Requirements:

New
7 seater so yeah to minivan or SUV
Cheap, she doesn't care about gadgets. Power locks are a must and I'll explain why.

This vehicle will be used eventually to lug my to-be-born child and my nephew and to-be-born brother. Plus parents but I realize an 8 seater is out of the question unless we get a van. She'd get a van too because she has experience driving these also.

So far the competitors are a Dodge Caravan (not Grand) that with rebates and all that pricing stuff is like $16k. The only other 7 seaters in that range I know of are the Highlander and XL-7 but are like low $20k's. Any suggesstions.

 

How much does she have available to spend? There's not really too much in the way of 7 seaters, especially for those prices. Too bad Hyundai doesn't make a minivan.

 

Payments can't be too high. If you know of stuff that's discounted or whatever even if it's low 20's let me know.

 

Kia Sedona?

 

kia, its cheap

 

First... do you like your mother-in-law?

 

honda odyssey, toyota sienna, honda pilot, subaru b9 tribeca

 

See if you can get a deal on a leftover 05 Honda Odyssey LX. It comes with:

• Power-Assisted Ventilated Front Disc/Solid Rear Disc Brakes
• Front Side Airbags with Passenger-Side Occupant Position Detection System (OPDS)
• Three-Row Side Curtain Airbags with Rollover Sensor
• Advanced Compatibility Engineering (ACE) body structure
• Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
• Electronic Brake Distribution (EBD)
• Vehicle Stability Assist (VSA®) with traction control
• Brake assist
• Manual sliding doors
• Air conditioning (manual, front and rear)
• Power windows with auto-up/down driver's window (front and 2nd-row)
• Electronic cruise control
• Retractable center tray table with bag hooks (4 total)
• Map lights (all rows)
• 15 beverage holders
• In-floor storage (2nd-row)
• One-motion 60/40 split 3rd-row Magic Seat
• 120-watt AM/FM/CD audio system with 4 speakers
• Maintenance minder system

The 2006 is $25345, but you can probably get a 2005 for a lot less than that. The EX and EX-L are flying off the lots, but the LX doesn't sell very well. I'm guessing you can pick one up for $22-23k.

 

Yes I like her.

I wouldn't buy another Honda V6. She has to keep this car forever. I'll check out the Kia though and the other suggestions.

 

Dodge Caravans can be ok, I'd get an extended warranty on it though if she plans on keeping it for a while.

 

What about a Mazda MPV?

Or I bet you can get an Aztec pretty cheap.

 

Anything domestic. I'd pick any of them over the Kia...look at the mpg rating for that thing.

 

How about a new Mazda5, fully loaded they top out at $22.5K.

Looks pretty damn nice, and will likely out handle any other minivan out there.









A minivan with a manual tranny!









More pics here: http://www.japanesecarfans.com/manuf...anufacturer=38

 

Second the Odyssey. The LX model is a great deal. With all the safety features and as what youngTL said about the price, it's better than any of the domestic makes. Honda also has the 6/60 powertrain for the '06 models, so it's not bad at all.

...But I can be just a tad bit bias. We own an '05 EX-L.

 

Wow that 5 is hot. Is it out yet? The purchase will be soon.

Once again I'm not buying/recommending another Honda auto V6 so no mentions of the Odysseys please.

 

That Mazda5 looks amazing! Such a well laid out interior and such a reasonable price. And it's not a full-size minivan so it won't be bad on gas at all. Anyone have any stats for that thing?

 

heres the canadian model, looks a bit different but still a good choice

2006 Mazda5 Specifications

Engine

Type 2.3L DOHC 16-valve I4
Displacement 2260 cc
Bore and stroke 87.5 x 94.0 mm
Compression ratio 9.7 : 1
Horsepower SAE net 157 @ 6500 RPM
Torque, SAE net lb-ft 148 @ 4500 RPM
Fuel system Electronic Fuel Injection (EFI)
Recommended fuel Regular (Unleaded)

Drivetrain

Type Transverse front engine / front-wheel drive
Clutch type Single Dry Plate with Diaphragm Spring (Except AT)
Transmission 5-speed manual
Optional: 4-speed Sport mode AT with overdrive
Transmission Gear ratios: 5MT 4 AT Sport
1st 3.307 2.816
2nd 1.842 1.553
3rd 1.310 1.000
4th 0.970 0.695
5th 0.755 N/A
Reverse 3.166 2.279
Final drive 4.388 4.416

Electrical System

Type 12 Volt
Battery 80D26L
Alternator 12 Volt - 90 amp
Starter 1.4kW
Ignition system Breakerless electronic

Chassis

Frame Unit body (Monocoque) with side door impact
protection beams and Triple “H” construction
Front suspension Independent, strut type, coil springs, stabilizer bar
Rear suspension Independent, Multi-Link Type, Coil Springs, Stabilizer Bar
Shock absorbers Telescopic-type, double acting
Steering Rack and pinion with Electro Hydraulic Power Assist Steering
Steering ratio 16.2:1
Steering wheel turns 2.9 (lock to lock)
Min. turning circle 10.6m (curb-to-curb)
Brakes Power-assisted front (ventilated) and rear (solid) disc brakes
Anti-lock Braking System with Electronic Brake Force Distribution (EBD)
Wheels 16" alloy wheels (GS)
17" alloy wheels (GT)
Tires 205/55R16 all-season tires (GS)
205/50R17 all-season tires (GT)
Curb weight 1,512 kg (MT)
1,538 kg (AT)

