Time for Chevy Colorado
or maybe Nissan Cube?
I always wonder
How many of these suvs, trucks and jeeps ever make it off road. Around Boston you’d have to go well out of your way to find anything considered dirt. I’ve always been fine with awd and that’s being able to travel in about a foot of snow. And it’s usually the trucks and suvs to be the first in the ditches once things start to get slippery.
I’ve given up
trying to explain to urban flatlanders who don’t need a full sized 4 wheel drive pickup truck, just what we do with with it besides taking a kayak somewhere.
Or that I use that 4 wheel drive all the time to access where I launch. Just like a lot of other people - around here.
Nyah. You either get it, or you don’t. These threads are almost always solid Soo Bar Roo commercials.
I’m not dissing trucks
– Last Updated: Jan-30-16 11:21 AM EST –
Just the suburban posers who cruise shopping malls with some type of huge rig that never sees dirt because their ego can't handle a minivan or station wagon. Remember those station wagon things?
THE NITRO
here at the 24 Hours we see fewer Euro cars fewer still sports cars but then I’m not looking for the valet areas just ‘normal’ folk. Normal 24 hour folk.
A few Subie, one in racks n Hellas(4) Toureg tied Land Rover close. No Explorers spotted. MB n BMW wagons RV.
Toyo/Ford prob max on top all classes. Toyo as a booth…no Previa or whatsitcalled ?
ESCAPE !
– Last Updated: Jan-30-16 8:44 PM EST –
aieeeeeeeeee there a new battleship grey Subie parked behind me.
and a Jeep made with curved panels...day runotta roofing ?
Ford Escape...multi Kia....A Nissan Caravan (?) future classic..standard with a casket/
If thBMW and MB's are totaled (God Forbid )the number would be abt the number of Chevies both new and fairly old but no Burbans on my walk. A few less than the total of Fords, all new shiny.
There are more Caravans than the others as single issue with the Toyota crowd leading everyone with all types numbered. mostly new.
A few Explorers. Same as Land Rover.A standard Issue Rover from Central Casting for machine gun mounting.
As on the road to Carmel or Stewarts Point, 1 of 5 are SUV or Sport Pickup, Caravan.
A Ford expedition alongside. Effective low roof compared with muh van.
The winner for me is a new white Toyo Sequoia.
Tho I expect a Burban would run it thru snow.
your needs
I bought my truck for other needs, then adapted it for kayak hauling. I needed 6000# GVW rating to be able to deduct it, and the ability to throw over 1000# in the back. Thule tracks with Yakama landing pads, two sets of saddles and foam blocks when a third boat goes in the center of the roof has worked well.
So far the most I’ve carried on a club shuttle is three sea kayaks on the roof, and a ‘cross over’ in the 6 1/2’ box. With extra foam and long straps, I can put two more sea Kayaks on the roof [Stacked]. My extended cab with front buckets and console will seat five, (four comfortably).
My point is, most vehicles can haul a lot of paddle craft, [Long canoes and sea kayaks on a Smart may be an exception, 
] and unless that is your primary use, consider what other uses you need wheels for.
The Subaru fans that dominate these topics have excellent vehicles if family transport and boat hauling are your main concerns.
Height
the proper one is one that when you walk up with the canoe on your shoulders you don’t have to squat or lift to get it on top for me it is a mini van.
right but
so can everyone else.
A LIST…like lists ?
http://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/autos-suvs/2015-2016-trucks-suvs-and-vans-the-ultimate-buyers-guide/ar-BB4b1g5
Cruising a shopping mall
with a too small, overpriced status vehicle so the onlookers can “ooh” and “ahh” over my roof rails, landing pads, crossbars, and perhaps a cradle set - is really not one of my priority activities.
ended up getting a forester
I’m not sure its the ideal boater vehicle but a compromise between boating, around town, and winter driving. Extended cab pick ups with four wheel drive seem to be the most versatile but I was definitely looking for a car. I had plans to trade in the van but a wheel bearing went out with huge amounts of smoke(in addition to the transmission slipping) on the way to the dealership to trade in. So it got parked and I had a friend take me to a dealership. If I hadn’t dealt with that I might have also given a serious look at the ford escape- good incentives right now from Ford. Hard to beat the ACA deal with VIP pricing on the subarus though.
As stoked as I am about the new ride I’m just about as stoked about the new roof rack- went with Yakima crossbars and brought them out to the mirrors. Now I just need a stacker bar to finish it all off. I kept the spread wide for hauling a canoe as well as kayaks.
Thanks for all the suggestions and help. Hopefully it will be at least 10 years before I go car shopping again.
Good luck with the new ride
Can’t go wrong with a Forester.
wanted
small used trailer …
Short boxes = shorter wheelbase
I bought the 4 door with the “micro-box” for various reasons. Beyond the obvious passenger space, I can haul a reasonable amount of gear or dogs in the small box. With a topper this is all out of the weather. The canoe goes on top. The overall length is a matter of personal need. In a 4X4 situation the shorter wheelbase is an advantage both from angle of approach/departure, and turning radius. Also, I pull a small travel trailer. I’ve had to turn around in some tight spots in the woods where a longer wheelbase wouldn’t have made it. If you get into town and have to use a parking garage (watch overhead clearance) the long wheel base is also a pain. It’s all about compromise and buying what works best for the anticipated tasks.
The Ad Pictures Show "Raised Rails"
Is that what you got to fit your Yakima xbars?
You got that versatile transmission too?
yep, yakima rail grabbers, and
automatic transmission with only two gears low and drive, but it shifts smoothly between the two, and you got a lot of leeway in low, also have something called xdrive (slows you down to 12 mph going down hills, and also a traction control button) time will tell how well it all works.
I think you must mean two selections
– Last Updated: Feb-01-16 9:37 PM EST –
Unless its a CV transmission, I'd say there must be four or five gears, but there're only two choices on the gear selector.
you got it, low is like 1st, 2nd, 3rd
gear so yeah just two selections-drive and low but it gears up to 50 in low if you want to do that. Used to drive a standard but its really kind of a pain here , too many places you have to stop on a hill in wv but at least we don’t tend to have a lot of stop and go traffic. Gotten lazy over the years as well.
tranny
Forester has two choices for a tranny, the manual and a CVT. CVT has no separate gears, it’s continuously variable, which also means you can’t drop a gear to slow down since there are no gears to drop to.
I’d have to check to be sure but the wife’s Subaru Legacy with the CVT has a special brake for getting started on steep hills, holds until forward motion is detected then automatically releases. If their manual has the same feature it would make hills simple.
Bill H.
Hill Hold
It’s called Hill Hold. My 2005 Forester with manual transmission has it, and it really does help when starting off uphill. 130,600 on original clutch.