Letx Talk About Small 4X4 SUVs

My granddaughter is a senior in college. Presently is driving a beater New Beetle I got for her after she wrecked her Jetta. 

She lives in Southern Oregon and has decided that she really needs a vehicle that will allow her to drive to some of the more remote trailheads to hike, camp, and go snowboarding.  She also wants to be able to take her two high school age brothers with her on some of her trips as well

She thinks her "ideal vehicle" is 4-door Toyota 4x4 pickup.  I am confident she will never haul anything bigger than her snowboard.  With the Toyota Tax, a truck like that is at $10K+, something she will not be able to afford for a very long time. 

I'm thinking that something like a 4x4 Ford Escape would do all she wants and be half the money of the Toyota... not nearly as cool though. 

So broad parameters, 4X4, seats at least 3 (which probably means 4 door), decent mileage, and durable.  She has never driven a manual, so think we're stuck with a slushbox.

Recommendations/thoughts from the hive?

Find the best Suzuki XL-7 or Sidekick/Tracker you can. Nothing wrong  with a Ford Ranger Supercab if she wants a pickup. I prefer my 4x4's to have a real frame and a transfer case but what about a Subaru?

Thought about Subaru, but folks around here are really proud of them for some reason.  Hadn't thought about the Ranger, so that is an idea. 

Know nothing at all about Suzukis (other than old motorcycles) and don't think I have seen one here.  When I searched, the closest ones were in the Bay Area, Sacramento, or Portland - all are 6 - 8 hours away.  I'm a little concerned about the probable lack of knowledge about them if it were to break and I couldn't get to her.

In reply to CJ :

The Suzuki’s are among the last of the body-on-frame smallish 4x4’s. They are very simple vehicles.

Have you considered an XJ Cherokee?

I dont think rangers ever came with a real backseat, the little jump seat things were flat awful. If escape will handle what she wants to do get a cr-v instead. They are more or less the same as far as size and layout, but the crv's tend to live about twice as long as the escape. Crew cab dakotas, durango, and s10 blazers can be bought cheap if you want a frame and bigger tires.

You are shopping one of the most popular classes of vehicles in the US.  There are tons of Cute Utes to choose from.  Some with more capability than others.  As you are finding, this desirability drives prices up.  You may find this to be more of a fashion choice than a function choice.  This is not meant to be a put-down to females.  These fashion choices happen all the time.  How many Ford Raptors sell to dudes who really "need" that capability?  

Less of a choice for and more of a choice against...  When shopping these Cute Utes be sure to avoid the Saturn Vue.  Though the prices may seem to be favorable, all the choices with 4wd and auto trans are riddled with problems.  I did however own one that was fwd-only and manual trans that was wonderful for my needs but all 4wd and auto should be avoided.  

https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/ctd/d/portland-1997-geo-tracker-4wd/6842313388.html

One of these will go anywhere she ever needs to go. With a decent set of tires it will go anywhere any of us need to go. 

It will also knock down almost 25 - 30 mpg. 

Edit: Here's a little newer version.

https://portland.craigslist.org/clk/ctd/d/longview-2001-chevrolet-tracker-lt-4/6831474805.html

Edit again: These were sold by Chevy dealers. Any of them should be able to help her out in a pinch. 

The Honda CR-V is incredibly spacious inside, well put together, and the AWD is more than capable of getting you slightly off the beaten path.  With decent tires, it can go in the snow and gravel just fine.  There are plenty of them out there, but Honda tax may apply. 

The Suzuki is a good choice, I loved my Sidekick JX, just look for a rust-free example.  Along the same lines, the Isuzu Amigo is from a dead car brand so prices are pretty low. Same for the Rodeo, people don't want an Isuzu SUV, but they seem to be decent trucklets, no experience with them however. 

The Cherokee XJ is an ideal choice, my daughter got one when she was 16 and still likes it.  (almost 4 years now).  It is a beast, but rides like a beast too.  Parts are cheap and plentiful and it is so easy to work on. I would get one newer than 1995, that way you get a nicer interior, ABS, airbags, etc.  

And don't cross off the Grand Cherokee.  The 99-04 were awesome vehicles, I bought one new in 1999. (oddly enough because my daughter was born)  They are way better than a Cherokee in terms of comfort and features, and the second gens are getting cheap.  Just get a well-loved on with the straight 6 and it should run forever.  Why go for a cute-ute when you can have a real Jeep? 

The RAV-4 Sport with a V6 had like 275 hp. I'm just sayin'. 

If she likes the rugged stuff, maybe a Nissan X-Terra?  Made for many years, certainly has real off-road chops, and older ones may be in her price range. 

