...between these 4 cylinder crossover mini SUV's. The Tucson 2010's are out, as they're more or less sold out. The local dealer has a waiting list of 30 long for the 2011's, and dealer financing is about 4%. The 2010 Rogue is still available, but seems a bit smaller, and engine is a tad underpowered, though is cheaper and there's 0% right now. Gas mileage for both are about the same. Comments, suggestions?
I hate to side with Hyundai, but I think a 2011 Tucson would be a much better choice than the Nissan Rogue. The Rogue is downright ugly, it is definitely underpowered, and the wheelbase seems exceptionally short for an SUV. The Tucson has a better warranty, the build quality should be quite good on the 2011 models, and for the money you can probably get more options on the Hyundai. Tucson GLS - 19,000 Tucson Limited - 24,000 vs Rogue S - 20,000 Rogue KROM Edition - 24,000 in both price catagories you are quite well matched... even on the basis of styling alone, i'd choose the Tucson. To be honest though, if I was in the market for an SUV in the 25 thousand dollar range, my choice would have to be the Toyota Venza. They are starting at 26 thousand, but for that money you get a car that you should be able to live with for the rest of your life. The venza has tons of interior space, a seriously nice design, its super comfortable, and you can opt for a massive 2 part sunroof option that my friend has on hers. If you do spec up with the leather package it does add on an additional 4 grand... but Toyota often has very good sales, and you could try to bargain down to invoice pricing + 5% with enough effort.
Thanks fearless, I was thinking the same thing about the Tucson, but just wanted to hear it from someone else before plunking down 25 grand (closer to 30 with all the extras). The interesting thing about the Toyota is that I'm still a bid skittish regarding how they handled that unintended acceleration debacle. IMHO they didn't come clean, have a culture of lying and stonewalling, and quite frankly, really don't know what caused it. I suppose that every other company would likely have done the same thing. But they have been publicly shown to have their monetary interests way above and beyond consumer safety. For my money, I simply cannot support a company like that, no matter how nice their products. That said (if that wasn't an issue), the Venza is a decent looking vehicle and has larger wheels and gas tank capacity. However, its curb weight for the base model I wanted (Limited AWD) is about 400 pounds heavier. I agree that the interior is almost three times as big (25 vs 70 cubic ft), but that great cargo room is paid for by the fact that the Venza is about 15 inches longer and also 4 inches wider. That would put it into the same class as (and even slightly bigger than) the Hyundai Santa Fe (which I had seriously also considered). After much discussion my wife already eschewed that idea, stating that it was simply too big for her to feel comfortable in driving. The large 2 part sunroof is also available in the Tucson, btw. Thanks for the input Oh, and BTW, I understand about your "hating to side with Hyundai." They seriously need to change their name if they ever hope to penetrate more into the US Canadian market. People need to know how to intuitively say your name or else they will balk at your products, even if your products are good. Those consonant arrangements is too tough with mindless Americans; maybe they should just spell it Hunday? The other Korean firm that should consider a name change is Hankook Tires. They should spell it as Hancock Tires (which is almost the same, but sounds distinctly American, or haven't anyone heard of Japanese company Bridgestone?)
i was considering both tucson and rogue in my decision as well as the santa fe. The tucson is a nice car and the value for what you get is amazing. The design is nice too. I don't care what people say about Hyundai's and ii think their cars are nice and reliable, The interior of tucson compared to rogue is better too IMO. The bad thing about Hyundai is the resell value which is not that great. So if you're planning to keep the car then i say go for the Tucson. Also the warranty on Hyundai is better than nissan. I ended up with a cr-v though because i got a good deal on it. as for the name, Hyundai looks good. I dont think i can take a car brand name like Hunday seriously. They're just trying to translate 현대 and i guess hyundai would look better than hyun deh. And same for hancook tires, they want to translate from 한국 directly which should be hangoog. I guess Koreans what to be unique rather than fitting in. They want to be recognized as Korean made brand. Koreans have a lot of pride in their work.
