just wait
once low sulfur diesel shows up all those high tech diesels from europe will appear. Honda is doing some fantastic research and prototyping of a gasoline engine that will have as high efficiency as diesel,with less weight and pollution. Almost a diesel type of combustion but instead of a point ignition in the cylinder it’s a homogenous ignition througout the cylinder,lower peak temps but higher average temp, more complete combustion and higher efficiency.
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subaruoutback.org
For the head gasket issues with some MKII subaru’s 2.5L engine, check here:
http://www.subaruoutback.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=88
Jay
'05 Subaru Outback XT
That’s mine! Power and the hauling capabilities for all my outdoor pursuits.
A better option if you don’t need the ground clearance is the
Legacy GT wagon, which has a shorter roofline, and perhaps a more sleeker OEM roofrack combo.
However, I would modify the two above to replace the flimsy crossbars with something from Thule, Yakima, Saris, etc. And move the crossbars forwards as much as possible.
Jay
I have a 2005 Outback
which works well for my purposes, but I have to admit that I have considered both the Honda CRV and the new Toyota Rav4 as alternatives. Why? Both have swinging rear gates rather than hatches. This allows unfettered access to the vargo area unlike a wagon with a hatch. I recently ran a shuttle with a CRV owner, and was impressed with the spaciousness of the vehicle. IMHO the CRV has a better rack setup (hidden mounting pads) than the Toy (rails seem a bit wimpy compared to the Suby’s).
Jim
engines
Our 1999 Legacy has the 2.2. Adequate power, good economy, and no trouble other than being on it’s third water pump in 150,000 miles.
buying car in America
to coincide with my return to SC after 3 years of fun on and off the water in Australia. Glad to see that people do read profiles.
In Oz, the Subies are very well respected. Volvo drivers have a bit of reputation to overcome. I did have a 240 wagon (in US)some years ago that was a superb kayak machine.
Is there much of a used Subaru market in southern states? The new prices are scary!
Yes
The low sulpher fuel available in Europe now enables the same engine that I have to produce almost 75% more HP and still provide higher milage and meet emmissions standards. Seems like this would go a long way towards using our resourses more efficently.
Mark
2004 MAZDA6S SORTWAGON WORKS GREAT
– Last Updated: Apr-27-06 10:30 AM EST –
for Sally and me.
We despaired at the relative dearth of wagons out there.
We have a fine Jeep Grand Cherokee -but it IS an SUV, and that means it's relatively tall. Especially after you add a roof rack. We finally figured out we wanted a wagon, because when it came time to replace our old Nissan 240, we also knew we weren't going to stop paddling after retirement, which was coming up real soon.
And we ALSO knew that year in and year out, every year, inexorably:
1-The Jeep got an inch taller,
2-The kayaks got an inch heavier, and
3-WE got an inch older!
It was time to "go low" with our next car purchase. That meant either a station wagon or a sedan or sports car. The sports car lost out because we were replacing our old Nissan 240, and every year, THAT car got an inch LOWER...
Which meant that every year, we'd have to climb an inch HIGHER out of the bucket seat gravity wells... Which left sedans & wagons.
So last year, we got a new 2004 Mazda6S SportWagon V6. Here's how & why we ended up with a Mazda...
Virtually all sedans we researched had (still have, actually) a liftover to evade as you throw stuff into and retrieit back out of the trunk -and we didn't want that for the gym bags or groceries, so sedans' low roof height advantage was negated by high liftovers. Plus, they have slightly to significantly shorter rooflines for the best roof rack bar spacing.
So it was wagons -eeeew, STATION wagons, like 50s families yearned for, how VERY UNcool! -we ended up targeting.
As well documented about a year ago, we (and Greyak and not ong before that, Grayhawk) lamented the lack of wagons out there -we would have jumped at the chance to try a Honda, Toyota, Nissan -but they've all dropped wagons after having produced them for years.
So it came down to the mid-sized ones that WERE available: Audi, Mercedes, and BMW at the high end, and VW Passat, the Subaru Legacy & Outback, and the Mazda 6S at the lower end.
We passed on the first three because of costs, and/or used ones weren't available, and that we didn't want a vehicle as small as Grayak's beloved A3 (talk to him about 'driving style' and the possibilities of his pocket rocket).
We passed on Grayhawk's Outback (which he got to replace HIS Jeep Grand Cherokee) because we wanted lower height, and because it, and the Legacy (the less rugged, weaker, shorter base model of the Outback), required premium fuels in the models that actually had a "power" plant, as opposed to a mush-box, up between the front wheels. i tried the Subie 4-banger, and it just didn't cut the mustard -when I stepped on the gas, it felt like I stepped in a bucket of oatmeal...
And though we really liked most things about the VW Passat we passed on it because the diesel was fairly pricey (and we didn't think the improved mileage would pay off -maybe now it might...!) and the smaller turbo power plant needed premium -and there were not-so-stellar rate of repair records noted in Consumer Reports -and by several of our friends (one who told us bery seriously in no uncertain terms "Don't get one of theose Passats! Things fall off!) and several mechanics we knew.
I'm not exactly sure why, but we really didn't look at Volvos or Saabs and I'm not biased against Scandanavians. Possibly because my ex-wife proudly drove and flaunted a string of them?
The Mazda6S SportWagon offered us a very attractive package (leather, AM/FM/6-In-Dash CD Bose w/subwoofer, moonroof, 10-way power seat, 220hp V6, great feet on 17X50 alloys, climate control) at a very attractive price ($22.5K) with a quite spirited (see Subaru comment above) but very comfortable and yet still taut drive -using regular gas, along with the roof rails, a very nice rear load capacity and easy slide in & out rear load deck. Best of all, it had a nice low roofline to carry the boats.
