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I am on the market for new car and was looking for decent size station
wagon. It seems like there is really not much out there. The one I
considered last year, Malibu Maxx is discontinued, Volvo is a bit too much
for what I want to spend, leaving pretty much only Subaru as logical
choice.
So I am about ready to get the 2008 Forester Anniversary edition but if
someone feels that there is a better alternative, I am all ears...
scrounger
the station wagon was renamed, it is now called a crossover.
dvdrose18
SUV + crossover - wagon = new standard auto manufacturing marketing
BMW still offers them as well. At least I've seen a new 3 Series wagon
before, I really doubt someone imported it.
But wagons seem to (sadly) be old and out of date in the public eye.
jedimario
Dodge makes a nice one, I think it's the Magnum. RWD, optional Hemi, and
looks good.
giant016
I'm sure station wagons are now called "crossovers." You might as well aim
at purchasing a crossover/suv, instead of sticking with whatever is named a
station wagon still.
Honda S2K
Trouble is, most of "crossovers" are too tall for comfortable use of roof
rack. I require at least something suitable for my kayaks. Furthermore,
smaller crossovers have very short cabins where long items like windsurfer
masts simply don't enter. Toy for a wannabe weekend camper and useless as
true "utility".
scrounger
what about something like the Subaru Outback, Audi A3, Saab 9-3 Sportcombi,
Mazda A5 or CX9, Ford Taurus X, Volvo XC 70 or V70, Dodge Magnum, VW Passat
Wagon or Tiguan, Honda Odyssey, Kia Spectra 5 or Rondo, Hyundai Tuscon or
Santa Fe or Veracruz? It seems like there are enough vehicles out there
that you should be able to find one. Are you puting the Kayaks on the roof
yourself? We never had a problem getting one on the roof of our Chevy
Venture, and that isn't exactly low. Have you gone around and measured to
know that they aren't long enough, or are you just assuming. What vehicle
are you using now?
dvdrose18
My current "utility" is Jeep Grand Wagoneer, yes, it is very uncomfortable
to put 80lbs double kayak on top and anyway, I will never again buy
Chrysler (another story and this is not a rant).
Your list is great but obviously you missed than I wrote that Volvo is a
bit outside price range I am willing to pay. Forester Anniversary edition
is offered to me at about $30k, all included so "alternatives" at 10k extra
are not really alternatives, are they?
scrounger
If Google is correct, your Jeep is about 65 inches tall. I don't think even
like the recently deceased Taurus wagon was more than 8 inches shorter than
that. Is the actual height the problem, or is it just the general
configuration of the vehicle. are you struggling to reach over a long hood,
or is the vehicle too wide to reach the center of the roof? When we put one
on our Venture, the biggest problem was reaching over the hood, which is
really quite short compared to other vehicles. I am assuming if it is a
double kayak you have 2 people to haul it onto the roof, which would lead
me to think the shape of the vehicle would be more of a difficulty than the
height, unless you are vertically challenged:mrgreen:. But, anyway, it
sounds like you already did all your own research, so good luck with
whatever you decide on:thumbs:
BTW Giant, I just noticed the Magnum R/T (5.7 Hemi) is available with AWD
for only $34,555 MSRP, if only i had money to spend...
dvdrose18
I am 6'-0" and my wife is 5'-10" yet we do feel vertically challenged if it
comes to load roof rack on our Jeep with anything. It is the height (don't
forget that the rack adds another few inches): 15' kayak is long enough to
simply "walk over" but we have to do it with stretched out arms. It is not
a problem for me but my wife has pretty much refused to help anymore and to
do it alone is really not fun...
So in short, Mazda 5 and others in this class (mini-minivan) will not be an
improvement. Toyota Matrix, etc simply don't cover the needs and VW Passat
Wagon or Ford Taurus X start about 5k higher than Forester with dubious
improvement on value. So I wonder if it is possible that Subaru got this
market all wrapped up or the market is indeed insignificant for the others
to compete for.
scrounger
8 inches height difference is a lot if you are lifting a canoe or something
to the roof.
tbaxleyjr
Yep, after long and tedious evaluations, 5 more test drives and resisting
sh-load of sales pitches, I went with the Forester. Drive it already for a
few days and I LIKE it. In ten years or so, I will tell you if I am happy
with it. If not, it will be earlier... :wink2:
scrounger
BMW has both 3- and 5- wagons. There is even an M5 wagon, but I don't think
its coming here.
They are officially called "Touring".
Mathew
We still have plenty of Station wagons in the UK...Ir 'Estate cars' as
they're known here. As has been said here already, manufacturers call them
more stylish names such as 'Touring' these days, but they're the same as
they always were. We have plenty of Volvo estates, Alfa Romeos, BMWs,
Mercedes', Fords, VWs, Nissans, Peugeots, Citroens, Renaults...The list is
endless.
Cliffy
do u guys have mitsubishi evo sportbacks there?
DARKtEAGLE
If you're in the shop and you call a "Touring" a wagon too loud, the Gods
of BMW will slap you. They absolutely despise the word wagon.
Mathew
Subaru Impreza WRX Wagon FTW
V-Tec
Oh come on: at least try to figure out the difference between a station and
a hatchback...
scrounger
Ignorance is bliss, lol. If I called them Estate cars, would they slap
me?...Afterall, that's what they are, lol.
I don't believe we do....I assume that's either a hatchback or an estate?
Cliffy
