My wife and I are going to start car shopping for her this weekend and I think it's boiling down to the Lexus R400h and the Tahoe Hybrid. I personally think the Tahoe hybrid is an awesome system and is very impressive. I have my doubts about wether its worth the 50K price tag at 20 mpg. I don't have anything to tow and I think she really wants a midsize SUV rather than something as big as a Tahoe. She thinks the Vue is ugly ( I have to agree). She doesn't like the escape because she has a frenemy that has one. I may try to talk her into a SRX. Any suggestions on what else to look at.

 

Must the car be a hybrid? You could look at the Enclave/Acadia/Outlook.

41k buys a lot of vehicle on those 3.

 

Find a car she likes then just tell her it's a hybrid.

 

I attended a presentation today that discussed the difficulty of selling new technology to automotive customers. Case in point - when asked about the type of powertrain that they've personally experienced in an automotive, 25% of the respondents claimed to have never ridden in a vehicle with an internal combustion engine It's damn tough to compete with that sort of ignorance and stupidity.

As far as GM's immediate product plans, the two-mode FWD hybrid powertrain goes on sale in the Vue next year (with a plug-in version following a year after that). There are currently no announced plans for anything that would compete directly with the RX400h; a Cadillac BRX mid-sized SUV is coming and most likely will carry a hybrid powertrain option of some sort, but it's likely to be a couple years away.

 

I think it was Road and Track that talked about how they would have to drive their Lexus r400h over 100k miles for the savings on gas to equal out with the Charger SRT8 they drove. Something to consider at least.

 

It doesn't have to be a hybrid, but fuel economy is a big concern. I would really prefer to buy something american and I would really like a GM with onstar. She likes the Cayenne (I do too but my bank account doesn't), and she's always liked the murano (Looks like a minivan to me). We will definately be taking a look at the enclave/acadia/outlook. I don't remember her particularly mentioning any of them but I know she liked the caddilac SRX

 

She would have to drive the lexus for about 8 years at 13000 miles per year with her driving for it to pay off versus the SRX. Thats with gas at 4 or even 5 $/gallon.

 

I would highly recommend looking at the Acadia and Enclave. They get decent mileage, good size, look sharp, great interior, and lots of creature comforts.

Go for the '09 model though. A little more HP and little better mileage, oh, and blue tooth too.

 

Try to get her to look at the Ford Edge, it gets good mileage (better than the Vue) and is fairly large for being a 5 seater. If she can wait the Ford Flex may work out well for her needs.

 

So you both think that this:



Is really that much uglier than this?:

 

I believe that the BRX will end up looking quite a bit like the VUE as well. The Provoq is supposed to be the preview of the styling and you can see the family resemblance with the VUE pretty clearly

 

Edge doesn't offer a 4 cyl and the V6 gets 1 mpg better on the highway than the Vue, AWD mileage Vue gets 1 mpg better city. Not exactly better mileage than the Vue.

 

You cant be concerned about fuel economy if your buying a large SUV. I feel that I sold our Tahoe just in time. That thing would use a 1/4 tank of gas if you turned the radio up. DoD my ***. Anyways, the Acadia and Enclave are really nice. My brother picked up an Acadia a while ago and has had a real good experience with it.

 

but wayyy better looks. the vue is ugly
Ive gotta second the Flex, that thing looks good

 

If you are considering the Lexus then buy a 09 Enclave, onstar, bluetooth and just an outright beautiful ride. Let her go sit in one and she'll probably love it. My personal favorite is the more sporty SRX, I would love to see the DI 3.6L make it into the SRX before it goes FWD based.