Need car for snow trip recommendation

[gameson]

Looking for a car that is going to be driven daily AND occasional snowboarding trip.

Criteria in order of importance
1. good gas milage
2. factory (std or opt) HID AND leather seats (can't do cloth as I get static all the time. It can be leatheratte or anything, just not cloth. I hate static zip)
3. Prefer 6 cyc, but can do with 4 cyc if it improves gas milage
4. Price is cheap (< US$30k)

I was looking for RAV4 V6 but the Limited trim one doesn't come with HID. I want HID as I can't look very well at night. That's why my Elise is equipped with ecological HID.

Car can be used or new as long as it fits the budget.

Please help.

Thanks.

[kestrel74]

I absolutely LOVE my 03 Golf TDI...... avg 47-50 mpg in town and 62 on the highway. hatchback & you can take the back seats out for TONS of room ( I've had 12 4x4x8' posts in there and closed the hatch ! ) you can live without the HID's...and you can mod the seats or get leather. Oh...and snow.........umm......it's a VW.

[25psi_Elise_Killer]

I prefer not to have a SUV since bigger/heavier cars take longer to slow down in icy conditions, so i'd get a subbie wagon or Audi A4 Avant wagon.

I drove many times as passenger in my friends A4 Avant wagon and has plenty of room for 4 adults+gear if you have a roofrack.
Audi of America > See All Models > Audi A4 > A4 Avant

Or if you need something with more umph, get an Evo

[JWA]

If you work a hard bargain you can do a new '08 STI for $32K. Pretty hard to beat for that usage.

The VW Tiguan's are also just hitting dealers and are quite nice. Lots of clever design. The rear seats slide forward and back ~10" so you can decide how much space to allocate to cargo and legroom. They also recline. The panorama sunroof is cool too.

[NMRJock]

If gas mileage is at the top of your list you can't go wrong with a TDI. You can get leather, and with snow tires they're extremely good in the snow.

[cstetter]

My Audi Allroad is an awesome all-weather vehicle. Great in the snow. Gas mileage is only so-so but that is the case for most cars with permanent AWD.

You can get them really cheap.

[AnsisK]

A4 or a well done-up Legacy/Outback. Neither are stellar on the milage, but satisfy every other category. Car enough to have fun most of the time, utility enough to get to the hill and back with all your belongings, especially board. I would never ever get to snowboarding on the salty grimey roads with my shredpiece on the roof (take a look at how many thousands of Subarus are owned in Vermont. I can't remember the numbers, but it's ridiculously high).

[esoteric]

WRX wagon or the Saab version/same chassis is my recommendation.

[gameson]

Originally Posted by kestrel74

I absolutely LOVE my 03 Golf TDI...... avg 47-50 mpg in town and 62 on the highway. hatchback & you can take the back seats out for TONS of room ( I've had 12 4x4x8' posts in there and closed the hatch ! ) you can live without the HID's...and you can mod the seats or get leather. Oh...and snow.........umm......it's a VW.

I dont want to mod anything. I want it to be stock, don't have time to mod. leather is also easier to clean + no static shock. It doesnt have to be leather, fake leather (leatheratte) is also OK.

Gas mileage minimum is 25 mpg city drive.

How good is A4?

[NMRJock]

Originally Posted by gameson

I dont want to mod anything. I want it to be stock, don't have time to mod. leather is also easier to clean + no static shock. It doesnt have to be leather, fake leather (leatheratte) is also OK.

Gas mileage minimum is 25 mpg city drive.

How good is A4?

You can get the TDIs with leather. My '01.5 A4 1.8T Quattro got low 20's city and high 20's highway. Probably not quite 25.

[GregD]

Originally Posted by gameson

Looking for a car that is going to be driven daily AND occasional snowboarding trip.

Criteria in order of importance
1. good gas milage
2. factory (std or opt) HID AND leather seats (can't do cloth as I get static all the time. It can be leatheratte or anything, just not cloth. I hate static zip)
3. Prefer 6 cyc, but can do with 4 cyc if it improves gas milage
4. Price is cheap (< US$30k)

I was looking for RAV4 V6 but the Limited trim one doesn't come with HID. I want HID as I can't look very well at night. That's why my Elise is equipped with ecological HID.

Car can be used or new as long as it fits the budget.

Please help.

Thanks.

Originally Posted by gameson

Gas mileage minimum is 25 mpg city drive.

The RAV4 V6 is EPA city rated 19 mpg. If you really want 25 mpg city and 4 wheel drive, the only vehicle I can think of that meets that is a Ford Escape Hybrid and its clones from Mazda and Mercury but they don't come with HID. If you don't need 4 wheel drive, there are a few choices. You could get a Toyota Prius and put a roof rack on it for the snowboards; it meets all of your requirements, and gets the best gas mileage.

[GregD]

Originally Posted by gameson

I dont want to mod anything. I want it to be stock, don't have time to mod. leather is also easier to clean + no static shock. It doesnt have to be leather, fake leather (leatheratte) is also OK.

Gas mileage minimum is 25 mpg city drive.

How good is A4?

No A4 comes close to 25 MPG city.

