Cheap 4WD Vehicle?

[Fishinguy40]

We're looking for a reliable but affordable, used 4WD or AWD vehicle for our daughter. She is planning to finish high school this fall and wants to start the spring semester (in January) at Vermilion Community College, in Ely.

I know it's a lot but to ask for but we want 4WD or AWD due to the snow, etc up there. We also want something that isn't high mileage (50k or less) so she can hopefully get through 4 years of college with one vehicle and a 4 cylinder for gas mileage. We also have a price range that we want to stick to.

Seems the only vehicles meeting all our criteria are Ford Escapes, Jeep Patriots and Subaru Legacy wagons. We'd really appreciate comments/insight on the reliability of these vehicles and if there are any known/comon problems to be aware of.

[Jeremy airjer W]

Toyota RAV4, Hyundai santa fe, Kia sportage, Honda CRV, pontiac vibe/toyota matrix, suzuki grand vitara, audi quattro, toyota tacoma 4dr, ford edge (not sure if that has a four cylinder option.

Believe it or not they do plow roads up there.....eventually! A front wheel drive is all you would really need.

[ChuckN]

Fellow VCC'r and I survived just fine in a front wheel drive Plymouth Sundance for a couple years back when. I traveled the highways almost every weekend. Never a problem.

As far as 4WD/AWD I vote CR-V. I have a '00 (160K) and '08. Good mileage, great in snow and very reliable. They hold their value quite well, so finding one with less than 50K miles you'll spend some jing.

I'm not a fan of Subaru anymore. I had some minor problems with expensive parts and watched mine (and others) eventually go through head gasket issues. No more for me....

[Fishinguy40]

Believe it or not they do plow roads up there.....eventually! A front wheel drive is all you would really need.

Tell that to my wife! She wants the 4WD so "our daughter is safe". I wonder if the fact that our daughter put a front wheel drive in the ditch several times last winter has anything to do with it?

[Jeremy airjer W]

If she has that kind of track record the four wheel drive will be in the ditch sooner than you think. Knowing the vehicle and how the vehicle reacts and how to react to the vehicle will be much more beneficial than AWD. That will come with experience, we hope! Add the higher center of gravity with an SUV and the possibility of a rollover gets greater when or if it ever does get in the ditch. Just because it will go forward better doesn't mean it will stop better or control better in an emergency or poor weather driving situation. A front wheel drive may be the safer alternative?

Until then maybe a couple of different towing insurance policies to make sure you are covered?

[Powerstroke]

4wd means you get stuck further from help. It gives driver's a false confidence about the vehicles abilities. Four tires spinning is as easy as two when you're on snow and ice.

All of the above suggestions are great, but no 4wd will get anywhere without good tires. The number one thing you can do to help her traction is by having quality all-season tires on the car.

[TooTallTom]

What about a good (reliable) front-wheel-drive car, and some advanced driving classes, preferably focusing on winter driving skills. I'm actually serious about this, it sounds like your daughter might benefit from some additional instruction/ practice at screwing up and dealing with it.

[Ufatz]

Forty plus years in the north country convinced me that front wheel drive is greatly over-rated in snow. And unless a person becomes very familiar with the way a fwd handles they will do more harm than good. I have serious doubts a young girl, without a great deal of driving experience, would benefit much from fwd.

I nice little AWD Subaru on the other hand is a solid and dependable little car....I know two family members who drive the h--- out of them year 'round.

A solid old Ford SUV or Chevy SUV would also be a good deal and she could haul more "stuff" in it.

But you can put a FWD in the ditch faster than you can txt omg snw.

[Jeremy airjer W]

A solid old Ford SUV or Chevy SUV would also be a good deal and she could haul more "stuff" in it.

I half to ask which ones are the solid old ones?

Seriously though, I would challenge any four wheel drive on average snow covered roads or ice in a front wheel drive 88 Honda Prelude with four blizzak tires. The tires will make or brake any vehicle. The blizzaks are simply amazing winter tires. There where plenty of opportunities for me to test the limits of the car and tires. I had the opportunity to drive in some of the worst winter weather conditions mother nature could muster both in MN, Nebraska, and the mountain passes in Colorado. Not to mention roads where not necessary on the lakes when I went ice fishing.

Small short wheel base SUV's will be a disadvantage to a new driver in tough winter weather conditions.

I think I need to start a thread this winter called who's in the ditch. We'll start posting the vehicles we see in the ditch. I will bet that the there are a good percentage of them that are small SUV's. People forget that just because you can go forward faster doesn't mean that you can stop or steer faster. I think this is what gets most in trouble.

The exception would be a late model vehicle with a good VSC option. My Tundra is the first vehicle I have had vehicle stability control and unless you purposely steer the vehicle into the ditch, you just can't put it in the ditch. Again this is something you need to learn how to use and understand how it works. If you don't it will never work. The examples I can give for this are last winter I brought my boat from st. paul to cook the morning of the first big blizzard we had. There was already 4-6 inches of snow on the ground. I never used four wheel drive and I had the cruise set between 60 and 65 the whole way. Same thing for the news years snow storm. I know what your thinking, HE HAD THE CRUISE SET....[PoorWordUsage]! The truth is the VSC reacts way faster than I ever could. It will reduce throttle and activate brakes to keep the vehicle in a straight line. All I have to do is steer it in the right direction. The VSC is ridiculously fast at reacting to what the vehicle is doing.

A front wheel drive with a solid VSC and four blizzaks and the only way she's hitting the ditch is if she purposely turns into it.

[TooTallTom]

A front wheel drive with a solid VSC and four blizzaks and the only way she's hitting the ditch is if she purposely turns into it.

Or she's texting "OMG! SNW!"

