Do I want a Jeep or a Buick?

After a day of looking at overpriced used cars and slow moving new cars I've narrowed the field to three choices.

I found a couple Buick Verranos for Chevy Sonic money. The plus is that it should be a nice place to spend 3-4 hours a day. The minus is that I don't want to admit I'm old enough for a Buick and I look funny in white pants.

While at the Buick dealer I saw an Encore. They were also priced low and after the last few winters I've been thinking I'd like more ground clearance and AWD. They also seem good on gas. I can find little to no info about them, and don't recall ever seeing one even though they have been out for a few years.

Third is the Jeep Renegade. This also fits the Small SUV bill. I have not seen one in person yet but the local dealer should be getting one soon to look at and on the website I built one I liked and could afford.

Which one should I buy? I know they are odd choices but for what I need it for they seem to be the nicest for the price.

I'm casting my vote for the Encore.

Encore is a chassis mate of the Sonic. Think of it as a lifted Sonic.
The Sonic is assembled in the Michigan, The Encore in Korea.

Chevy has launched the Chevy Trax which is the de-contented version of the Encore. I saw one at my local Chevy dealer about a month ago but have not seen any since.
http://www.chevrolet.com/trax-small-suv.html

How about a '04-'07 Saturn Vue with the 4 cyl and manual trans?
In '06 & '07 you could get the 4cyl with a reliable 4speed auto.
All previous years the auto for 4 cyl was a horribly unreliable CVT.
http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/forum/off-topic-discussion/teach-me-saturn-vue/63231/page1/

Easily found sample:
http://hudsonvalley.craigslist.org/cto/4926523579.html

I found an Alliance. Is that close enough?

The google says I can have a Dakar Martini Opel Buick so that should earn it some points.

I saw a few Trax today, but one Buick dealer had AWD leftover Encores for the price of a Trax. As far as getting an older Vue I'm stuck doing 160 miles a day to and from work for now so I want something fairly new, and the auto is nice in rush hour traffic.

In reply to Wally:

Get the Buick Encore left over. It will likely be the best DD of the ones youre looking at. I might look at the Renegade but with that many miles a day, the Buick is likely more comfy.

Going by the commercials...nobody would know it's a Buick anyway...

Are you a masochist? Only a masochist would buy a Jeep Renegade.

Dad bought a new '14 Verano w/ 2.4L auto, mid-level options (nice), not a bad deal w/ Prez Day sale. IMO, rides better than the '14 Cruze I drove, quieter too. If I had to do my old 40 mi. commute I'd prefer it over the Cruze. Plus for heated seats and blind spot warning mirrors. He did OK this winter but not my choice for harsh NE winters when there are better options like AWD. I'm likin' Buicks more n more, wouldn't hesitate to look at the Encore. Quick look says 16% off msrp on select models.

my mom has a much older rendezvous.. and she loves it. If all buicks are that nice.. I think you will enjoy the Encore

the Buick will likely cause less headaches than a Fiat/Chrysler product in the long haul.

Make sure to keep the left blinker on. Forever.

In for white pants pic.

If the Renegade is comparable to the Jeep Patriot (similar sized), I'd avoid it like the plague - the Patriot is dreadful all round. It's small, plastic, cheap and nasty interior, and generally un-inspiring all round. No experience with any of the choices besides that, so what I'm saying is pretty irrelevant I guess I just loath the Patriot so I'm wary of any Jeep product - especially given how dreadful the current Cherokee looks.

Appleseed wrote: Make sure to keep the left blinker on. Forever.

wait.. you can turn the blinkers off in a Buick?

If it were me, I'd look at the Renegade if they were on the lot. I know you're probably in a time crunch, so I don't know how that works with your time. The Buick Verano is not bad, but if you like it, go for it.

The winner is a red Verano. Since no one else would lend me a car I had to move quick. Almost every Jeep dealer in the area shows Renegades in stock, and more in transit. They lie. They are all "in transit" if they even exist at all. I was surprised how much I liked the Encore. It was a nice size for just me commuting in but it failed the "carry a wheelchair and the dog at the same time" test and while I'm probably wrong I just can't picture a 1.4 liter engine enjoying several hours a day pushing a trucklet along at 70 mph.

I will take some better pictures when the weather clears up. As my luck would have it I picked up my first brand new car for me and myself and drove out into hail the size of testicles.

Nice. To bad a bunch of crap had to occur to make this happen.

Nice ride. Sorry about the testicles.

I was really surprised at the amount of room w/ the rear seats folded down on the Verano.

Good luck Wally

160 mile commute? What the berk!I'd save my money on buying a car and just use the payment to rent an apartment within walking distance.

With the back seat up it will hold the wheelchair and both of our bags. The commute wasn't bad when I could take the train but now that I have to start early I'm stuck driving.

PHeller wrote: 160 mile commute? What the berk!I'd save my money on buying a car and just use the payment to rent an apartment within walking distance.

I think you would then be talking about a Manhattan Apartment. Have you seen the prices?