Hey Gaspig,
Saw the car on PCH, Nice! I enjoy your site and as a driver of
smaller cars I'am annoyed with large foolish cars. Yet I find
myself in the position of buying a new (used) car, and being
tempted toward an SUV. Have you any suggestions for someone with
the following needs: We are starting a gardening business, take
monthly trips to the mountains, camping, hiking, Surfing trips to
Baja, have a 50 lb. dog. Must spend under $10,000.00 The Volvo
and Subaru are nice but a bit dear for this freelancer. I know a
small pickup truck seems like the thing but four doors are needed
as we often transport my handicapped mother-in-law. Hows that for
a bunch of requirements.
On another note you should check out the Smart Car. My brother
living in Germany is helping design the engines. I don't have the
link but if you type in smart car in a search engine you'll find
it. Mercades makes them.
Thanks Andrew
hey Andrew:
thanks for the email and sharing the perspective... honestly, i'm
a bit technically impaired so you may get better information
elsewhere. i think for most of the things you mentioned, a used
station wagon like a subaru outback or something like it would
serve you well. my business partner turned in his discovery last
month for a mini station wagon to carry equipment for his film
production work and he's raving about it. for him, the lower
center of gravity and superior handling on the road far
outweighed the ability to drive over rocks. he also has easier
access to the roof rack than he did with the discovery. if your
trips to the mountains include a lot of off road driving (dirt
roads not included), then perhaps some kind of truck is what you
need to clear the rocks and so on. depending on how handicapped
your mother-in-law is, not having to climb up into a truck might
be helpful. for people in wheelchairs, i've seen modified
minivans with ramps that extend from the side door. could you
imagine trying to wheel up into an explorer? so perhaps a
mini-van would be the way to go. really, with an SUV, you're
getting a car that's jacked up onto a truck frame with burly
wheels. considering the wasted gas money, i'd avoid getting an
SUV. good luck, i hope you find a great solution!
i've seen the smart cars - they are really cool! if gas wasn't so
cheap in the US, i'm sure we'd see more of them around here too.
thanks again for the letter.
sincerely,
the Pig
www.gaspig.com