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Wagons Station Wagon vs SUV
1426 messages, Last post on Feb 21, 2007 at 8:37 AM
You are in the Wagons Forum. Your Host is kcram
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I had a change of heart. I bought a 2002 Silver Forester S Premium with leather and nearly everything except the hitch, rear skid plate and speaker upgrade. It came with the tweeter upgrade, but not the speaker upgrade(and it needs it, I think.) FWIW, all of the options were factory-installed. So far, it's great. If there's any road or wind noise it's on a frequency I can't hear anymore. Getting 24 mpg with half of it on the Interstate and half in town and I'm always the first one away from the light, too. Where do I buy a sturdy front skid plate? I've searched some, but need some user input. Inconsiderate salesman/salesmanager story  I had the invoice price written on a piece of paper in my pocket and everything else in the car. I'd been looking all over the state and saved the local "We Sell For Less" place for last. Went in at 4:00 p.m. on 8/31, saw the one I wanted and asked for a cash price. I had an equity line check and a pen in my shirt pocket. Mr. Almost-knew-his-product-line wanted to look at the sticker. He wanted to talk to the manager. He wanted me to drive it before he asked the manager for a price. He wanted me to drive it before he told me the price. He wanted to discuss Subaru's strong points. You know the routine. He was a nice guy, just too predictable. I was ready for almost anything, but mostly wanted an answer to my questions "You're selling cars, right? How much is it?" So he gave up and went to get a price. For those nodding off, I'll summarize. I still hadn't made an offer at this point, only commented that the sticker was a fantasy. Five minutes later he's back with some story about them needing to sell one more to make 50 or more for the fifth month in a row. His first offer was invoice plus $100. Okay, that was rude. I'm ready to butt heads and whine and cry, and they pull that low-first-offer-take-it-or-leave-it nonsense. What kind of dealer is this? I opened at $200 below invoice, but only got them down another $80. Then I went to dinner, but still couldn't get them to go any lower later. Oh, well. The salesman promised to mail me a free tube of touch-up paint, but I haven't seen it. It was his idea!!! What a guy! And I sent him a referral. Boy do I feel stupid. John P.S. My 79-year-old father wasn't too sure about the Forester - he likes large cars and at least a V-6. Then he drove it. He was very impressed with the handling, the ride and the pickup. Oh, and the headroom. He still likes wearing his hat when he drives. I claim it's a habit he picked up as a State Trooper. He denies it and claims to have witnesses to prove it's a much older habit. Who knows? |
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The co-worker I referred to my Subaru salesman bought an Outback yesterday. Not only did he drive up in his new wagon this morning, he also brought me the long-promised touch-up paint!!!!! They had to order it. John |
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Glad you got the paint. Now, take it easy for the 1st 1k miles, keeping it below 4000rpm and vary speeds. I'm at 42k miles and she stills runs great. Hop over to the Subaru Crew topics under Owners Clubs. There you will find several active topics. Hop into Meet the Members and introduce yourself, then hop over to Modifications and ask about the skid plates. I know Lucien will have some useful info, maybe Colin too. There were links to skid plate vendors earlier, but I'm sure they'd be glad to re-post them for you. Congrats. -juice PS Oh, and we hold a weekly chat every Thursday night, join in |
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to both the Suv and Station Wagons message boards. That means you can now access this discussion from either one of these message board. Hope you enjoy discussing this subject with participants from both of these boards. Happy motoring! Revka Host Hatchbacks / Station Wagons / Women's Auto Center Boards |
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Just deleted one of my previous posts, because I noticed the article I was trying to link people to was no longer there. Sorry for the error. So to get things rolling here, let's try this again with an article from Edmunds' News Section: The Station Wagon as a Viable Alternative to the SUV, by Miles Cook. What do you think? Also, did anyone here consider a Station Wagon before purchasing a SUV... or vice versa. What were the deciding factors that weighed in on your final choice? Thanks for your comments.  Revka Host Hatchbacks / Station Wagons / Women's Auto Center Boards |
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I am excited about the "merger" of the SUV and Station Wagon discussion and looking forward to hearing from all of you! tidester Host SUVs |
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Once upon a time SUV's (This was before anyone called them SUV's) were cool. Back in those days people actually drove these vehicles off road. They were simply trucks that moved more people. They brought us to old mining towns and out of the way picnic spots. I spent a lot of time Jeeping in old 1970's Broncos and Jeep CJ's as a kid. I hold a strong love for such trucks in my heart. That was then, this is now. Let's face it, it's cool to look like you are an outdoor enthusiast. It's fun to sit up high in a truck and look down on the road, but it bites to drive these trucks. In truth, there aren't many pure SUV's left on the road. Not many of the SUV's being built today can be driven on anything short of a gravel road. Today's SUV's are simply mini vans or wagons with AWD and a tough looking exterior. Car makers realize that Image is what sells. If we make buyers feel like a back country guide with our car, we will sell units. My point is that wagons and SUV's are really close to the same thing. In a way this makes sense. Only 2% of the SUV population will ever leave paved roads. Very few people need off road capability. I have owned SUV's and I have used them as off road vehicles. It is fun to take these off road, but as often as people do, one can rent a Jeep for a day when needed. Let's face it. Wagons make more sense, but they are not cool. I own a wagon and it gives me the handling, power, comfort and room I need. I do not have a family of ten and have no need for an Excursion of Suburban. There may be a few people out there who need this kind of room. I doubt there are many. Bottom line, SUV's sell on image. We as humans have a need to feel important and if driving an SUV gives you that feeling, bully for you. Is a wagon better than an SUV? No not really. Is it more practical in the real world? You bet. Go ahead and drive your SUV. Enjoy it. Fill it up with you outdoor gear and your friends. Take it to the mountains and please for your sake and the truck's, drive it up a jeep road (please be responsible if you do). Enjoy our image maker. You can smile down at me on the road as I pass you in my wagon. |
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Boy, you sure took a 180—going from wanting a bare-bones Subie, to a loaded Forester! I too have a Forester S Premium. It's an white '01 model with about 22K on it. We love it, and my daughter's friends have named it the "Toaster"... BTW, we also love the bun warmers and auto-dimming mirror. Bob |
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OK, I'm jealous, I'll admit it. Congrats. -juice |
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