XC90 versus MDX?

[QuassEE]

I know this is a common question--sort of like the Sienna vs Odyssey debate that I've gone through (had Sienna, got Odyssey).. I am really feeling the need to upgrade our Mazda Tribute with an MDX, since my oldest is too tall for a booster in the front passenger seat of our Tribute but too skinny for the seatbelt to land on his chest at all (there's a good 2" gap) without. I don't want to move the front passenger seat any closer to the airbag to solve the gap problem, either. I do need to use the car for all four kids often enough, and ideally we really need room for ALL SIX of us. We need AWD for snowboarding, we need the 7 seats...and I've given this a lot of thought..but other suggestions beyond MDX/XC90 are welcome (as long as they're not domestic..)

So...the XC90 is suddenly one of my considerations. I can get an older one (2003-2005) for under 20k versus 40-45k for the MDX (I only like 2007+)... which is great for a second car--we don't need two brand new 40k cars... I know they're NOT ideal for carseats, but I only need to be able to put a Parkway and some sort of FF harnessed seat in--or two FF harnessed seats, ideally. My older two kids can be belted in the rear row or elsewhere.

My concerns with the XC90 are: the foot room in the 2nd row looks like my kids will constantly be kicking our seats? That drives me MENTAL. Repair expenses compared to an Acura? Convenience getting in and out of the car, and access to the back row? I'm assuming they all have RF tether anchors on the passenger side?

I have zero concerns about the MDX, and I've pretty much decided it's the ideal car for us...other than the pricetag... Can somebody convince me that the XC90 is a better idea? I can't believe I'm even considering a (hiding) VOLVO!

I have a year or so to decide--I usually research my vehicles for a solid 10-12 months before I buy.

-Nicole.

[aisraeltax]

no advice on the Xc90...i didnt test drive one but they looked small to me (take that from someone who didnt test drive it).

i have heard the MDX is great. the R320 (diesel) by Mercedes is great too but 7 seats is only in 2008 plus...gets 25/27 mpg....compared to the MDX its great and the R class has AWD also...and lots of great creature comforts (as does the MDX). the gas mileage is what got me.

[Heather98012]

I believe you can get a Mercedes R350 or R500 in a 2007 that will seat 7...just not the diesel. Don't quote me on it though. I know for sure it seats 6'cause 2nd row captain's chairs are standard (which makes accessing the 3rd row a snap). But, the R Class is AMAZING....I really love it!!

What about the Audi Q7? It's nice & will seat 7 (I believe).

Lastly, if you like the MDX, but wanna save a few bucks, you could get the Honda Pilot. It's the exact same car, but just tad flashier in the MDX.

Edited to add: Volvos aren't what they used to be. I think they are awesome & convinced my single with no kids sister to buy an 08 S60. She absolutely ADORES her car!!

[QuassEE]

Mercedes Rs actually hurt my eyes. They make me think of a 25 year old station wagon, without the wood panels.. ;)

Q7 - too expensive.

Pilot - NOT even close to the MDX 07-08 model year.. It's the new platform, and the 2009 Pilot will be on it, but still way different in design.

-Nicole.

[DaniCPST]

Mercedes Rs actually hurt my eyes. They make me think of a 25 year old station wagon, without the wood panels.. ;)

Q7 - too expensive.

Pilot - NOT even close to the MDX 07-08 model year.. It's the new platform, and the 2009 Pilot will be on it, but still way different in design.

-Nicole.

I am with you on the R-class...in one word barf! The Q7 is not anywhere worth the money they sell them for. We looked into them for half a second when car shopping and they just didn't do it for us.

Now I was going to get the XC90, that is the car that made me decide I was getting rid of the Sienna and buying another SUV. But once I laid my eyes on the new MDX (right when they got on the lots) and drove it the XC90 became an old man car to me. The biggest turn off with the XC90 for me was the gut-less motor, even the V8 was sluggish and unimpressive. My husband thought the interior was too cheap and boring. I think the XC90 is better looking on the outside than the MDX, I just love a black one with the 18" Atlantis wheels. But if I could get a nice, low mileage XC90 for $20,000 less than the MDX I think those points are moot because they are not worth an extra $20,000. We were buying new so for us the price was not that big of a differece but buying used the XC90 has a big advantage IMO since they can be had at such a good price after 20,000 miles and a year.

