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I had to make a very hard choice 4 years ago: Do I put a set of 80,000 mile tires on an 8 year old, 1997 Avalon, with 175,000 miles?

Made that decision again last month. I put a set of 80,000 mile tires on a 12 year old Avalon with 265,000 one owner, trouble free miles on the odometer.

So I'll place another vote for the Avalon. I would not hesitate to just change the oil and drive from Florida to California in that car. Consistent 24mpg, in the city and at 85mph on the highway. Very comfortable as the driver and for passengers. Huge trunk.

However, If I had known the car would still be running so smoothly at 265,000 miles, I would have taken better care of the paint!! Like be more aggressive in washing off the Love Bugs and waxing it more than twice in the last 12 years!!!

After having the Camary as the family car for the last five years we purchased a Accord EX-L last May.

The Camry had a softer ride with more float in tight curves and the gas mileage was from 28 - 32 mpg.

The Accord has a firmer ride and more responsive to the road, the gas mileage has been 27 - 32 mpg but has only 10k so far and it may get slightly better.

The Accord will shift more than the Camary on a road with the cruise set but responds better when passing cars.

I read this comment on edmund car reviews when we were looking and agree with it. ( the Camary is more of a grandma ride while the Accord is more of a sportscar ride).

Both cars had the 4 cylinder engine. If we were buying again my wife and I both agree that it would be a Accord.

Here is a link to the Edmunds reviews and comments.

http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.ee9e72b/2786

Accord. Four cylinders.

Good, responsive ride. Comfortable for long trips.

Good gas mileage.

Generally, ded-nutz reliable.

I would choose it over a Toyota or Nissan, but that's more personal than anything.

Maintenance should be a lot less expensive than a German car. American cars ... I just don't believe you're going to see the model-wide reliability that you'll see in a Japanese or German vehicle.

- Tom

If you're looking crossover, check out the AWD 2010 Chevy Equinox with 4 cylinder. 30MPG, very comfortable.

I rent cars all the time and I have to tell you they all --- mid-sized and up--- appear to have about the same road worthy quality and don't break. If one breaks then it's an assembly line problem with a recall. Again, I like Honda's BUT I've been more and more impressed with American mid and full sized cars. I do like most all cross-overs for highway.

Were I to buy something other than what I've already posted as a road sled I would base my decision on the convenience feature set that suits my needs.


Built in as much as possible:

Radar Detctor
Hands Free
USB Ports
110V conversion
GPS--Especially, one that provides real-time traffic updates
Bluetooh
IPod
Phone
Backup Battery
Lots of airbags
DVD
Cup Holders
XM Radio

The above may sound dumb but believe it all matters when you live on the road.

We have a 2006 Avalon. It's just a slightly stretched Camry with a tiny bit more width. It gets phenominal mileage for it's size. On rural roads at 62mph it gets 35 mpg. On the freeway 30-33 depending on wind and hills. It's comfortable as heck and has enough legroom in the back seat for a basketball team.
We came from an Accord to this car. The accord is put together well but you sit alot lower and there is way way more road noise in the Accord. (Typical for honda's).
Where I work the company car is a chevy impala. It's really pretty nice and get's good mileage. If an American car is a must I'd consider that or a ford fusion. If Foreign works and you want a bit more comfort and road isolation I'd go toyota.

I have gotten incredible service from Honda, Nissan, and Acura. I liked the Acura's the best, but they all got great mileage and gave me lots of miles on the odometer. I have an old Sentra that I use for errands, and it got 38.9 MPG from the last tankful. It's no powerhouse, but it gets me around Appalachia just fine. My Acura Integra was sporty handling, but a deer ran into me in Georgia and destroyed it. Our Legend was a sweet ride too, but the timing belt went south and it was not worth repairing. Got a lot of mileage from both though. I have an old Accord parked on my acreage that still runs; it has 357,000 miles on it, but it has begun to smoke, so I parked it. I may replace the engine as it got 39-42 MPG.

I am to the point that buying made in the USA means more to me than ever before, but it is hard to beat the Japanese autos or motorcycles.