Capacities

Seating 6
Washer fluid tank 4L
Fuel tank 60L
Crankcase 3.9L
Coolant capacity 7.0L

External Dimensions (mm)

Wheelbase 2,750
Track (fr/rr) 1,530 / 1,515
Overall length 4,610
Overall width 1,755
Overall height 1,630
Ground clearance 150

Internal Dimensions

Headroom (fr/rr/3rd) 1033 mm/1000 mm/942 mm (w/o Moonroof)
988 mm/995 mm/942 mm (w/ Moonroof)
Legroom (fr/rr/3rd) 1,035 mm/893 mm/780 mm
Shoulder room (fr/rr/3rd) 1,410 mm/1,411 mm/1,250 mm
EPA
Passenger volume 2767.5 L
Cargo volume with 3rd seat folded 1256.4 L
Total Interior volume 4023.9 L

Fuel Economy Ratings

5MT 4AT Sport
City 10.6L/ 100km 11.2L/ 100km
Highway 8.0L/ 100km 8.3L/ 100km

Estimated Performance Data

Top Speed (km/h) 5MT:192
4AT Sport:189
Weight distribution % (fr/rr) 55.6/44.4 (MT)
56.4/43.6 (AT)
Coefficient of drag (Cd) 0.31
Bumpers, fr/rr crash test 8 km/h

 

... I'd recommend the Chrysler Pacifica, but it seems like it's slightly out of the price range. I don't think they're selling well though, so maybe you could get one at a seriously discounted price.

 

My friend got one for a lease. The price was $24k though.

 

Yea they are out already you can see if your local Mazda dealer has them in stock here to check one out in person, I think they look pretty cool for a van and very reasonably priced for what you get.

 

The Mazda5 is great on gas. I expect she will like that.

 

Dude that 5 is badass. The interior features alone sells me. I think I'm going to get that for my next car. I got a family so it'll be great. The only thing is since it's brand new good luck getting it under MSRP. I've seen offers of $14k for a Sedona and $13k for a Caravan. I'm leaning for her to get the Kia due to the monster warranty.

 

The mazda 5 looks like a great station wagon for the price... They don't call 'em station wagons anymore, do they

 

Okay I'm sore as hell. Yesterday we went to many dealerships. Well we first went to Kia. The $13,900 special in the paper wasn't in this week's so I had little negotiating power. They had an online special for $14,900 but they only wanted to use the older inventory and the only one left was beige. The current ones they wanted like $18k. We asked if they could do better and they said no. Adios. The Kia itself drove like shit. Pickup was ok because of the 5AT but this thing felt like it wanted to tip over. We were all nervous as hell when she drove. Not even because of her skills because for her work sometimes she drives a full cargo van. Just an unstable car. Mind you we were in the parking lot only.

We went to a Dodge dealer after. What a POS the entry Caravan is. Not only is it cheap looking it had power nothing. If you wanted power you had to move up to the SXT. They wanted like $18k for it even with the V6 but for that she'd rather have the cheaper, better warranty Kia.

We went to a Mazda dealer then. Everyone fell in love with the 5. My mother-in-law, my sister-in-law, even her 2 yr old had fun in there. My wife hated it. She wants a van/SUV higher off the ground Well obviously they wouldn't go under MSRP and were willing to cut out $400 since we didn't care for the 6cd changer. That's like $19000 and out of her range. The 5 is very roomy. Feet fit great in all seats. Nice ergonomics. Nothing felt cheap. A very nice car. We didn't drive it though since it was too pricey for her. They had a 04 MPV for $15,400. But of course the thing had 40k miles.

So we were in a slump and decided to hit another Kia dealer. On the way there is a Toyota dealer where she bought a Camry like 10 yrs ago. We told her the Toyotas are way too much and that even the used ones were pricey. She said let's go anyways. Of course Siennas and Highlanders used were in the $20's. But then there was an 05 MPV with 12k miles. The salesmen said it was in the $16-17k range. Holy shit. We tested it, she loved it, and then we talked turkey. Oops. It was $19,900. We said hell no. She went back and talked to her manager and got it down to $19k. Still too high. The TTT price was like $20k and change. We said $18k TTT. He got us down to $19k TTT which meant a price of $17,500. DEAL!!!

05 MPV. 11,900 miles. 3.5 V6. 5AT. 16" alloys. Steering wheel controls. Rear A/C. I got to drive it home and that thing drives nice. The tranny does a little searching but she has plenty of time to train her ECU. 4yr/50k warranty. I say not bad considering it's practically new and this year's model.

 

Good to hear you found something you like...

I was going to say, if you were so worried about Honda's reliability, why in the world were you even considering a Caravan?? Those things are shit. My family has had FOUR in a row and they never go past 50K miles without major problems...

Good choice!

 

Why do they keep buying them then?