[aisraeltax]

I believe you can get a Mercedes R350 or R500 in a 2007 that will seat 7...just not the diesel. Don't quote me on it though. I know for sure it seats 6'cause 2nd row captain's chairs are standard (which makes accessing the 3rd row a snap). But, the R Class is AMAZING....I really love it!!

What about the Audi Q7? It's nice & will seat 7 (I believe).

Lastly, if you like the MDX, but wanna save a few bucks, you could get the Honda Pilot. It's the exact same car, but just tad flashier in the MDX.

Edited to add: Volvos aren't what they used to be. I think they are awesome & convinced my single with no kids sister to buy an 08 S60. She absolutely ADORES her car!!

should have clarified that you cant get the r320 2007 w/ 7 seats. :)

I LOVE my car. i think its beautiful! i guess you dont feel the same way though. good luck w/ your search..ill bow out now.

i would never say to someone that i thought their car made me want to barf but there are many cars that ppl have that make me feel that way...mine is not one of them. :)

[Heather98012]

Yeah, I think you either love the R class or you hate it. But that's why they make chocolate, vanilla, & strawberry, ya know?!

And I think the Q7 is over priced, too.

[CPSDarren]

I know this is a common question--sort of like the Sienna vs Odyssey debate that I've gone through (had Sienna, got Odyssey).. I am really feeling the need to upgrade our Mazda Tribute with an MDX, since my oldest is too tall for a booster in the front passenger seat of our Tribute but too skinny for the seatbelt to land on his chest at all (there's a good 2" gap) without. I don't want to move the front passenger seat any closer to the airbag to solve the gap problem, either. I do need to use the car for all four kids often enough, and ideally we really need room for ALL SIX of us. We need AWD for snowboarding, we need the 7 seats...and I've given this a lot of thought..but other suggestions beyond MDX/XC90 are welcome (as long as they're not domestic..)

So...the XC90 is suddenly one of my considerations. I can get an older one (2003-2005) for under 20k versus 40-45k for the MDX (I only like 2007+)... which is great for a second car--we don't need two brand new 40k cars... I know they're NOT ideal for carseats, but I only need to be able to put a Parkway and some sort of FF harnessed seat in--or two FF harnessed seats, ideally. My older two kids can be belted in the rear row or elsewhere.

My concerns with the XC90 are: the foot room in the 2nd row looks like my kids will constantly be kicking our seats? That drives me MENTAL. Repair expenses compared to an Acura? Convenience getting in and out of the car, and access to the back row? I'm assuming they all have RF tether anchors on the passenger side?

I have zero concerns about the MDX, and I've pretty much decided it's the ideal car for us...other than the pricetag... Can somebody convince me that the XC90 is a better idea? I can't believe I'm even considering a (hiding) VOLVO!

I have a year or so to decide--I usually research my vehicles for a solid 10-12 months before I buy.

-Nicole.


From what I have heard from friends, the main drawback to the XC90 is repairs and repair costs. Otherwise, very nice.

[groovymom2000]

As someone who has and loves a Volvo, and has also had and loved an Acura---repair costs are an issue. :eek: I haven't owned either of those models, but if something goes wrong on my Volvo it is EXPENSIVE. Big time. Granted, not much does go wrong, but when it does I have to take several deep breaths.

[bensmom243]

I have a 2007 XC90, but if I had to do it again, I would have gone with the Acura. The Volvo is great, but Acura will run forever and I think it is more spacious. The Volvo is a small mid-size and leg room in the 2nd row is tight. My kids are not big (8,6 almost 2) and already, the back seat is becoming small.

Good Luck!

