Quick Need Suv/truck Help!

My mom might be getting a new(or used) vehicle but it needs to be a SUV or truck for company reasons. It needs to MSRP at/around 20,000 or less. What ones would you suggest with great safety ratings?
Preferably an SUV to sit at least 4 people(I doubt a truck would be able to sit 4 large people for less than 20,000).
Just shoot off some ideas, or things to look at. I know about stability, ABS, side airbags...

If she needs a truck the Chevy Silverado crewcab (true 4 doors) might be a good option. We own one and I can get 3 carseats across the back seat (2 Regents & a Roundabout/Marathon).

If she needs a large SUV then the Chevy Tahoe or Suburban which has the best gas mileage for the large suv's on the market.

You can get a nice used of all 3 of those vehicles for less then $20k.

she needs a small/midsized SUV, I think that would be better than a truck, but a truck would be an option if we couldnt find the right SUV.
What is happening is instead of my grandmother giving mom her suburban and getting herself a new vehicle, she is keeping the suburban and getting mom something because she isnt ready to give up her suburban(dont blame her, it is nice). We would prefer her get something new as the suburban is almost too much for her to handle, so it is possible she will change her mind. So if we got a suburban we would just talk her out of hers instead of both of them having one.
Im putting a lot into safety ratings, personally, because DS will be riding in it(funny how I go through all that trouble to get a seat to fit in her van and now she is getting something different lol!). So Ive already crossed out a lot of option due to their performance or safety features(if it isnt available with ABS, Stability of some sort, and side airbags then it has been crossed off).
It has been so long since we car shopped and last time I knew nothing about safety features, so now Im banking a lot on my knowledge I have learned here, especially since it will be an SUV/truck.

What about a Saturn VUE with side airbags? Or the Chevy Equinox or Pontiac Torrant? Both are small VUE's. All have ABS and do have side airbags as an option.

Here are my personal recommendations:

This list is just a "For an Example" list of pricing and what it could possibly get you. Toyota and Honda are usually high if not the highest in crash test and safety rating:

http://www.kbb.com/kbb/PerfectCarFinder/Report.aspx

The Saturn Vue had some poor side impact ratings. I don't know if that has anything to do with Side curtain airbags though?

http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=446

The Chevy Equinox and Pontiac Torrent, unfortunately have not been tested by IIHS for side impacts, OR rear impact crashes? That would concern me until I saw some data for that. Maybe someone else knows if there is another website for that?

But the Equinox, Torrent, and Vue all got "good" frontal crash ratings.

lovinwaves said:

The Saturn Vue had some poor side impact ratings. I don't know if that has anything to do with Side curtain airbags though?

http://www.iihs.org/ratings/ratingsbyseries.aspx?id=446

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The VUE has not been tested with side airbags. So, Yes it is due to no side airbags.

She liked the torrant, liked how roomy it was... seemed to be leaning towards it so far, but she hasnt looked at much.
I just checked out the freestyle, it is too pricey I think, but nice and top ratings.

LuvBug03 said:

She liked the torrant, liked how roomy it was... seemed to be leaning towards it so far, but she hasnt looked at much.
I just checked out the freestyle, it is too pricey I think, but nice and top ratings.

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It looks like she could get a very newer Torrent for under $20K, which is good , but the lack of crash test ratings tho.....

lovinwaves said:

It looks like she could get a very newer Torrent for under $20K, which is good , but the lack of crash test ratings tho.....

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The ratings should be exactly the same since it is exactly the same as the VUE. It does have side curtain airbags so that will help the safety ratings a ton.

I have test drove a Torrant and it was very nice and smooth. While I agree the Ody does have a smooth car like ride the Pilot rides like a truck (aka ROUGH). The Torrant is based on a car chassis so it has a lot smoother ride. I think the 2nd row on the Torrant moves forward & back 8" like the Equinox.

the 07 torrent has much better ratings than the suv my grandmother was suggesting(kia sportage). IFL gives it a 88.4 on their list(with 70 and below being ideal, 70-100 being medium, 100+ being high risk) and I am assuming that is without the airbags??

For the money, I'd also suggest a Saturn Vue if she can find one with side curtain airbags, or a Torrent or Equinox with side curtain airbags. If she'd consider a new base model Vue with a 4 cylinder engine and manual transmission, that might squeeze under the $20K price tag if it's not super loaded with options, but it may be hard to find one with side curtain airbags. Stability control isn't available on the Vue until the redesigned 2008 model comes out in the summer of '07. A Torrent or Equinox with side curtain airbags and stability control from the '07 model year fared better than the Saturn Vue on www.informedforlife.org's safety rating system, but either will probably cost more than $20K even with year end discounts or "red tag sales." A leftover 2006 Equinox or Torrent might be a better priced and equipped alternative, but I don't remember off the top of my head if they had ESC available for 2006.

