Talk to me about your mid size sedan

[AnnieW625]

Tell me what you have. We will be replacing DH's 01 Corolla within this next year (probably around September; we have to wait for an accident to get off of my driving record) and we want to get a mid size sedan.

I will state that we aren't interested in the following cars: Nissan Maxima, Mazda 626, or a Toyota Camry. Those don't overly wow us; they feel like nicer rental cars. They are great cars we just feel like we'd tire of them quickly, and we drive our cars until they die (150K+)

Most of these cars are fairly new, but thought I would list them anyway.

Our favorites are the:
VW Passat TDI manual
Honda Accord EX manual
Volvo S60 T5 (this is the only car with an auto transmission standard, but the overall feel of the car and the interior are nice enough, plus it is suppose to be sporty, but it also takes regular gas)
Mini Countryman S manual
Subaru Legacy 2.5 Premium manual (missing the leather, but overall solid feel, and DH likes the standard AWD even though we don't live near the snow, and it has a functional hood scoop:thumbsup:)

[maestramommy]

We have an 05 Accord EX manual. LOVE it. We got the 4 cylinder because the 6 cylinder manual only came in a 2-door sports coupe at the time. Not sure if that is still the case? It heartens me to know that the Accord still comes in a stick option! I love my leather seats, seat warmers, did love the Satellite until the price went up and we never listened anymore once the kids came anyway. Didn't go for the Navigation system since we didn't really need it. Love that it came with all the luxury options even in 4 cylinder stick :jammin:

I love that we can still get 3 carseats across, crossing my fingers it will still work when Dora goes to a booster. We use it as our main family car, take all road trips that involve only us without the dog in it. It's just an awesome car.

The other day I saw an Accord Crosstour (I *think* it was Crosstour). Looked like a station wagon! That would be more versatile for us now that we have a dog.

[new_mom_mry]

So my DH just purchased the 1st car from your list, VW Passat TDI Manual, yesterday. What a random coincidence. I haven't formulated an opinion about it yet, but so far, I love how spacious the back seat is. He also told me that the transmission has 6 gears (plus the reverse) rather than 5 as in a traditional stick shift. That's about all I know. The fuel economy is supposed to be great due to the diesel engine (should be getting an average of 41 miles per gallon on the freeway, and likely more according to the dealer; don't recall the lower limit of that range but the upper was in the low 50s). Good luck!

[twowhat?]

No direct experience but we used to have an older Passat (2000?) and currently have a Subaru Forester and :thumbsup: for both VW and Subaru if you want fun to drive.

And yes - I can identify with your DH about that functional hood scoop. I do :heartbeat: my Forester XT. Zoom zoom.

eta: Subaru and Honda probably take the edge in reliability though, so you'll have to balance that...

[AnnieW625]

MaestraMommy, I often regret not getting an 06 Accord sedan w/the 6 speed manual V6, which was new in 06. They discontinued that option in 2008 with the current models.

New Mommy, you'll have to keep me updated on the car purchase. We test drove the automatic TDI at a local auto show last month and were really surprised how much we liked the car. The gas mileage is a definite plus for us and a concern so it's either regular or diesel for us (although I believe the Subaru, and the Mini take mid grade, but at least should get 25+ mpg with a manual).

[maestramommy]

Annie, SIL's family just bought a Jetta TDI. I canNOT remember if it was a hatchback or sedan, think it was sedan. I was surprised by how roomy it was compared with older model Jettas. They are really liking the mileage. If you are stopping at two kids it might be worth looking at. I'm sure it must come in manual. They love manual, and totally mourned when they bought a Camry hybrid a few years ago.

[smiles33]

Annie, I just wanted to add in my perspective as someone who normally also drives her cars into the ground. I LOVED driving my 2002 VW Passat (purchased new after driving a 1989 Honda Accord sedan for years) but hated owning one. It wasn't too bad the first 2 years (despite 3 recalls for various defects, including coil packs that could burst into flames!), but then it started regularly requiring $1,000+ repairs after only 6 years. I sold my Passat only because DH's grandparents gave us their 2006 Nissan Altima when they stopped driving. Still, I'm wary of buying another VW despite loving how they drive compared to Japanese cars.

Good luck finding the right car for your family!

[BillK]

If you're gonna keep it for the long haul the only 2 logical choices on your list from a reliability and cost to maintain perspective are the Honda and Subaru. Both are great cars.

Fun/cool are Volvo, VW and Mini.

[vludmilla]

If you're gonna keep it for the long haul the only 2 logical choices on your list from a reliability and cost to maintain perspective are the Honda and Subaru. Both are great cars.

Fun/cool are Volvo, VW and Mini.

I completely agree. My family gets 200-300k miles out of our Honda and Acura cars. They are the best for the long haul. The others are not.

[maestramommy]

If you're gonna keep it for the long haul the only 2 logical choices on your list from a reliability and cost to maintain perspective are the Honda and Subaru. Both are great cars.


Oh well, there's that too......:p We really looked at the Passat before buying our Accord. Just average reliability was not good enough for us.

