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The perfect north Idaho vehicle would be one that sheds mud automatically. Dust shedding would be good too.
If anyone hears of such a car..please let me know.
Mud season is so wonderful...everyone who lives on a dirt or gravel road walks around with mud on the backs of their legs from getting in and out of their cars and trucks.
Those are main choices from major manufacturers and there are things in favor of that certainly, maybe especially for use in a rural area.
If you are still looking at late model used cars, the mild knock I hear about the Pathfinder is that is not as good an on-road performer as the reputation might suggest and that at least up thru 2009 it hadn't been significantly changed in a long while.
I have heard bigger knocks on the performance and reliability of Durangos in the past.
The Kia Borrego was an off the beaten path mention that I can understand on the face of it may not draw much interest. I probably should have added later that the '09 version won car / truck of the year from a few reputable resources like Edmunds, had a great safety rating, is strong at towing with the V-8 and is consider fairly fuel efficient for its engine / weight class. The biggest knocks would be perhaps average overall brand reliability and getting discontinued quickly due to poor sales (right as the market turned more toward crossovers) and that might hurt in finding parts. But the engine & transmission are used in other Kia models (and they've won some awards too) and those would be the most important parts to get so the risk might not be that bad. Still it would take a certain, fairly rare attitude to possibly take that car in this circumstance and I can understand not making the choice as well and I am not saying I would. I wouldn't take the Borrego for hardcore off-roading but for a Idaho gravel road level of challenge it sounded decent and a good size for your cited hauling needs. I've had good luck with a lesser known brand / model with good reviews before so it sounded semi-interesting to me to check out a bit further at least for curiosity sake since I hadn't looked at cars in awhile. Here were 2 of the reviews in case anyone else has any interest in it: 2009 Kia Borrego - First Test - Motor Trend 2009 Kia Borrego EX 4x4 Verdict - Motor Trend
Its appeal would be based partly on significantly lower used model pricing. I saw used ones were going for many thousands less than some other major manufacturer mid-sized truck-based SUVs such as a Pathfinder of the same year. I was mildly hoping someone had one or drove in one and was able to give a firsthand opinion to cross-check the published information but there aren't many of them out there. I'd prefer something smaller. Maybe Kia will try another truck based SUV again someday in the future.
I got interested in the hunt, partly as an advanced peek into my next one (though it probably won't be soon).
Your initial interest in the Explorer made sense. Its reliability is something I have heard concerns about like others have mentioned and same with Cherokees.
I've liked 4runners but passed before based on cost. However if you keep it a long time or you take advantage of high resale value it might be a good value as are some others. It gets pretty hard to figure out "the very best" from all angles but maybe good is enough.
A lot of it comes down to how cars are driven and maintained but there are better and worse vehicle models and better and worse luck too. Reading the reports, talking to others and making judgments on that as well as test drives is all you can do. Different people weight these differently. Hopefully it works out.
The perfect north Idaho vehicle would be one that sheds mud automatically. Dust shedding would be good too.
If anyone hears of such a car..please let me know.
Mud season is so wonderful...everyone who lives on a dirt or gravel road walks around with mud on the backs of their legs from getting in and out of their cars and trucks.
And one that has a windshield that repels rocks...on my second friggen windshield. :P
I was just looking at the Tahoe online. Very tempting, but probably too big. According to online reviews the Explorer 2011 is apparently the best mid-size SUV the world has ever seen , but fat chance of finding one, used and affordable! We'll include it in our search, anyway , and also the Jeep Patriot and Cherokee, the Ford Edge, and the Subaru Forester, for now. Been researching cars online for hours. Turns out the Trailblazer was discontinued in 2009 because of poor reviews and performance! The Pilot got horrible reviews, too.
Thanks so much, everybody. Any more favorites, just add them to the list!
PS I'd only feed my SUV Idaho tater juice if it's been really good! But maybe that wasn't the kind of potato alcohol you meant, Dusty?
I bought one of the Forester's when the new design came out in 09 and it's been flawless. It doesn't take the place of my full size 4X4, but it's actually better on ice, easier to park, and the mileage a heckuva lot better.
I bought one of the Forester's when the new design came out in 09 and it's been flawless. It doesn't take the place of my full size 4X4, but it's actually better on ice, easier to park, and the mileage a heckuva lot better.
That's good to know! If a 2009 Forester comes on our radar we'll check it out.
Our daughter just got a 2011 Forester and she loves it. The Outback is bigger though and gets a little better mileage.
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, but fat chance of finding one, used and affordable! We'll include it in our search, anyway 
, and also the Jeep Patriot and Cherokee, the Ford Edge, and the Subaru Forester, for now. Been researching cars online for hours. Turns out the Trailblazer was discontinued in 2009 because of poor reviews and performance! 
The Pilot got horrible reviews, too. 