If she's looking at used model, I wanted to share a big caveat on used Vues: avoid at any price any used Vue with a 4 cylinder engine and CVT (continuously variable transmission). The CVT has a bad reputation for catastrophic breakdowns and stranding drivers. You can peruse the archives on www.saturnfans.com Vue forums for tales of CVT failure woes. The CVT was used in the '03 through '04 model years with the 4 cylinder engine only. All V6 Vues are automatics (not CVTs, but regular automatics) and the base model 4 cylinder Vues have a 5-speed manual transmission. V6 Vues from '04 and newer actually have a Honda V6 engine under the hood.

I used to drive an '03 V6 Vue and was pretty happy with how well it protected us in a sideswiping crash where we were shoved off the road and into a frontal collision with utility pole guidewires (see the photo link in my siggy for crashed Vue pictures). It was kind of a gas hog even if I drove it conservatively, rarely getting the 19 mpg city or 25 mpg highway rating, and the engine was pretty loud, but other than that and the lack of side impact crash test scores with side curtain airbags, I can't complain. The Vue is pretty carseat friendly especially for lower LATCH installations, 3 full sets of lower LATCH anchors and top tether anchors. The seatbelts were forward of the seat bight and may be an issue for seatbelt installations depending on the carseat.

Let us know what she ends up with.

Honestly Im not even sure we have a saturn dealership here. I know every lot we have(only a handful) and none of them carry new saturns that I have put my finger on. So saturns probably arent an option(which is fine as the VUE wasnt something I liked from its options/ratings).
Ive only spoke with her over the phone so far and she sounded excited about the torrent, so I might go give them a look on my way home. The 07 crash rating seem decent and if we can get one with the safety options it might be a good vehicle for her. It would definitely be better than the 92 chevy astro(aka deathtrap as I call it lol!) that she is driving.

A base model Honda CR-V should be 20k or less with a good deal. Maybe a Hyundai Santa Fe, also.

CPSDarren said:

A base model Honda CR-V should be 20k or less with a good deal. Maybe a Hyundai Santa Fe, also.

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Thank you, I told her we should give the CR-V a look because of its ratings this year. The lot is on the other side of town so she couldnt go look yet.

I think Im going to go ahead and head out with my printouts and take a look on my way home. Luckily I work right on the main road where most the dealerships are. If it happens it will happen tomorrow.

I went and looked at the torrent, it is nice... but then I went and looked at the CRV and RAV4 and I liked the RAV4 the most and can get ABS, stability, and side airbags standard on it for cheaper than the torrent standard without those.
They will be going tomorrow to look, Im hoping I can tag along to push the safety features. Since in the end grandmother gets the last say I just want to make sure whatever they get they get with those safety features.

LuvBug03 said:

I went and looked at the torrent, it is nice... but then I went and looked at the CRV and RAV4 and I liked the RAV4 the most and can get ABS, stability, and side airbags standard on it for cheaper than the torrent standard without those.
They will be going tomorrow to look, Im hoping I can tag along to push the safety features. Since in the end grandmother gets the last say I just want to make sure whatever they get they get with those safety features.

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What year is the RAV4 you are looking at? I'm glad you found something you like. Did you get to drive it yet?

lovinwaves said:

What year is the RAV4 you are looking at? I'm glad you found something you like. Did you get to drive it yet?

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it is the 07 I believe(either 07 or 06) but the lot was closed, I was just price shopping for them to get an idea. Of course it doesnt matter if I like it or not lol! Though if she gets something nice I will steal it from time to time
Shes down there now looking for herself, but is trying to stick closer to the clearly under 20K mark until grandmother joins her.
She found a scion, I looked up the scores and that thing is a death trap if anyone was ever made. Its score was like 129 and 140 or something similar!!!! So I talked her out of that. I figure if we can get something in the mid risk range that scored that way without one or both of the SAB/ESC then she knows to add it and that should make it more acceptable.

Im crossing my fingers it really happens and she gets something nice(new or not). Shes had her van for almost 15 years, it has fallen apart so many time, and it having problems again. At this point it would be cheaper to get something new than continue to fix it, and safer. So even if it was grandmother's suburban it would be better than what she has.

The Scion is rated so low by Informed For Life in part because it has not been tested at all by the IIHS. The NHTSA numbers aren't bad- there are no 3-star results at least.

When a test has not been completed, you will see blank in the chart and then that tends to lower its rating compared to other vehicles in its class. I doubt the Scion would be a top performer even with good IIHS results, but it could move up quite a bit. You can play with the calculator to see how the result would be affected.