Mid sized SUV recommendations?

[dodge man]

Definitely not set on Toyota. This would be replacing our 2019 Chrysler 300c. Right now focused on Toyota because we are renting one and my in laws have a hybrid Highlander.

 

[DarkBlack]

Between two at work, I put probably 400,000 miles on explorers in the last 8 years

400,000 in 8 years
I’d absolutely hate to have your career.
That’s 50,000 a year
That’s 962 miles a week
That’s 192 miles a day over a 5 day drive week.
No thanks. Glad you like it

 

[JTKub]

Toyota
Toyota, not Lamborghini!

I'm dropping my 87yr old mom's 2015 Camry LE off tonight at a shop for brakes. Still pad and rotor life left as it only has about 50K miles on it, but they're still the factory brakes after 11 rust belt winters. This vintage Camry is quite the vehicle. I think it was ~$23K all in back in 2015. Those were the days.

 

[paulsharvey]

400,000 in 8 years
I’d absolutely hate to have your career.
That’s 50,000 a year
That’s 962 miles a week
That’s 192 miles a day over a 5 day drive week.
No thanks. Glad you like it

Right at between 3800-4300 miles per month. Thats just work, personal vehicle, I only drive about 10-15,000/year.

Edit: Which may color my thoughts in the "basic work truck" thread, and why I think a couple "comfort" options are good in a vehicle

 

[deserteagle71]

I inherited a Ford Explorer LTD. The price was right, and it's a really nice vehicle when it works.

Unfortunately, Ford put the water pump INSIDE the engine. A part you should be able to replace by yourself in under an hour requires disassembly of the right side of the motor. It is unbelievable.

You can say that about any of the manufacturers. Some smart GM engineer put the belt that drives the oil pump at the rear of the engine on their new "baby Duramax"; when it is time to change it, transmission and engine have to be split apart. One of my buddies had a Ram pickup in which the exhaust ran under the transmission oil pan, so close that to change transmission fluid the shop had to drop the exhaust system.

These days they engineer them so you have to take everything to a shop to be worked on - and it will take hours (and many dollars) to get taken care of.

 

[anomad]

Another option is a minivan. When we decided to buy a SUV so my wife could have more space to haul our dogs to the vet and AKC Dog Shows, she said that there is no way that she would ever have a minivan. We looked at almost every brand and size of SUV but didn't like how little room there was for dog crates.

Almost everyone at the dog shows drives a van of some kind. Either it's a great big one or a Chrysler Town and Country because of the folding seats. I have never been a fan of Chrysler. I almost refused to even look at one. But once we did, and then drove it, we realized how wrong we had been. It just sort of blew us away with the amount of visibility, the acceleration, the quality of the ride, and most importantly, how much room it has.

We've had a few issues with it. The rear AC is finicky. It's great for keeping the dogs cool, but we've had to have it worked on several times. There have been some sensor issues that needed replacing that have annoyed us too, but overall, it's been reliable and a decent vehicle. The next minivan will probably be a Toyota. The folding seats are a great option, but we never use them. They remain folded and if we buy a Toyota, we'll just remove the seats.

I bought my neighbor Bill's Town and Country after he passed away last summer. He was 95 and still driving! Didn't have a valid license, but he didn't let that bother him... LOL It is a 2007 with 53k miles and at least one dent in every body panel. It is my 3rd minivan and I love it.

My wife and sister went to an Audi and Mercedes diesel about 10 years ago and they have been great. High 30's for mileage, low 40's if you hold your breath. When they were shopping we went to Carmax in Dulles Virginia and sat in every SUV we could find. They had an impressive inventory. The first thing I said when I got in the Audi was "man these seats are comfortable". I also drive it in comfort mode. The other one I liked was the Durango with the big V8. But that is a fairly large car.

The only SUV I have had myself was a Jeep XJ. I forget the year but it had the old 4 liter inline 6 and solid axles. Great car. But comfort was not it's forte.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

Do oil pumps and transmission pans commonly fail at 80,000 miles? Do they send water into your engine when they go bad? I don't think it's the same at all.

 

[Too many Kubotas]

I'd think that a dodge man would consider a Durango.

I recently bought a '26 with the 5.7 and they're surprisingly affordable. Just a hair over $40K in my case.