[jallingt]

I vote Audi or VW with Quattro and a good set of snow tires, no studs. They are a bit heavier cars, heft is good. You mentioned getting good mileage...... can't have your cake and eat it too here. I live in Denver and work part-time ski school at Keystone so I "commute" a lot. I drive either a 1 -ton truck or Audi S4 to the ski hill. It is sooooo nice to have a heavy car when the roads get bad. I don't like studs B/C the road is not always covered with ice/snow, wet road and studs can get to be very bad quickly.

Biggest issue to getting around in winter driving conditions is tires, get good tires and keep them maintained!

Have fun..... use sunscreen.

[gameson]

Originally Posted by GregD

The RAV4 V6 is EPA city rated 19 mpg. If you really want 25 mpg city and 4 wheel drive, the only vehicle I can think of that meets that is a Ford Escape Hybrid and its clones from Mazda and Mercury but they don't come with HID. If you don't need 4 wheel drive, there are a few choices. You could get a Toyota Prius and put a roof rack on it for the snowboards; it meets all of your requirements, and gets the best gas mileage.

Yeah, for the RAV4, it's only 20 mpg city and 26 mpg hwy, but that's mini SUV. All the car recommended are passenger car i.e sedan, wagon, etc. I guess I should've relax it a bit, but still HID (for driving reason) and leather/leatherette (static and easier to clean vs cloth) is a must.

I can't find TDI in edmund in new car. Where does it fall in?

[kestrel74]

Think you'd have to put in VW and then the model type.... Jetta, Golf I'd stay away from the automatics... I had a 2000 Jetta TDI Automatic and it got crappy fuel mileage ( only about 48 highway and 38-40 city )

[wallabyguy]

Couple of suggestions from my lot........

CX-7 (leather, adjustable Xenons, stability control, traction control, etc on Grand Touring models). 6 speed auto trans.

Mazda3 Grand touring (avail leather, std xenons, stability control, traction control, etc and great gas mileage) or a Mazdaspeed3.

[perryeyges]

I've seen way too many RAV-4's upside down on the freeway(3) to even consider one. An evasive emergency maneuver at high speed and there is no recovery in most SUV's. Gas mileage is way less than you think as well.

The 2001 - 2002 Audi S4 Avant is THE ultimate ski vehicle. Just get a set of real snow tires and rock and roll!
Beaters can be found for 15K and super low mile examples as high as 25K. They are pretty hard to find, approx 1,200 in US.
Plenty of power stock. Can easily be built into a 450-500 hp monster.
Sticks are more fun of course and are priced higher than atomatic trans cars but are a better investment since they are even a little more rare. About 40% were stick.
Mileage on a ski trip should be in the 23-25mpg range. My all around MPG averages about 21.
The(especially the older) quattro system is unstoppable in snow and gives super traction in all severe weather. These cars are hard to break loose even in a downpour.
Two rows of seats, really only comfortable for 4 adults. Can seat 5 in a pinch though.
They don't handle as well in the dry as say an M-3 but they handle far superior to an SUV(except a Cayenne GTS with PDCC)!
Resale value is ROCK SOLID. You could probably sell the car three years down the road for about what you paid.
A friend of mine has one with the license plate "GRMN SUV" nice!

Another nice ski car is a 1995 S-6 Avant. Stick only, 3 rows of seating(up to 5 adults and 2 kids), even more rare(425 in US). I know of one available in the 15K range. Not as good a buy as the S4 though. Has even better quattro with diff-lock feature.

[wallabyguy]

these are great cars. get the turbos checked as they are problematic.

Originally Posted by perryeyges

I've seen way too many RAV-4's upside down on the freeway(3) to even consider one. An evasive emergency maneuver and there is no recovery in most SUV's. Gas mileage is way less than you think as well.

The 2001-1/2 and 2002 Audi S4 Avant is THE ultimate ski vehicle. Just get a set of real snow tires and rock and roll!
Beaters can be found for 15K and super low mile examples as high as 25K. They are pretty hard to find, approx 1,200 in US.
Plenty of power stock. Can easily be built into a 450-500 hp monster.
Sticks are more are priced higher than atomatic trans cars but are a better investment since they are even a little more rare.
Mileage on a ski trip should be in the 23-25mpg range. My all around MPG averages about 21.
The(especially the older) quattro system is unstoppable in snow and gives super traction in all severe weather. These cars are hard to break loose even in a downpour.
They don't handle as well in the dry as say an M-3 but they handle far superior to an SUV(except a Cayenne GTS with PDCC)!
Resale value is ROCK SOLID. You could probably sell the car three years down the road for about what you paid.

[NMRJock]

Originally Posted by gameson

I can't find TDI in edmund in new car. Where does it fall in?

The new cars are on their way. I'm on the waiting list () for the new TDI Jetta. The TDI Jetta Sportwagon looks extremely promising and they're going to be here a couple months after the sedans. I would expect to pay low to mid twenties for a TDI with enough options to get you by. Loaded up I think it will be mid to upper twenties. I hope that I have more details soon enough.

So you want a new car? My A4 suggestion was based on used.

The '06 TDI gets low 40's in the city and high 40's hwy, and they say that the new model will be better than that. The new 2.0 common-rail model will also have gobs more horsepower and torque than the 1.9 TDI and will be 50-state emissions legal.

[NMRJock]

Originally Posted by wallabyguy

these are great cars. get the turbos checked as they are problematic.

Not just the turbos. They also eat wheel bearings and control arms. The '01.5-02 S4 is cool, but they can turn into a real maintenance nightmare really quickly.