Thanks for the input too, Kdotc, I agree about the resale value, but I doubt that would be an issue with me, as this would likely be eventually a hand me down to one of my boys. I also agree that the ROK has a lot to be proud of. In the short span of a half century, they went from being a former Chinese vassal state, to a Japanese colonial possession, was nearly wiped out by war, and living under a sword of Damocles still. But, they've become one of the world's most powerful economies today. So yes, they've certainly earned their pride. On the other hand, whilst they may love their name and be proud of it; marketing unfortunately, still relies a lot on consumer perception and acceptance. BTW, just visited the Hyundai dealership this afternoon; the 2011 Tucsons are back ordered with a 2 month wait... <sigh>
i waited 5 months for my IS250 to come from japan 2 months isn't that bad -scooter. Definitely worth the wait though, don't go rogue, i think you'll be disappointed in that decision in the long run if you jump the gun and get the nissan. Just make sure you can get locked in at the 0% interest on the hyundai 2 months down.
I agree that the Tucson is probably well worth the wait. On the other hand, the 0% financing isn't offered for the Tucson (which is selling too well), just for the other Hyundai models (and Nissan as well). The missus was royally bummed about the wait though; she even suggested maybe we should just buy something used instead (which comes with its own set of unique headaches). :laugh: As for the SRX, Yeah, I agree that it's a beautiful car. However, starting msrp of 33k is a tad high for me. -blush Further, its gas mileage isn't anything to write home about (18 mpg). Gas prices have come back down from the historic $4 per gallon, but that was a lesson learned as well. I'm surprised frankly, that most car manufacturers still don't get it. <sigh>
Have you tried the Tuscon? Did you feel and play around inside? The build quality is as good as the Audi's. Coming from a guy who HATES Hyundai.
I bought the 2011 Kia Sorento V6. Same engine as the Hyundai Santa Fe but more options thrown in. It first I wanted to get the Rogue, but needed more interior space. The 2011 Sorento can be a 5 or 7 seater.
Have you considered the Mitsubishi Outlander? You could score a mid-range one with an Inline 4 and All Wheel Drive for about $24.7k MSRP or a V6 with Front Wheel Drive for $25.7k MSRP. http://www.mitsubishicars.com/MMNA/jsp/build.do?modelId=100035
Yeah, I did briefly look through the features of the Sorento, Terrain, and Outlander; however, all vehicles are about 184 inches length or more, and the missus (who will need to park it) is balking. The car she was used to before was only ~ 173 inches, and even then she doesn't know how to park (what can I say, she's a Chinese woman). Frankly, the parking issue basically knocked out the Sante Fe, which I would have seriously considered. The Sorento too, with the optional 2 extra seats in the back, would have been especially helpful. The outlander actually does look very good, despite Mitsubishi seeming to nickel and dime you on the individual options, LOL. The other choice one step up would have been the Murano, but with everything that I wanted, would have cost an additional 10-12 K (sob). As for the test drive, I'm making an appt tomorrow with the Hyundai dealer. If it becomes such a pain in the ass, then I may just buy something small (like the Elantra Touring) and let the missus drive it to her heart's content; I'll continue with public transportation which, frankly doesn't bother me at all, LOL... And thanks to all for your helpful comments and suggestions. Another update: I just looked at the Kia Sportage, which really rivals the Tucson in just about all respects, and IMHO, looks a bit better. But, the Rondo, which isn't really anything stylish to write home about, also comes in 7 seats (2009 EX model only; 2010's are all 7 seaters), and is dirt cheap. They don't seem to sell all that well as the Kia site still seems to have 2009 models dealer stock left over, and they're offering 2K cash back. The thing is only 5 inches longer than the Tucson, which is tolerable considering all the extra room this thing has. It's used to also be known as the Caren and is the same vehicle that was introduced as a 2007 New York City Taxi prototype. I'm seriously thinking about this one. http://images.paultan.org/images/rondo22.jpg
Actually, both the Rogue and Tucson has limited areas of side vision on both sides of the vehicle. The Hyundai salesman was actually quite up front about it, detailing how a driver should set up his mirrors to work around that. The problem is that (with the Tucson at least) the rear side windows are almost nonexistent. Their smaller size gives them a much better aesthetic appearance on the outside, but makes driver visibility from the interior a real horror. To make a long story short, I was going to go with the Kia Rondo, then found out that Kia is abandoning the Rondo line in the US due to poor sales. I settled for the Hyundai Elantra Touring. It's actually a lot roomier than either the Tucson or Rogue, better gas, and dirt cheap (about 20K maxed out). The same options in either Tucson or Rogue would have cost a total of 26-28K. At any rate, simple transportation is best when it's simple, eh?
