yeah, because buying a car that's worth 20 percent less immediately after you leave the dealership is really smart.

I just rented a new Ford 500 this week on a business trip. I was very impressed with this car. I drove it around Newark NJ and on the hiway some, 28mpg. Handled very well with lots of room.

Especially here in Omaha, where you can expect to pay 10% of the sale price of the vehicle for license plates.

Last December, I bought my wife a 2006 Honda CR-V EX AWD automatic. Couldn't be happier.

Plenty of pick up. Quiet. Very roomy and lots of cargo space. Turns on a dime. 27-30 mpg highway. Nice stereo and AC.

I went to Sam's Club and bought the family-sized jug of KY for that ass raping! :banghead:

I just bought a new CR-V for my wife and really like it. We went with FWD even though we live in snow country. I have never had a problem with FWD and decent tires in snow and didn't think the extra cost and weight were worth it.

It's very comfortable (just took a 2200 mile trip in it) and gets decent mileage (27 on short trips and 30-32 on highway trips). It also holds an amazing amount of stuff for being a fairly small car.

I don't think it is worth buying a barely used Toyota or Honda. They just don't drop in value enough to not get a new one. When we got ours, we would have only saved about $1500 or so over a 2005. It's not worth that to me to not have a full warrantee, not know the exact driving history, not be able to pick out exactly what you want, etc. Over the full life of a car, that's a pittance. You can also usually get better financing rates on a brand new car.

SOME people are willing to invest the 20% so that they are NOT gambling on a used vehicle. While others, are willing to take a vehicle with a few milew to escape this 20% depreciation. Neither theory is is wrong. It is something that every car owner needs to decide for themselves.

BG, I have sold vehicles for 18 years...and I don't think you have a turd in your mix of choices... If it were me....IF IT WERE ME...I would go with the Matrix. Lots of room...very reliable and front wheel drive will get you around 99% of the inclimate weather. If you actually go off road occasionally, I would suggest the Tribute-Escape or the CRV. All your choices will perform well in MPG.

Yep....that will get you absolutely NOWHERE on a crisp, snowy, Nebraska winter day.

Go for the Escape Hybrid.
You can get 4wd, lots of room, high driving position, and 36 mpg CITY.

I test drove one, and they are pretty nice although the dealer wanted way too much for it. The cabin appointments are not quite on par with the Honda, or Toyota. But it offers utility & milage unavailable from any other vehicle on the market.

Since recxjake isn't saying anything, might I suggest the fine automobiles of GM?

I don't understand why people would'nt buy brand new when it comes to Honda or Toyota. The resale is so High that many times you see dealer ads for new Hondas that are less than what ALL of the private owners are trying to sell a year old model for.

On the other hand there are some really good cars out there that depreciate WAY faster than they should.

I had a 2003 Pontiac Vibe, which is a Toyota Matrix with a Pontiac grille. I had no problems with it, it got great mileage and had excellent storage capacity. I recommend it highly.

Now that we have SNR doing this work at a lower cost, I guess we can lay rexcjake off.

You should check out the Audi A4. We own 3 of them, me and my two youngest. They are 4 cyclinder with great gas mileage but very quick and sporty. Very dependable. We love them and I'm going to upgrade to an A6 very soon just to have a little more room. Just a thought.

Shut up n00b....... whenm we want you opinion, we'll tell you....

























jk