Consumed

This may strike some of you as funny considering my last post, but it's time for us to purchase a new car. Our Ford Freestar spends too much time at the dealership (our last service visit lasted 1 week) not to mention the poor gas mileage we get with it. I've looked at nearly every vehicle that might possibly suit our family (I even looked at a used Mercedes Benz wagon, LOL). We only have 2 kids but occasionally Kim needs to haul around another little screamer (or 3) after gym, homeschool co-op, church, etc, so third row seating becomes a necessity. What we want is a larger mid-sized wagon with optional 3rd row seats that gets decent gas mileage. These vehicles are called crossovers - a blend of wagon, car, SUV, minivan, etc. Unfortunately, crossovers happen to be the rage right now so trying to find an affordable model is proving to be elusive. I have it narrowed down to 2 main vehicles that we are considering:

2007 Kia Rondo
2007 Toyota Rav4

The Kia is the least expensive of the two vehicles but also feels riskier, both tactilely (is that a word?) and emotionally. It's not a bad vehicle; in fact, Kim and I were both pleasantly surprised after driving it. It feels cavernous on the inside thanks to the high roofline. It's spunky 4 cylinder engine is adequate(162 HP) only.  It's performance is better than a bus, to be sure, but I certainly wouldn't want to run time trials up Pike's Peak with it. Handling is tuned more for the cushy interstate ride rather than for carving up mountain roads - which only makes sense for a vehicle in this class. The interior is neither inspiring nor insipid. There's plenty of soft touch plastic throughout the cabin to remind you that you are not in the penalty box for buying Korean. The Rondo can be optioned with a fold in to the floor, 50/50 split, 3rd row bench seat. With the seats up, cargo space is akin to what you'd find in the trunk of a hard top convertible - not much if any! But with the seats stowed into the floor you have the same amount of space as what you'd find in a mid-sized SUV. Add in the optional roof racks, and you're ready to vacate with the Griswalds. To sum it up, the Rondo is boring but so practical that you are willing to withstand it's hum-drum personality (and exterior quirkiness). And the price is right. The sticker price is just under $19.4K and there is currently a $1.5K cash back offer. Factor in our trade, and it's the value winner for sure.

Too bad for the Kia, but I had to go out and drive the Toyota Rav4. The Toyo's VVT-i 4 cylinder engine has better performance, both of the seat-of-the-pants variety (166 hp, feels like more) and of mpg figures (21/27). It seemed to have more useable power when you needed it - I think that has more to do with Toyota's VVT-i technology rather than pure hp/torque numbers. The steering was a bit too assisted and numb, but I was comparing it to my Mazda Protege5, which is superb in that department. The turning radius on the Rav4 is phenomenal.  You should have no problem navigating through the shopping cart obstacle course known as the Walmart parking lot - autocrossing for mommies (would that be mommy-crossing?). The Rav4 is also offered with an optional fold into the floor 50/50 split bench 3rd row seat. Again, add the roof racks and you're not really giving up the space from the minivan for those long trips. What really stands out is that the Toyota has a solid feel to the sum of it's parts, something I don't remember getting from the Kia. The Toyota felt more like a unit rather than thousands of parts working together in unity. Price is more than the Kia, but at $24.4K list price, you feel as if you are getting what you are paying for.

The question is: can we really afford what we would rather have? Early financial indications say no (thanks in part to Toyota not offering ANY incentives on the Rav4). So maybe we'll end up with a Kia after all. After WEEKS of internet research (I'm sure you guys have noticed my absence here in Paradise) I'm ready to get past this consuming decision.