Ford Escape

I had an 05 Tribute with the 3.0 V6, drove great no issues. The only reason I got rid of it was to get something bigger. The Mazda CX7 has major motor (timing chain) issues, stay far away. Don't forget Kias and Hyundais, if you can find one that has been taken care of they will run for quite a while. I have had an 05 Kia Sorento for the past three years with no issues, it does ride like a truck however (it has a full frame under it, not car based) but for the $$ it is hard to beat, TCB for sure. I bought it from the original owner with maintenance records from Moritz Kia.

Drove a couple of Ecapes one had what sounded like a bearing issue. Wacky thing was it had less than 35,000 miles on it. Second one we drove was nice and quiet and had 80,000 miles on it. The search continues!

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Originally Posted by POS Racing

I know this is going to mess with the entire time space continuum and stuff - but I am not a Honda fanboy....

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Too bad for you.

We put ten years and 130k miles on our '05 CR-V. It went to the dealer exactly once... For something I ended up fixing anyway (growly transfer case). Quite literally the most trouble free vehicle I've ever owned. We traded it in for $5k last year when we bought the Highkander, so that generation should be in the ballpark price range you're looking for. Go for an '05+ to get the 5-speed auto versus the 4-speed of models (or just get one with a manual).

If you want a small SUV for <$7k that isn't going to nickel and dime you to death with repairs, that's what I'd recommend.

Also, keep in mind resale value. I assume that this is something you'll keep while KK is in college, but probably not forever, right?

A $7k CR-V is going to hold its value better than a $7k Escape over the next 3-4 years. Heck, a $7k 3rd gen 4Runner (if you can find a decent one for that price) might actually appreciate, based on the current market trends.

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Originally Posted by altiain

Go for an '05+ to get the 5-speed auto versus the 4-speed of models (or just get one with a manual).

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Also, the '02 to '04 had a flawed A/C design. My '04 went 210K with very few problems but the A/C went totally kaput 3 times, once under warranty and twice on my dime. Great vehicle but avoid those years.

Nice try but still not a Honda Fanboy. They are not what they once were back in the glory-hole days of Honda. I have owned a few Hondas and have no intentions of owning another. Well other than my Honda push mower it is the bomb! ;-)

I got a Honda-powered 4-stroke trimmer. Holy cow! It was expensive but I'll never use anything else. I probably won't have to either. That thing is a beast.