[quote=treehugger]BG I actually really disliked the 4-runner! It had been my dream car for so long, then I drove it for a year and it was an uncomfortable tak! I had bought that one used at a good deal and turned around and sold it, so no money lost there. Bought the Prius trying to be practical, actually it has been a great car and other than me being completely SoCal frivolous and deciding I want this Mercedes I would keep it! The dogs fit really well, I put a hitch on it for the bike rack and I really would say it has been a great car(hint hint anybody want to buy a Prius). My hubby has a SUV AWD work car, so it is paid for (all gas and maintenance and insurance) through his work and we take it everywhere.
I think maybe I am having a midlife crisis.[/quote]
What’s uncomfortable about the 4-Runner, treehugger? I once had a 1990 4WD Toy Hilux SR-5 P/U (loaded w/dbl cab) with a matching shell and carpet pack. It had the same chassis as the 4-Runner did/does and has since been renamed “Tacoma.” I/we took many, many road trips in it for 10 years (lots of skiing, etc) and I absolutely loved it! The dash was like a cockpit, it had a Sony 6-disc CD under the back seat, fantastic speakers and I loved being up high over the road (almost to the level of comm’l truck cabs) and loved the granny gear for the snow (it had a 5-spd manual transmission). To some, its ride may have seemed little bouncy but I liked it … plus all that (expensive) rubber under it.
I don’t like the tires on most newer vehicles today. Most of them look like they’re only going to last 20K miles at the most before they need replacing. It just doesn’t look to me like there is much air in them. I wonder how much these newer tires cost in relation to “old school” tires?? In July, I paid about $775 for 4 new “old school” Michelins plus a 3-yr alignment for my 21+ yo Lexus sedan and it still drives like a dream. I’ll be taking another (3500 mi RT) trip to “flyover country” with it next month.
As you may surmise, I’m partial to Toyota products as I have driven them all my life. I have found them to be extremely reliable and cost effective to maintain.
I’m surprised that your dogs actually fit in back of the Prius. I assume they have to lie down so it can’t be used to take them on longer trips. It’s good that you also have an AWD vehicle for your use (even thought it is a primarly business vehicle).
Before you make a decision, why don’t you test drive this? It’s just a little bigger than a Prius and about the same size as the Mercedes. It comes in AWD, AWD Hybrid ….
I haven’t yet but my mechanic has one and he loves it. I would rather have the RX F Sport (larger, more expensive) which has not yet been released for 2016, due to a complete redesign. I’m seriously considering buying one in the last quarter of next year and giving my car to my youngest kid. (It also has those thinnish tires I don’t know much about so will have to learn more, of course, lol.) As a person who learned to drive in the snow with a stick shift, those paddle shifters look very enticing to me as well as the two-tone interiors of many of the newer Lexuses!
Why don’t you test drive the NX and come back and give us Piggs an update? In my second link, the NX appears to be in direct competition with the Merc GLA 250 you are considering.
