I am buying a new car & need advice?

Question

I have six Rottweiler dogs and am debating between the Toyota Matrix, the Honda Fit, the Kia Rondo and a scion (although I hate the looks of the scion). MPG is important as I am very concerned with global warming, hence these four wagons...
anyone own any of these? Can you tell me anything useful?
Can anyone give me their opinion on which out of the 4 is best? At the moment it looks like the matrix or the fit but I can be swayed.

Answer 1

Too bad they don't make hybrid wagons, that will benefit you greatly, since you have six rottweiler, why not get a used car instead of buying a new one? Well i think the Honda Fit might be a bit small for your 6 dogs to fit inside comfortably, its a nice and spacious small car, but maybe too small in your case. Are you thinking of the Scion xA or the xB? The xA is also too small for you, you could give the xB some consideration, it is much bigger than the xA, and will have enough room for your dogs. If you want a new car, you should wait until the next xB comes out. Other cars you should consider are the Toyota Matrix and the Mazda 3 series sport wagon, the Matrix is a good car, reliable, but not or as fun or as powerful to drive as the Mazda 3. However i would stay away from the Kia Rondo, i'd rather get a used car, then buy that one. If you're looking for more power then you might want to consider the Subaru Impreza SportWagon, it still has roughly the same gas mileage as these car, except with a bigger engine. Well here are some facts, hopefully it will help:

Mazda3 Sport 5-door: base price $17,580 156hp 2.3 I4 engine (26/33 mpg) passenger volume 95 cubic feet

Toyota Matrix XR: base price $16,890 126hp 1.8 I4 engine (30/36 mpg) 94 cubic feet

Scion xB: base price $14,030 103hp 1.5 I4 engine (30/33 mpg) passenger volume 90

Subaru Impreza 2.5i Sport Wagon: $17,995 173hp 2.5 H4 engine (23/30 mpg) passenger volume 90 cubic feet

Answer 2

Why buy a new car, the dogs will trash it pretty quick. It will smell of wet dog and have paw prints on it in no time. In other words it will look driven hard and put away wet pretty quickly. Get your hands on a 3-4 yr old Matrix. Let someone else take the depreciation on it. A Mazda Protege Wagon would also fit the bill.

If you have your heart set on a new car, wait for the new 2008 Scions to come out. The xB gets a more powerful motor, and the xA is replaced by the xD and get the Corolla's 1.8 4 cylinder. The Matrix has been around for a few years now, and there are better new cars out there. The Fit is considered the best of the small cars in every test I have read. I would probably avoid the Rondo. Kia's have a good warranty, but reliability and resale values are not strong suits. If you can forgive the lower mpg, a Mazda5 would be a good choice as well. Kind of sized between a minivan and small wagon.

Answer 3

I don't own any of these vehicles. ..but I have test driven the Matrix. It's a very nice vehicle. The rear seat and front passenger seat fold down to create a flat floor which has a hard plastic surface that shouldn't be easily damaged by your dogs. It should also have plenty of room for your dogs with the rear seat folded down.
The Scion and the Fit I think are going to be too small to hold all six dogs comfortably.
I'm not really familiar with the Kia Rondo, but I just looked it up. Looks like a nice vehicle. It is larger than the Matrix and has lower gas mileage...21/27 while the Matrix is 29/34. Both mpg are for automatics.
The Rondo has about the same gas mileage as the Chrysler PT Cruiser...another vehicle you might want to consider. I had one for almost 2 weeks as a rental. I thoroughly enjoyed driving it and it had plenty of room for everything. You can also pop out the rear seat if needed to haul larger items. I got about 24mpg, mostly city driving.
If you also need to haul lots of people the Rondo is your choice hands down...it has 3 rows of seating just like a minivan.

Answer 4

Not sure what the dogs have to do with the question. If you are really that concerned about MPG and global warming, why are you looking at anything other than a hybrid sedan?

Answer 5

Toyota is over priced for what you get, Have owned Honda great car, never owned a Kia but drive the cousin Santafe by Hyundai also great 100,020 miles only been in for oil change and tires.

Answer 6

Nissan Versa is worth a look. It's cheaper than the Fit and has a larger gas tank.

Answer 7

6 Rottweilers. Sod that buy a bus