Four
Quality Used SUVs
by Kyle Busch
Get
Kyle's Book from Amazon.com Here!
It
is nearing the time when many people look to buy
sport-utility vehicles. Who can blame them? Today's
SUVs are not only reliable and refined enough to provide
a slow paced fall drive but they also have the ability
to tackle winter weather at its worst.
The cost of new SUVs are expensive. However, there are
several used SUVs that you might want to consider. The
following vehicles all have good ratings and they are
available at substantial savings.
Four SUVs worth your consideration:
1. The Subaru Forester is a small SUV with one of
the best all-wheel drive systems in the industry. New
Forester Ls cost $20,000-$24,000.
You can buy (if you shop carefully) a used 2000 Forester
L with 25,000-30,000 miles for about $14,500-$15,500.
I consider this SUV to be an good value for this price.
The vehicle should still have at least 6 months remaining
on the manufacturer's 3 year/36,000 mile bumper-to-bumper
warranty and 2.5 years remaining on the 5 year/60,000
mile power train (engine and transmission) warranty.
This SUV can be driven for hundreds of thousands of
miles.
2. The Toyota 4Runner been around for a long time
and for good reason. It is one of America's most popular
SUVs. For 2002, the four cylinder engine on the base
model has been replaced with the six cylinder engine.
New 4Runners cost $25-000-$34,000.
You
can buy (if you shop carefully) a 2000 4Runner with
25,000-30,000 miles for about $19,000-$21,500. This
vehicle should also have at least 6 months remaining
on the manufacturer's 3 year/36,000 mile bumper-to-bumper
warranty and 2.5 years remaining on the 5 year/60,000
mile power train warranty. The 4Runner can be driven
for hundreds of thousands of miles.
3. The Nissan Pathfinder has also been a reliable
SUV. New Pathfinders cost $24,000-$32,000.
Nissan does not quite have the name of the Toyota. Therefore,
you can buy (if you shop
carefully) a 2000 Pathfinder with 25,000-30,000 miles
for about $17,000-$19,500. This vehicle
should also have at least 6 months remaining on the
manufacturer's 3 year/36,000 mile bumper-to-bumper warranty
and 2.5 years remaining on the 5 year/60,000 mile power
train warranty.This vehicle will also provide many years
of dependable transportation.
4. The Honda CRV is also represents a good value
in a small SUV. New CRVs cost $21,000-25,000.
If you are on a transportation budget, you can buy (if
you shop carefully) a 1998 CRV with 50,000-60,000 miles
for about $11,000-$12,000. At this age and mileage,
the vehicle will likely not include any remaining manufacturer's
warranty. None the less, the CRV is quite reliable and
economical to drive. This small SUV can provide years
of good transportation service.
If you are in the market for a SUV, do your homework.
Consult Consumer Report's vehicle issue (April). Also,
be sure to read a couple of archived new SUV road tests
(review road tests that were conducted at the time the
vehicle was new) on the used vehicle of interest in
auto magazines (many are archived at your local library)
or Internet sources such as Car and Driver, Motor Trend,
Road & Track, or MotorWeek. Information from the
road tests will allow you to zero in on which of the
SUVs discussed above will be the best for you.
For example, if you prefer a SUV that can really tackle
off road conditions; consider the 4Runner or the Pathfinder.
However, if price is the major consideration and you
do not plan to go off road, consider the Forester or
the CRV. Last, but not least, if you are going to buy
a 2 to 3 year-old SUV, try to get the 2000 model rather
than the 199... model. Years down the road when you
sell the vehicle, the 2000 model will be worth more
than the "past century" vehicle.
Buying a Used Vehicle
For information on buying a used vehicle and saving
money, a new book is available: Drive the Best for the
Price: How to Buy a Used Automobile, Sport-Utility Vehicle,
or Minivan and Save Money. Information about the book
is available at: 1 800 839-8640 or www.drivethebestbook.com
In 1991 the book's author, Kyle Busch, purchased a used
vehicle for $2,600 that a private owner had driven 82,000
miles. He has driven the vehicle for over nine years
and the odometer now reads over 292,000 miles. The vehicle
continues to provide for his daily transportation needs.