That said, I surprisingly liked the Focus 5-door hatch when I had one as a rental for a week in Tallahassee -but it and the station wagon model -was, as was the A3, the Subie Impreza Wagon, and some others, too small. But if it meets your size criteria, and if it's improved its rate-of-repair, you could do a lot worse...
Here's our setup & toting philosophy:
We use a Thule CrossRoads roof rack attached to to the roof rails, and clad the bars with pool noodles (to deaden the incredible wind howl) held in place with clear strapping tape. Yakima hadn't at that point come out with their roof rail gripping rig, or we'd have used them after liking them on the Jeep.
We carry all our boats -SINKs or SOTs, poly or hardshell plastic or glass, upside down, using just the bars and two doubled cinch straps each. We can put a third atop the other two, and have several times for hundred plus mile trips down to the Keys or upstate. I cinch them tight enough so that when I push on them, the car moves. And I haven'yt siffered oil canning, either, even after several hours in the hot South Florida summer sun.
For short jaunts around town, I don't use fore & aft tie-down lines. For long trips, or those where I expect to be on expressways for extended higfh-speed travel, I use them. I carry the boats at speeds up to traffic speeds (up around 80 or so) and the boats are solid.
Good luck! Hope we all help narrow down your search and find a good smaller hauler wagon to tote your boat so you can more easily, stylishly, comfortably, reliably, and, above all, happily
PADDLE ON!
-Frank in Miami
WOW
dang,that’s a sexy wagon
http://www.mazdausa.com/MusaWeb/displayPage.action?pageParameter=modelsMain&vehicleCode=M6W
EVEN BETTER IN RED, BETTER YET WITH
us in it and me behind the wheel, and best yet, with a pair of kayaks strapped to the roof!
Yeah, gotta agree, not half bad styling…
Makes ya wanna get one, get out there (ZOOM ZOOM!), and
PADDLE ON!
-Frank in Miami
from this tightwads perspective
I’d go for the MX3 and put the extra $10k into gas or get a VWTDI but that is exactly the SUV folks should driving. Why someone would get a Nissan Murano and not a station wagon like that is beyond me. Man that is fast looking. It’s funny how it gets the same mileage as the MX5 which uses the fourcylinder and a heavier vehicle.
Nice looking car.
Does the antenna get in the way?
Mazda
The 6-wagon is a very nice wagon, I love the looks of it and the red is certainly nice!
If I wasn’t looking for AWD and the ground clearance, the Mazda6 was on my shortlist of wagons before I got my Outback XT. Surely the premium fuel makes it more expensive to operate, but I still get a decent 23.5mpg average speed with a mix of city/highway like driving (I bike to work, so most of my weekend trips tend to be more highway).
However, the turbo is certainly very fun and very fast, it’ll spank your 6 fairly easily. 
Jay
99 ford escort wagon
I have had 5 16+’ boats on the roof…yakima roof rack wtih one set of malones gullwings…and one set of surfboard pads…
love the size…although i must admit that the baots are longer than the car…
and yes-i did remove the outer antenna (there is no cd player and the tape deck died) and had an internal windshield antenna installed…
next vehicle: Subaru Baja…then i can put surf boat and/or bikes on the roof of the cab and then have a goal post type thing for the longer boats…plus bed for the wet stuff…
when???not certain…but sometime…have the good boats now…and the house…in a 3 months a wife…and then a new car…unless she wants to upgrade to a t165pro first…
r
Low sulfer is here now folks.
I’ve been using it for about a month now, and at least in the PNW it’s now on-line. No smoke at start-up, way less smell, runs fine. Where do you get the 75% more HP number? PLEASE inform me, as I’m very skeptical.
New diesels
AFAIK, the only difference VW is planning in their engines is going to a common-rail injection system, rather than the more complex PD system they’ve been using in the US since '04 (Which I have one of, and like a lot).
They’ll probably pump up the power more, too, but it’s really not necessary. If it gets the same or better mileage than they do now, then it would be fine.
I’ve run biodiesel (B20) in mine from time to time, and it runs great on it. Problem I have is that it’s not available where I live at a price I’m willing to pay. I’m told that will change soon, too.
Wayne
'87 Totyota Tercel 4WD Wagon
I’ll keep driving it until it drops…300k+ and still going…
ANTENNA’S NO PROBLEM
Its flexible and bends when hit, and don’t forget that the Thule CrossRoads add a bit to the lift of the yaks above it.
AND BTW -maybe a turbo will “spank” us off the line. but not by ALL that much -and it’s not the fast getaway, but the top end, that I enjoy…
But the antenna’s fine even when I slide a boat across it loading or unloading it as we
PADDLE ON!
-Frank in Miami
I onw a vw passat with all wheel drive
6 cilinders bad mileage exxential a stripped down audi a4. Save and good tractions for the winter. If not for my wife, who cannot drive well I’d have gotten a subaru outback legacy or jetta.
Bow and stern lines? Yes doing otherwise is not prudent.
Buick Roadmaster Wagon
It gets 22 on the highway with a load of boats and a big load of folks. It has a fuel injected 350 so it tows a trailer like it isn’t there. They are very reliable and can be had for a song because they are totally uncool. They are as comfortable as any Cadillac.
If you are getting one as a spare or second car they are a very good choice.