I understand that America is supposed to be building much better stuff now, but I have been severely disappointed by American bikes and cars in the past.

i suggest a toyota camry, and if not that, then a honda accord.

I went out this afternoon and found two Accords that fit the description of what I want. Basically I have decided I definitely want leather seats and alloy wheels, which limits my choices to a Camry SE, an Accord EX-L or an Avalon Touring. I found all three used on one lot, believe it or not, but the Avalon is a 2005, which puts it out of the running. The Camry SE has cloth seats with leather trim and has 35K miles. The Accord EX-L has 16K miles, leather seats and the 268 hp V6. It still has a est 29 mpg on the highway, which is only 1 mpg less than my Scion xB. The asking price for the Accord is $26,899, but since I worked for a while at the dealership, I can get it for $24K. They are going to look at my xB tomorrow and see what kind of trade numbers they can come up with. The other 2008 Accord EX-L I found is green with black leather, has 7K miles on it, and has the 4 cyl for the same price. I like the silver with grey leather and the v6, and feel its worth the 9K mile difference to get the v6 for the same price.
Any opinions?

Toyota Avalon is how I would go.

Expat

A family member used several Jetta diesels over the years for work, traded them off at a little over 200,000 miles, very little issues with these and the only vehicle she could actually make money on considering the allowance for mileage.

I really like the Avalon Touring, but they are few and far between used and a new one is about 10K out of my price range...

9K is nothing on a Honda. I wouldn't worry about if that's the one you want.

Since you are driving a Scion, I am pretty sure you won't like my recommendation. A full size Buick. Lesabre or Lucerne. Big, comfortable, lots of room for 4 people, huge trunk, and they get 28-30 MPG. Our company had a couple of them that went over 250k with no serious problems. Most people consider them "geezer" cars though.

Jerry

Get one of those smart cars!!

not much help on the car gig,

but tickled to death you found a new gig


hope it works out great for you

don't know how much sales you've done if any, but you have to get used to No's, and that's cool, be polite, thank em for their time and ask if they'd mind if you'd call upon them in the future.

also my guess is though I've no clue what you're selling, but remember it's what you can do for your customer, some of them may be having a tough time, if you can figure out strategies to show what you provide can help them increase sales or profitability you'll do far better.

Last year for the Avalon Touring was 2008. Most geezers, I'm a geezzer, evidently did not like the taut ride. Go figure!

I have been a travelling salesman for 31 years now. Similar miles per month as you plan to put on. I Live in the US and Sell to folks in the US so for me, it is American cars all the way. This has not at all been a handicap. I have had two Pontiacs and one Cadillac go way over 200,000 miles still looking and driving great with utter reliability. Since my territory now includes lots of mountains and rural visits I am on my second V-6 Explorer. First one was nearing 250K when it was destroyed in an accident that nearly killed me and the one I am now driving still looks and drives and feels like a new rig with 201,000 miles on it and shows no signs of slowing down. Still getting 20-22 MPG in mixed driving.

IF it were me looking to buy a car I would say that #1 don't buy brand new, you are going to take in in the shorts in a BIG HUGE way as far as depreciation with a zero miles auto. Get yourself a 2-3 year old Grand Prix or Bonneville from GM, same ERA Chrysler 300C or Ford 500. The 500 is kinda boring looking but is a terrific car.

BTDT, Still GTDT.

Congratulations and welcome to my world. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk about the life you are entering. There are tips and shortcuts etc.

I used to travel bvetween 500-700 miles per week.

Our company cars were Mercury Grand Marquis'. I had several of

Them and liked the car very much. They are roomy, decent engine, have a great ride and are very reasonably priced.


JM.

Currently on my third Trailblazer (I run about 35,000 per year selling building materials); it's the right size for my needs. With the Trailblazer discontinued my company is going to a choice between the Nissan Murano or Buick Lucerne. I love my Trailblazer, but it only gets 18.5 mpg (the four wheel drive eats up some mpg). My daughter has a 2WD Trailblazer and gets 20 mpg.