Search for the perfect sedan, Subaru Legacy thoughts

MelodyoftheForest

Active member
OK, so hubby and I test drove a 2010 Legacy today. We really liked it and hubby is pretty much sold on it, but I want some more opinions about some other vehicles I have been researching too. The following vehicles meet our criteria for higher safety and price, and medium safety with lower price. Any of these are safer than our current Chevy HHR. Hubby does not want to be seen in a "boat," but I wouldn't mind the big trunk. I would like to spend as little as possible to get a safe car that will last us 5 years. Thank you!

In the High safety category and the 8-11k price range, we have:
2010 Subaru Legacy
2010 Chrysler Sebring
2009-2010 Ford Taurus
2006 Mercury Montego
2009 Mercury Sable

In the medium safety and 4-6k price range, we have:
2006+ Volkswagen Jetta
2005-2007 Ford Five Hundred
 
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jjordan

Moderator
Have you driven all of these? My in-laws have a Ford Taurus and I HATE driving it. I think it's more set up for a tall person and I'm not tall. Totally feels like driving a boat. But, they love it. My point is, now that you have a short-ish list, it probably makes sense to take some test drives and eliminate whichever ones don't feel good to you.
 

MelodyoftheForest

Active member
We have only driven the Legacy so far. Sounds like my hubby would hate driving the Taurus, but the various generations are very different. One of the mercury sedans is supposed to be based on the S80. Maybe the 2009? Wonder if that would be any better.


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MelodyoftheForest

Active member
Is that because parts and labor cost more for VWs, or do they need more maintenance? Is there somewhere I can find average maintenance costs for various vehicles? Is model year or mileage more important? Thanks again, I have never researched a vehicle purchase this much before and my head is spinning!


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MelodyoftheForest

Active member
I will count that one out then. The HHR has bad visibility and we want something that is better in that department. Will edit my original post.

For anyone following, I removed the Volvo S80 from the list because it has too small a trunk for the lower gas mileage I would get.


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ketchupqueen

CPST and ketchup snob
Staff member
Is that because parts and labor cost more for VWs, or do they need more maintenance? Is there somewhere I can find average maintenance costs for various vehicles? Is model year or mileage more important? Thanks again, I have never researched a vehicle purchase this much before and my head is spinning!


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VWs cost more when they need repairs though They don't need them more often than average.
 

rin2809

Active member
In the medium safety and 4-6k price range, we have:
2006+ Volkswagen Jetta
2005-2007 Ford Five Hundred

For what it's worth, we test drove a Ford Five Hundred in our recent vehicle search and my DH loved it. I liked that the trunk and back seat were huge to help with car seats and hauling kiddo gear. But, my DH drives a Sprinter van for a living and had been driving a minivan for 2 years, so is used to and likes bigger vehicles. We only ended up with something else because we found another minivan with less miles than the five hundred for less money.
 

MelodyoftheForest

Active member
So the Five Hundred is good if it has all the airbags, but the side airbags were optional, so it might prove difficult to find one that has them all. We have a Jetta we want to look at, but the safety level is confusing to me. Our HHR does not have side airbags, and the Jetta does. Jetta has better IIHS ratings, HHR has better frontal NHTSA ratings. Are the Jetta's 4 star frontal ratings something to be concerned about? I am close to tears I am so frustrated. Hubby wants to just go get the Subaru, but I have trouble spending $10k when $5-6k will get us something so much better, and with 35k fewer miles to boot. Argh!


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jjordan

Moderator
Tough decisions. Of course, in an ideal world, we'd all be able to get the safest cars amd price would not have to figure in. But in the real world, spending an extra $4-5k on a vehicle that is a little safer and has more miles is a tough sell for most people. In your position, I would probably go with the less expensive car, honestly. $4-5k is fairly significant for us.
 

MelodyoftheForest

Active member
Ok, after looking at reliability data through my library's subscription to Consumer Reports, I am convinced of the value of the Subaru. It is likely to last us another 10 years, rather than the 5-6 we would hope to get out of the other vehicles. I am still curious about the Five Hundred, but I don't know that we would be able to find one with all the airbags. And the Subie is such a pretty light blue! And I like the dealer, very hands-off in sales but willing to accommodate our needs and do an extra repair for our peace of mind. And minority-owned to boot. I think we found our car, assuming they still have it tomorrow morning!


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jjordan

Moderator
Good luck! Our Subaru is almost 20 years old (and we've been surprised for several years now when it passes NYS inspection with minimal work needed, last year it just needed tires...). So they can definitely last and last!
 

SafeDad

CPSDarren - Admin
Staff member
Seems odd since the S80 is a bigger car. Perhaps there is more legroom up front as a tradeoff.
 

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