Honda CRV v. Toyota Rav4 v. Subaru Forester

I was asked to car shop with a friend and last Thursday she decided on a 2011 Honda CR-V LX and put a deposit on it and took delivery of it last night as they located it from one of their other out of state lots.

It was sad in a way. She loved the 11 OB and the 11 Forester and was actually leaning toward the 11 Forester X Premium, BUT the 30, 60, 90, etc., maintenance costs scared her off. That was the item that sealed the deal for the CR-V.

Some good info in this thread....I'm going to be in the market for a CUV come Sept/Oct this year. Will be the wife's vehicle.....I currently drive an '08 Toyota Tacoma and she has an '06 Mazda 3. Both vehicles are paid off at this point.

Plan is to keep the truck for general practicality purposes and towing. I have a lengthy daily commute (75 miles R/T) so will take the Mazda as a commuter and enjoy the 35 MPG vs the Tacoma's 23 MPG.

Our short list includes: Kia Sportage/Sorrento, Honda CR-V, possibly a Forrester.
I love Toyota's but find the RAV4 outdated looking and don't care for the side hinging tailgate which is heavy and takes up space when loading.

Seems you get a lot of options for the $$ with Kias and the 100k warranty is impressive. I also find the looks to be the best in the group.
The CR-V is coming out with a re-design for 2012 but so far I haven't seen any photos of it.

Right now it's just the 2 of us and our dog but plan to add a little one within the next 2 years. That said cargo space for all the gear is a desire as is a comfortable ride for weekend ski trips.

Any here drive one of the newer Kias (2011) that has any feedback on them?

xwhaler said:

Any here drive one of the newer Kias (2011) that has any feedback on them?

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My Mom picked up a 2011 Kia Sorrento a few months ago to haul her grandkids around in, I was sceptical at first but it is a nice vehicle for the $. They were looking at similar vehicles (CRV/Rav 4) and this was hands down the best value. It actually has a 3rd row that can be used in a pinch. Plus 100k warrenty.

Definitly need to go with the V6 in the Sorrento the 4cyl was way under powered.

Kia seems to be stepping it up, I saw an Optima last night and thought it was an Infinity or Lexus until I got up close and saw the badging.

In terms of family sedans, I think the Optima is a pretty sweet looking ride. It's a little long in the nose like the current Models of some Acura's are, but overall I think they did a great job. If the turbo version of the Optima or the sister Hyundai Sonata were available in a MT, I'd most certainly buy one for my next ride.

Going to be hard for me to switch brands from Hyundai due to how great the cost of ownership has been. 146K miles on my 07 Sonata and zero out of pocket expense outside of general maintenance. Even the two things that broke during the warranty period around 90K miles (ABS sensor, power steering fluid pump) would have cost me less than $500 combined if I had to pay for it out of pocket.

solid cars