[Heather98012]

You know, it's funny....there are just differences between Japanese cars & European ones. They ride different & have a different "flavor." I love them both, but I think my next ride will be European....just 'cause I want something different.

With either a Volvo or an Acura you just can't go wrong!

[minismom]

Ok, I'll add my :twocents:

I have to say first that I didn't go check out the MDX on the inside or test drive it. All I know about it is how it looks on the inside and that it has dedicated latch in the center of the 2nd row, which is nice. But latch only goes to 40lbs, right? not sure...

I have the xc90 and I :love::love::love: it!! The sapce is plenty for me. Granted I only have 1 kid, but I've gotten plenty of seats in there. The regency installs perfect both outboard and in the center. The Radian and the Safeguard go very easy outboard (never tried in center). Ditto for a MA FF. I'm mentioning this cause I had heard the fixed headrests would be an issue for FF seats but it really wasn't. Also tried a TB and it was fine. I've had an MA RF driver's outboard, next to a RA RF center and a Keyfit passenger outboard. It all fit fine, even with the keyfit at 45angle the front passenger had plenty of room, though maybe not for a really tall person. It also has dedicated RF tether anchors, 2 under each front seat. To me that's heaven. If I could change the car I'd add latch in the center and in the third row. The third row doesn't have latch or tethers for FF seats, which sucks.
I also like the drive. It's my first SUV and it doesn't feel like some of the ones I test drove, that felt like driving a tank. But in the end it was the safety aspect of it that convinced me. It's got very good NCAP ratings, side curtain airbags go all the way to the third row and it has the anti tip thing, which was very important to me since it was my biggest fear with an SUV. Plus when I opened the manual and saw a huge warning saying to keep kids RF til age 4 I was sold! :love:
Can't comment on the repair prices, mine is new and I haven't had any issues yet, fingers crossed! Today I was hit by a roller blading person, buy luckily no dent! (and the guy was ok too! :whistle: I think. He ran - or sakted - away)

[DaniCPST]

Nic, I just wanted to add one more thing...the nav in the Volvo simply can not hang with the Acura navi.
I forgot about no tethers in the third row of the XC that was a HUGE dealbreaker for me since at the time I had two ff harness seats.
Back then you weren't supposed to have carseats back there, only boosters but they have revised that now.

[QuassEE]

Is the XC90 Navi useless?? I'm spoiled by the Honda Navi, I admit.

I DO NOT need the rear seats to be functional for carseats. Yay! I'll be putting one FF harnessed seat centre row and a Parkway in the centre row.. then my 10 year old can sit there, and my 12 year old in the front passenger seat. We'll only shift our 5 year old into the back row with my 10 year old when we need all six of us in the car. Should work?

I just realized that Canada hits Swedish cars with an extra tax..in fact, any non-North American car is charged duty when brought into Canada, so that's an extra $1000...not enough to shift the balance back to the MDX? Maybe if I win the lotto I won't mind the MDX pricetag..

-Nicole.

[QuassEE]

My Mother's Day request was to look at the XC90 IRL. We looked. My only disappointment when looking at the used ones was that the interior gets really trashed!! The leather cracks, etc...really easily. Otherwise I loved it. The one we looked at had just under 100,000mi and was priced at $44,000 US! HAH! The kids love it.. DH likes it, as long as it doesn't have wood grain, and is willing to compromise from the MDX for a 20k savings (if we buy in the US).. I LOVE the built-in booster, and it fit my 5 year old really well--we could use it in a pinch... I am curious how the built-in fits an older child (my 10 year old) though.. ALSO I wonder how could I NOT get a Multi-Tech with those beautiful RF tether anchors?!

-Nicole.

[aisraeltax]

100,000 miles? i hope you meant 10,000???

car shopping is fun! and stressful...and then fun again.

[QuassEE]

Nope, 100,000mi for 44k!!! They're about that new in the US, but cars are quite a bit more expensive here.. and it was a dealership and not a private party. I'm hoping to find a 2005 for around the 20k mark! (Anyone?!) There has to be a Volvo forum out there somewhere, right?

