SUV shopping, tell me about your...

I absolutely love my Traverse! 

Have you looked at the Kia sorento?

Do your research if you buy a used Traverse. I know there were several problems with some years of them. Two of my siblings each had one and traded them in faster than any other car.

In the summer I bought a used BMW X5 with the third row and 4WD and it’s fantastic. I did want smaller though. The pilot was too big and boxy. The highlander was nice but I wanted the extra large sunroof that the X5 had. In the highlander, the roof only came with pilot seats in the second row and I wanted regular seats in the second row. I disliked the 2 screens in the Acura MDX. I also felt I couldn’t get the seat up high enough for me. I much preferred the one screen that could split screen if wanted and the high driver seat.

My priorities were Birdseye camera view on screen, extra large sunroof, 4WD, third row, not too long, and if possible rear heated seats.

I love the extra features of my car and it’s fun to drive. Happy shopping.

We have an Outback. No 3rd seat. If you want a third seat, consider the Subaru Ascent. The Forester is smaller than the Outback.

Don’t recommend Ford, at all. They will not stand behind their product. Once upon a time, all we owned was Fords.

Another in that size range to consider is the Nissan. Can’t remember the name of it. A friend has one and it’s super comfortable. She was happy with the MPG on a cross-country trip, too.

I loved my Volvo XC90. Have you looked at those? I sold it to my sister for a BMW X5 which was great also. The XC90 is still being driven by my sister 14 years later. She has LOVED it, and they have only spent $1,000 in repairs over that entire time they have had it. I no longer have my X5 as I have something I like better now but the Volvo and BMW are still great SUVs. I had both the Volvo and BMW for 5 years with only one problem from the X5 but it was under warranty and fixed for free. That was it out of 5 years with each of those SUVs.

I recently purchase a Jeep Grand Cherokee and LOVE IT! We looked at all of the other crossovers and Ijust felt they were all just mini mini-vans with AWD and hinged side doors added. I have bad knees so the lower entry on all of these were a complete turn off for me. The height of the JGC was perfect. I didn't need a third row seat - so if you are looking for that then JGC won't work for you.

DH drives a Lexus SUV but we have owned an Explorer in the past.  My sister and I recently rented an Explorer for a road trip and we LOVED that car!  there were four of us and the three rows in the car were more than enough to hold us, our luggage and our cooler.  there were so many great amenities in that car so that everyone was comfortable throughout the trip.  it's a big car but it handled really well.  my sister drove and she is tiny.  she had no problem maneuvering it through the mountains and even into tight parking spots.  i haven't stopped raving about it to DH.  someday, we want to tow a small camping trailer and the Explorer will definitely be the top of option for towing it. 

We have a 2018 Traverse that we love. There is nothing negative about it.

we have a Ford Flex and love it -seats 6 (I think there's a 7seat option though) - we usually keep the 3rd row seats folded but it's nice to have the option of adding the 5th or 6th seat when needed.