[zag95]

I'd get another Accord in a heartbeat. I'm driving my first car- the 1993 Honda Accord EX, manual shift, complete with sunroof and tape deck (yes, you read that right---TAPE DECK!!!). It does not yet have 160K on it yet- and I've owned it since 1997. I'd definitely do an Accord- although we also have a Subie Outback.......

GL!

[BabyDahl]

If the TDI Passat was available in June, I would have purchased that car. Instead, I have the TDI Jetta. I average about 48-50 mpg on my work commute from OC to LA, about 38-40 mpg avg per tank (although I haven't had it long enough to comment on reliability). The Passat is more roomy, has nice styling and a comfy interior. Plus, Annie, isn't your DH an environmental/air quality engineer who likes diesel technology? Go for the Passat :wink2:

[Simon]

We currently have a Camry Hybrid (as a reference) and used to own a Passat with all the bells and whistles. We had hoped to keep the VW for years and years but it was in the shop all.the.time in the first 3 months, sometimes for a repeat fix. That was too much trouble for us so we ditched it after about 18 months and were glad to see it go.

Dh loves, loves, loves the Accord but we got a much better deal on the Camry.

[AnnieW625]

2002 was a horrible year for VW in general. I had a friend who had her Passat for maybe 3 yrs. before she got rid of it due to the lemon issues.

Yes DH is an air quality engineer and he really likes diesel technology and if the diesels that VW makes are as good as Mercedes they will last forever, 250k miles like middle age. The reports are very positive. We initially looked at the TDI Jetta wagon in 2009 and really liked it, but DH thought that they have cheapened it a bit to bring the price down.

I love the Accord too and it is beyond practical, but for the price it really can't be beat. Also if the 2013 model is a new model we might be able to get a great deal in the current model. I miss my Accord coupe a lot. Another thing is that we will have to look into insurance rates as this next car will be potentially DD1's first car.

If an iPod adaptor doesn't come standard with the Accord I really wish they still made tape decks because those tape deck iPod things are great because I the LA basin the radio transmitters don't work because there are too many stations. If I had bought the next model down from my EX-L on 2006 I would've got a tape deck.

[maestramommy]

Another thing is that we will have to look into insurance rates as this next car will be potentially DD1's first car.

:jammin: thought we were the only ones with that thought!

[jiggaman]

The Passat just won Motor Trends car of the year. Although I hear VW's break down fairly often and are expensive to fix.

I like the styling of the new Hyundai Sonata. It comes in a Hybrid and offers a lot of standard amenities that other cars charge more money for.

It also has included Roadside Assistance (so no AAA necessary), a great warranty and now has Trade-In assurance which guarantees the value of the vehicle if traded in between 2-4 years for a new Hyundai. They're really trying to sell you a car.

[smiles33]

2002 was a horrible year for VW in general. I had a friend who had her Passat for maybe 3 yrs. before she got rid of it due to the lemon issues.


Tell me about it! I bought mine in Sept. 2001 after the VW Passat won a SLEW of car awards and was Consumer Reports' #1 Best Buy.

Anyhow, even despite the multiple recalls (which were free), the service is more expensive, too. The good thing about Hondas (which are a dime a dozen in most major metro areas) is that you can find plenty of reasonably priced alternatives to dealer servicing. The only European specialists I found in my local area were for BMW and Mercedes so I just stuck to the VW dealership. Now, that was probably my own lack of initiative to search for a VW specialist, but I still remain convinced that a VW is great to rent but will never buy one again.

[joules]

I have a 2004 VW Passat. I kind of wish I didn't get it. DH and my dad hate the efficient German engineering. The engine area is so super compacted that you can't do anything easily (like oil changes). My dad usually does all our oil changes. He couldn't figure it out. Not sure about the new model, but mine came with a skid plate too under the engine. Well not many places wanted to deal with that so I have a very small selection of places to go to for an oil change. It's also more expensive because of the sludge issue. I have to use synthetic oil. Not just any synthetic oil either. It has to be on the approved list of oils that was sent to me by VW. DH upgraded me to xenon headlights, but it took him a whole day to do it when it shouldn't have taken that long at all. Everything under the hood is so compact, he had no room to work.

Also the electrical is weird. The dashboard display "disappears" in some areas if I park my car under the sun. If we park in the garage, the display works fine. But like today, I went to the supermarket got back in my car, and parts of the display were not visible. Some of the interior plastics are looking funny now. Like some of them have a sticky texture to them. For the first year or 2, this car was parked under the sun when I was at work. Since then it's always been parked under shade. And it's not because of sticky toddler fingers either. DS has never been in this car.

Repairs are costly.

I love DH's Acura TSX....not sure how similar that is to the Accord.

[hoodlims]

Just in case you do go with a Hybrid option in any of these midsized sedans, you should (and you probably do) know that the trunk space is VERY VERY small in comparison to the non-hybrid version. It didn't bother me until I needed to put a double stroller in it. I think DH and I will be taking 2 cars down to OC for XMas this year - 1 for me and the kids, one for the stuff and the dog.