-Nicole.

[Heather98012]

Nicole, I did a search within 25 miles of me (Mill Creek, WA) & came up with 4 that were 05's & between 21-23k. If you expand your search to include 04's & up the price to 25k (asking) you get something like 28 results.

Here is the link to the 4 I found....2 of the 4 are CPOs, to boot!

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/searchresults.jsp?num_records=25&search_lang=en&page_location=findacar%3A%3Aispsearchform&search_type=both&distance=25&address=98012&marketZipError=false&style_flag=1&make=VOLVO&model=XC90&make2=&start_year=2005&end_year=2006&min_price=&max_price=23000&transmission=&engine=&drive=&doors=&fuel=&max_mileage=&color=&keywordsrep=&keywordsfyc=&keywords_display=&sort_type=priceDESC&body_code=0&certified=&advanced=&default_sort=priceDESC&awsp=false&keywordsrep=&keywordsfyc=&systime=

[Heather98012]

Oh, & if you do go to Barrier Motors in Bellevue, WA...ask for Tom! I've dealt with him before & he sold my sister a car last November. He'll take care of you!!

[QuassEE]

You guys are awesome :) I don't think I can buy until Fall, since I just bought a new car a month ago and DH might go a little batty :) I'm definitely going to buy in WA/OR/CA, though--can you imagine them charging 2x as much here?!

-Nicole.

[Heather98012]

Yeah, I feel sorry for you guys up north! When we were in Whistler a few years ago, someone noticed us getting out of dh's Toyota Sequoia & said "You must be from the States." We were like, um...yeah, but how could you tell? He smiled & said "A Canadian would be driving the smaller version, like the Highlander 'cause of the price difference!" I didn't get what he meant until I went online & saw the prices...it's obscene!!!

[Heather98012]

How does the taxation work when bringing it up into Canada? Is it really awful?! I guess it's still better to save the 50% though!

[QuassEE]

Anything that falls under NAFTA is charged only GST/PST, which is the same as buying from a dealer here.. but for example, my Ody in the US was 36k or 50k here, so I paid tax on 36k NOT 50k.. so I even paid less tax in the end. If it's NOT made in North America, then you pay duty as well--I'm not sure how much, maybe 7% more...? And then GST/PST on top of that.. so in BC that's 19% "tax".. Plus you pay like $200 for importing it, and you need to get DRLs (most higher end cars already have them) and maybe do a few mods here and there.. But all in all, it's still way cheaper to import..and American cars tend to have more highway miles versus city miles, to boot!

-Nicole.

[etoilech]

We've had three Volvos, but not an XC90 (we live nowhere that remotely needs an SUV). They've all been fantastic cars. We have used several XC90s when our car had been due for it's yearly service and when visiting our friends in friends who work for Volvo. Personally, if you really NEED an offroad car, I'd get the Volvo hands down. The Acura is nice but, if you really need it to BE an SUV the Volvo was designed from the ground up for off road situations. In addition it has (according to my friend at Volvo, so grain of salt obviously) been designed carefully with anti-rollover protection.

It's the only SUV here in Europe with a 5 star EuroNCAP, apparently.

I do understand repairs are more pricey in the USa, but we've never had to repair any of our Volvos...

[aisraeltax]

Nope, 100,000mi for 44k!!! They're about that new in the US, but cars are quite a bit more expensive here.. and it was a dealership and not a private party. I'm hoping to find a 2005 for around the 20k mark! (Anyone?!) There has to be a Volvo forum out there somewhere, right?

-Nicole.

wow! i never realized you had such a steep leap in prices there. we just purchased our car with 10k miles on it fully loaded (has every luxury this car can possibly have) and for not much more than that....and i get great gas mileage. I drove several states away to get it and consider it to be very much worth it. if you can get to WA i bet there are some there too.

we always buy used but 100k miles is a lot on a car for that much. :(

good luck!