Xterra

Early RAV4 or CRV

SX4 

I'd fit Nokian WRG4s on the RAV, CRV or SX4. 

In reply to Toyman01 :

You basically just added pictures to my first post!

I'm looking for a similar vehicle in a similar price range to haul my kids camping in.

If she's looking for a crew cab 4x4 Tacoma forget it, prices are sky high. If she really wants a Toyota look at a 3rd or 4th gen 4Runner. They are much cheaper than a Tacoma and functionally pretty much same. For whatever reason the SUV body is much cheaper. Also worth looking at is the Lexus GX470. It's essentially a loaded out, V8 4wd 4Runner and they can be had for $6000. The GX is becoming popular with the "overlanders" so it has to be cool right? Lastly the earlier ('98-2003ish) 100 series Landcruisers are becoming very reasonably priced. 

Also, 2nd Gen Xterra's are dropping in price too. Finding one with 4wd can be a little difficult but they are out there.  I just missed a 1 owner 2007 4wd with all records that was advertised for $3800.

A V6 Escape with AWD in decent condition will run about $3000. Seriously, they are one of the better values out there, and compared to the rest of the Cute Utes are, on average, much more capable vehicles. This is of course not counting the true body on frame SUV's (the aforementioned Jeeps, Suzuki's), but the CR-V's and the like. 

Another forgotten but capable off-roader was the first generation Kia Sportage, but the safety test results were so atrocious that I don't know if I'd be comfortable in one.

I bet a good set of tires would get the Beetle to the remote trailheads.

In reply to dculberson :

Get a Hyundai Santa Fe. They'll do alright with good tires, and they have no popularity tax of any sort.

How about the Explorer Sport Track?  They also made a crew cab s-10 for a while there.  Either should satisfy the truck itch, and provide seating for 4.  

Wow - a bunch of interesting ideas.  As several of you have mentioned, I think the 'need' for a truck is less a need than a want - to a 21 year old girl, they are cool and she (and boys she knows) like the way they look.

Off to check out the List of Craig to check out options.

In reply to Brett_Murphy :

Not bad, not bad. 

In reply to mblommel :

I do like the Nissans! I wonder how much the Frontiers are going for near him?

I used to dislike Escapes somewhat, but now that I've put an engine in one i strangely like them more. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend an awd escape as long as its in good shape. I would definitely recommend an 08+ as the enthusiast choice because i think they got like 40 more hp and 2 more gears in 08. 

Explorer Sport Trac?  A quick browse on AutoTrader shows a few under $10K with around 100K miles.  More for less miles, less for more.

Of course, the big advantage of the "Toyota tax" is it'll work both ways if/when she decides she doesn't want a truck anymore.

X-Terra would be my go to in that sub-10k price range (there's 2 SE 4WD trucks around here for under 6k.)  You can pick up a nice second generation one for 6k or less, parts are cheap, they're extremely capable, and they don't seem to rot out quickly.

The second generation trucks between 06 and 09 have an issue where the radiator and transmission cooler are packaged together and like to crack. That leads to your transmission filling up with coolant. You can bypass it or bypass and install an external cooler pretty easily.

There's also a problem with the timing chain guides. They're plastic and have a tendency to break off. There's a class action suit in process but it's something to check or preemptively do.

They're not exactly fuel efficient but if you need to get through it, it'll go.

When she gets bored LOJ is putting together an LS swap kit for it.

My MIL had a CRV.  That car was bought new in 1998 and did daily duty in Utah for about ten years, then went to Minnesota for my now wife to use, and now it's back in Utah serving as the extra car in the fleet.  We used it to go skiing when we were in Utah for the holidays a few months ago.  Great car, super reliable, 350k and still running in top shape.  

My wife had a Isuzu Rodeo Sport (same as am Amigo), it was a great car, just did not work with kids in car seat.... V6, real 4x4, always worked for us. They do swap end very very very rapidly with the v6 and short wheelbase. I still see her old one around town occasionally. They need a Timing belt or chain replaced at XX interval which may make them cheap at that mileage. 

The0retical said:

The second generation trucks between 06 and 09 have an issue where the radiator and transmission cooler are packaged together and like to crack. That leads to your transmission filling up with coolant. You can bypass it or bypass and install an external cooler pretty easily.

2nd Gen Xterra's had the same issue. My understanding is there is already a external trans cooler but it's inline with a cooler in the radiator that fails, putting coolant in your trans to disastrous effect. The simple (and cheap!) solution is the bypass the trans coolant lines that go into the radiator.

Also, don't tell anyone but 80 series landcruisers are still really cheap too.