On my way home from fishing in Idaho I stopped off to check out some potential replacements for my old Explorer. Here are my somewhat brief impressions of those test rides.
2014 Subaru Forester. Competent, bland, not great handling and pokey. This would be a decent rig with a real transmission but the new CVT sucks what little life was in the rather docile Boxer engine. A nice dependable set of wheels for someone who has absolutely no interest in the driving experience but just wants to get there. I did like the light colored interior which let a lot of light into the cabin and kept the small space from seeming claustrophobic.
2014 Subaru Crosstech. I was prepared to really like this vehicle. The concept is good-a 5 door hatchback with adequate room inside and a raised suspension that gives more ground clearance than a standard sedan but without the huge step up in a truck or SUV. It too had a light colored interior that contributed to an overall pleasent ambiance inside. It isn't excessively over styled and just manages to look more purposeful than the standard hatchback. But it had 3 fatal flaws. First the dreaded CVT where you put your foot to the floor and the engine screams while the transmission(?) labors to catch up. Some people won't even notice or care since they only want a car that shifts itself. And these things are selling like hotcakes. The second problem was more severe-the interior noise at 70mph. It was pretty much like being inside a rock tumbler and I had a hard time believing that a modern vehicle could be so loud. It was a short test drive as I just wanted out as quickly as possible. And then there was the seat. I have sat on better bleacher seats at a Little League game.
2014 Mazda CX-5 2.5L. The new engine has transformed this rig into the king of all the small utes. Exceptional handling was always it's strong point but the engine now validates all the attention given to the suspension pieces. The 6 speed automatic seems just flawless and doesn't seem like it wants to nanny you into a higher gear as quickly as possisble. Downshifts are smooth and positive and it feels good to have it shift through the gears rather than the blender-on-wheels experience of the CVT rigs. This test drive took about 40 minutes with a forray up into the hills on a narrow road with lots of tight turns and switchbacks. This is the one if you do a lot of mountain driving-precise steering(something not common in CUV's, SUV's etc), plenty of power, the transmission always in the right gear and smile inducing cornering and road holding.
It seems bigger inside the other rigs I tested but still not big enough in back to sleep in. But for one guy on an overnighter the passenger seats slides way forward exposing about a 2 foot gap between the front seat and folded down backseat. I immediately saw the potential to build a locker out of baltic birch plywood with a padded top that could occupy that space and hold a mountain of gear in addition to providing enough length for a six+ footer to stretch out and sleep.
The down side? Well, the one I was in had an all black interior and it just sucked all the light and life out of the interior. Although larger than the other vehicles I tested it seemed small and confining inside and looking into the back seat was like viewing a coal bin on a cloudy day. And although quieter than the Subaru offerings interior noise levels are nothing to brag about either.
These things all push up against 30K so there is not a whole lot to differentiate them there. My choice would be the one that was best behaved on mountain roads since I live in the mountains and the Mazda left little doubt about which is the most buttoned-down chassis.
Ive
2014 Subaru Forester. Competent, bland, not great handling and pokey. This would be a decent rig with a real transmission but the new CVT sucks what little life was in the rather docile Boxer engine. A nice dependable set of wheels for someone who has absolutely no interest in the driving experience but just wants to get there. I did like the light colored interior which let a lot of light into the cabin and kept the small space from seeming claustrophobic.
2014 Subaru Crosstech. I was prepared to really like this vehicle. The concept is good-a 5 door hatchback with adequate room inside and a raised suspension that gives more ground clearance than a standard sedan but without the huge step up in a truck or SUV. It too had a light colored interior that contributed to an overall pleasent ambiance inside. It isn't excessively over styled and just manages to look more purposeful than the standard hatchback. But it had 3 fatal flaws. First the dreaded CVT where you put your foot to the floor and the engine screams while the transmission(?) labors to catch up. Some people won't even notice or care since they only want a car that shifts itself. And these things are selling like hotcakes. The second problem was more severe-the interior noise at 70mph. It was pretty much like being inside a rock tumbler and I had a hard time believing that a modern vehicle could be so loud. It was a short test drive as I just wanted out as quickly as possible. And then there was the seat. I have sat on better bleacher seats at a Little League game.
2014 Mazda CX-5 2.5L. The new engine has transformed this rig into the king of all the small utes. Exceptional handling was always it's strong point but the engine now validates all the attention given to the suspension pieces. The 6 speed automatic seems just flawless and doesn't seem like it wants to nanny you into a higher gear as quickly as possisble. Downshifts are smooth and positive and it feels good to have it shift through the gears rather than the blender-on-wheels experience of the CVT rigs. This test drive took about 40 minutes with a forray up into the hills on a narrow road with lots of tight turns and switchbacks. This is the one if you do a lot of mountain driving-precise steering(something not common in CUV's, SUV's etc), plenty of power, the transmission always in the right gear and smile inducing cornering and road holding.
It seems bigger inside the other rigs I tested but still not big enough in back to sleep in. But for one guy on an overnighter the passenger seats slides way forward exposing about a 2 foot gap between the front seat and folded down backseat. I immediately saw the potential to build a locker out of baltic birch plywood with a padded top that could occupy that space and hold a mountain of gear in addition to providing enough length for a six+ footer to stretch out and sleep.
The down side? Well, the one I was in had an all black interior and it just sucked all the light and life out of the interior. Although larger than the other vehicles I tested it seemed small and confining inside and looking into the back seat was like viewing a coal bin on a cloudy day. And although quieter than the Subaru offerings interior noise levels are nothing to brag about either.
These things all push up against 30K so there is not a whole lot to differentiate them there. My choice would be the one that was best behaved on mountain roads since I live in the mountains and the Mazda left little doubt about which is the most buttoned-down chassis.
Ive