[Jeremy airjer W]

Or she's texting "OMG! SNW!"

LOL, good one TTT!

[BoxMN]

Remember the joke about MN/WI/ND/?? drivers... what's the last thing you hear before a MN/WI/ND driver goes into the ditch in a snowstorm? ....

"Hold my beer and watch this!!!" haha!

BTW - my 98k1500 has yet to go into a ditch, summer or winter, pulling trailers, blizzard or sunshine, every weekend, from TC to Crosslake, even on side roads. It comes down to drive the speed for the conditions. Oh yeah, my Trailblazer has pulled a F350 superduty out of ND mud, haha! He hated it, but I took a picture

[Jeremy airjer W]

I've never been in the ditch either. that would include a 68 chevy 3/4 ton, 80 mercury cougar, 85 buick centry, 88 honda prelude, 95 tacoma, 99 and 97 saturn sl2, 99 town and country, 05 Tundra and an 08 Tundra. I grew up on the iron range so I think I get a little street credit for knowing whats its like to drive in the great northland?

The wife on the other hand.........

[BoxMN]

I think I get a little street credit for knowing whats its like to drive in the great northland?

Wasn't saying you didn't... and wasn't telling you to slow down, or how to drive. Just saying it ain't the vehicle most the time, as your last post also suggests. Just saying old Chevy's don't always hit the ditch before a Prelude

[TooTallTom]

...old Chevy's don't always hit the ditch before a Prelude

Old Chevy's don't hit the ditch, they just slowly rust away...

For the record, I own an S-10. It's not too bad yet, but the rust is coming. And I'll stop with the jokes now, this is actually a serious (and important) thread.

[Ryan_V]

I went to vcc as well! Ahhhhhh the memories! I had a1981 amc rear wheel drive and never had a problem, and traveled quite often. A little common sense goes a long way...... Wonder if the parties are still in the same places? Other stories for other forums!

[PurpleFloyd]

The Subaru would be a great car if you want AWD. If you want something a bit bigger I used to have a Jeep Cherokee with Selec Trac (Not Quadratrac) and it was a very good vehicle on slippery roads and with the I-6 it had a reliable motor that got decent economy for it's size.

[goblueM]

i think the knowledge that 4WD doesn't equate to 4 wheel stop is more important than the right car/truck...

its all in the driver and the tires, as airjer said. I was fine driving around in a Toyota Tercel in the snow for 4 years in MN, and thats doing all sorts of outdoor activities in all weather. Just drive smart!

[jeffreyd]

Not to throw much more in, growing up in Nebraska, learning how to drive in the winter in Neb, 72 plymouth fury III i could go anywhere a 4 wheel drive would. I threw a set of chains on it and a way we went. Then got the 4 whl drive pickup. Buried it so deep in a drift when i finally got hold of the tow truck driver (via CB, no cell phones then) he told me to leave until spring and then he would come get it. Long few hours of digging and working got it out.

Now live in the desert and am scared as heck to drive in snow. Guess i need to nut up and do it again someday. Stay away from the 4 wheel drive.

[Ufatz]

I guess we got away from the original inquiry regarding a "cheap 4WD vehicle. But for what it's worth the best snow and ice rigs I have every owned are (1) 1963 Volvo PV544-it crawled all over SE Alaska and never stopped (2) my old Land Rover- all over AK and the Yukon and (3) a 1999 Chevy Tahoe-a simply amazing vehicle on snow and ice. I once drove into the little town where we get our mail and basic goods and when I arrived at the "tradin post" and walked through the door the owner asked "How the $%^$ did you get here, they haven't plowed the road yet and your the only guy to make it to town." The old Tahoe just rolled right through 8" of snow and howling winds. I'd own another one in a minute.

[CigarGuy]

You got enough driving lesson info here, so I'll just tell you what I recently did. My daughter's just started her second year at NDSU in Fargo. When she's driving up there or coming home for a visit I wanted 4-wheel drive for her. I bought her a Grand Cherokee Laredo, put some good tires on it and she's good to go. It is a 2002 (I think), closer to 100,000 miles, paid $4000.00. Mileage isn't super. Smart driving, good tires and 4-wheel drive is a heck of a lot better that any two wheel drive vehicle. It also has some ground clearance, not like little compact 4-wheel/AWD cars.

[Dragonsm]

Airjer gave you a good list of vehicles.....of which I can only comment on two of them. I have some family members that have the Escape as does my neighbor and they are extremely happy with it....however pending on your price range.....it may or may not fall in there.

However, the Pontiac Vibe isn't a bad car at all....."sister" to the Toyota Matrix, it has all the drivetrain/motor of a toyota, with a pontiac badge. My wife has a 2005 Vibe AWD and loves it! It will get 32 mpg or so in the summer and 25+ in the winter (though my wife likes to use her astrostart and really warm it up before she drives)

The only "problem" I have read about the vibe is the odometer stops at 299,999...... It has a set of BFGoodrich Traction T/A's and they have been a good all weather tire. It handles ice/snow well, has some pep but doesn't overwhelm my wife with the power when she drives it.....and the Vibes are a lot cheaper compared to the matrix.

Steve

[CigarGuy]

One last little fun deal before I head up to Kab for 5 days. I don't think I could ever buy a used Subaru, It would be hard to find one without an Obama bumper sticker or a "equal sign". Plus, no ground clearance....... Bye until Monday night.

[Valv]

I don't think I could ever buy a used Subaru, It would be hard to find one without an Obama bumper sticker or a "equal sign"

Awesome !!!!

[Ufatz]

Okay you guys....I get the dig at MY President but I don't understand the significance of the "equal sign". Must be something geezers haven't heard of.

But then.....what else is new, right? Ha Ha Ha!!