside. Fugly IMO.

 

I own an 08' CR-V EX-L AWD w/Nav and highly recommend it. I've got about 5k miles on it and just took it on a 7 hour trip and I love it. Good space for a compact suv, drives very nicely, and the interior is the best in its class imho. Its small dimensions make it easy to park (not to mention the backup camera). It gets decent gas mileage (about 23mpg), and handles pretty well in light offroad situations (mud & snow).

 

holy fully loaded CR-V

nice.

 

Nissan Rogue

 

hmmm.... motor trend had this exact compo. in my last issue. ranking was (if i remember correctly...)

rav-4<Tiguan<Rogue<cr-v<Forester.

pretty sure thats how it went

rav was "lifeless," forester was sportier, nice interior and quiet.

to each his own i guess

 

^^^

The Rogues are my favorite out of the list. But personally unless I really need a compact SUV for some strange reason, I would just go with a large sedan.

 

CRV

 

^that's just like mine. Nighthawk Black Pearl w/ tan interior. The reason my wife and I chose a crossover instead of a sedan is because we have a dog that we take to a lot of places. When we have kids, we want a separate place for the dog and kids to sit. Plus, my wife doesn't like wagons.

 

Though I am more of a Nissan guy than Honda, I would get the CR-V over the Rogue. I am just not a fan of the QR25DE motor.

 

haven't driven the rogue nor the CR-V, but i did have a RAV4 for 3 weeks while my car was in the shop.

it is what it is.

but if you can convince him to get a speed3:

otherwise, i think the CR-V looks good inside and out.

 

I came across this:

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...n/results.html

1. Subaru Forester
2. Nissan Rogue
3. Honda CR-V
4. Saturn VUE
5. Toyota Rav4

I'll try to talk him into a Speed3.

 

thats what it was.

i typed it all out like rav<vue, etc and i dunno what happened to it

lol but yea, thats how it went.... to say the least i was surprised

 

how about the rdx?

 

from your orginal list... I'd go with the CR-V, but if you're going to throw in MazdaSpeed3 in the mix... than that's a whole different story

 

How about the Mazda CX7 or CX9? Doesn't the CX-7 share a lot of the same powertrain as the speed3? and I've heard it has gotten good reviews.

Not having driven either, I think it would be a tough choice between the CR-V and the CX-7, although the forrester XT would also be very interesting.

I'm also assuming the RDX is out of his budget.
I think the rouge and the EX35 have to be some of the ugliest cars released recently. I would rather go with the murano, although I don't think that's the best looking car either.

 

I would also get the CRV. It looks great!

 

I love the Rogue.

 

if the CX-7 is in the equation, i'd take that in a heartbeat over the original options.

 

Mazda 3 - 5door

 

He's shopping in the 22K max range so some of the choices are out of the question. He hasn't really made up his mind yet.

 

CR-V then...

 

CR-V is a fantastic car. I have a friend who has one. I like riding in it a lot.

I might look at the new forester as well.

 

opps, nevermind... the post above was deleted for some reason

 

I have actually been working with VW to help spread the word about the Tiguan and would be happy to answer any questions you may have. Feel free to email me at: shawn@M80im.com. It's a fantastic crossover and I think your friend would be really happy with it.

 

^:ibtheban:

 

you cant get a tiguan for 22k

 

outlander, rogue, ex35, or forester. i'm sick of honda/acura. cr-v is underpowered and the rdx just sips gas too much for that 4 cyl, even if it is turbo.

 

I would say the CR-V is underpowered only when you're drag racing. Getting up to speed with traffic requires a lead foot, but I never felt it to be like my old Civic, which made more noise than movement when you floored it.

 

I really wanted to like the CR-V, but it just didn't have the power. I was surprised, because the same 2.4L engine works great in my Accord. I guess the extra weight saps the power, it sure felt like it struggled to merge onto the freeway and go up hills, and that was with only 2 people in the car.

You can get a Mitsubishi Outlander with a 3.0L V6 and 6 speed AT for under $22,000, he should really go check one out. 10 year powertrain warranty, 5 years bumper-to-bumper.

 

is he open to the used market? I've heard with the gas crunch used SUV and truck prices have been tumbling.

I'm not sure if that is just here, or all over the country, but either way, and gently used car would really stretch his 22k.