"If you have another suggestion that will give us the same space, and isn't an Expedition, Sequoia, Tahoe, Yukon, Suburban, or Durango, let's hear it. Oh yeah, and the same/less age and miles as the SRX, for the same money."
~~~~~
Sounds like you are being extremely self-limiting and making the only choice an Armada.
At least we tried to help.

Before you decide to buy another SUV - you really should check out the Honda Odyssey first. Even though you think you don't want a minivan, just go drive one anyway.

If you want a vehicle that drives well, is somewhat luxurious, has lots of room and good resale value, the Odyssey fits your bill.

I'm not sure what the value is but check out an '06 Touring model with Nav and rear entertainment. It's the Cadillac of minivans. We really love ours.

I also have and have had SUV's - the Odyssey is in a different league. With 2 booster seats in the second row of seating in my Mountaineer, it might as well be a sedan. Too small.

The van holds the 2 carseats with enough room for the front adults to really stretch out and the rear cargo area can hold a jungle gym. In the mountaineer I have to keep the front seats forward to avoid crushing the little ones feet.

How so? I've looked at every large SUV in my price range. My wife refuses to buy a minivan, otherwise we'd probably own an Odyssey. Thus far you haven't really been that helpful.

Chevy Citation
Dodge Aries
Chevy Chevette
Olds Firenza
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Audi A3
Great suggestions above guys:rolleyes:, good luck fitting a rear-facing baby seat in any of them. Not to mention, where do I fit the kids friends? The trunk? I suppose it would be quieter.

Doug, I don't care for the R-class styling, and it's no bigger than the SRX.

Speedo, the Northstar is a sweetheart of a motor. Superior in sound and smoothness to the M60 in my old BMW 540, and that's saying something.

So we hear:
"I don't like it, I won't get that one, don't like the styling."

Just get the Armada and be done with it and don't waste our time trying to assist someone who doesn't want assistance.

Craig, all you've done thus far is is knock the SRX, knock the Armada, and suggested a brand new Expedition, which is at least $10k out of our price range. I've test driven a used Expedition and found it to be inferior to everything else I've looked at. You attack the Armada's reliability, while ignoring the fact that the Expedition is certainly no Honda. The most recent Ford recall involved trucks and SUVs catching fire while off and burning down several garages. I'll take brake issues, thanks. Not to mention, you've chosen to agressively pursue answering a question that I didn't even ask.

I sold my last SUV to a Pelican. For what it is, the SRX is pretty damn good, and I decided to post it to see if anyone was looking for a fun family car. That is all.

Why put this thread in OT then?

If its the wifes car, let her pick it out. Otherwise she will never be satisfied.

I agree 85eurocarrera. Matt, remove yourself from the process. Volunteer to watch the kids, and tell her to go out and drive whatever she wants. When it was time for my wife to get her new car, I let her go out alone and look at anything she wanted. Once she had chosen what she wanted, we went and bought it.

Now, with that being said, you just got the SRX last summer if I remember correctly, so I hope you don't get owned trying to unload it.

It might make more sense buying something new that she likes, and just doing a loan. My wife loves her new car, and we plan on keeping it for a really long time. She's happy, I'm happy.

Have you driven an Acura MDX, they are pretty cool and I would guess get way better mileage.

Bill

Matt, I'll give you a good deal on my 4Runner. Let your wife know it has power/heated 325is seats, she'll love it. Have to put the new carpeting in still and I'll even patch the gas tank so you can fill-up to the top, the 3.0 is a pig.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1206221341.jpg

:mad:I posted this thread to advertise my SRX. It's very common for people to post their "other" cars for sale in OT. I sold my 4Runner via a thread in OT.

My wife has picked out another car. A Nissan Armada. We test drove the competitors, that's what she wants. Hence the option to purchase the SRX, or trade for an Armada.

Bill, I've had one car loan in my life, never again. Acura MDX is nice, but smaller than the SRX, and not much better MPG. I did pretty well buying the SRX, so I should come out fine.

Now that this thread has gone to total and absolute *****, I'm just buying Shawn's 4Runner. Don't bother patching the tank Shawn, I like the gas smell.SmileWavy

I hear you on the car loan, but when we bought the XC90, I paid a good deal of it in cash, and knowing I would be keeping it for a while, just did a HELOC for the remainder. Its about paid off, but I didn't mind paying a little exta to get the peace of mind...

Bill

Now you're going from Bad to WORSE....

Any luck with the Armada? I did a cursory search on Craigs list in SoCal and there were a couple '05 for $20K range but with 40K+ miles. Not sure on what sort of options you want/need. For a kid hauler I'm a firm believer in leather seating - no stains and easy cleanup vs. the cloth interiors. Also get the Rino Liners - not all that attractive but they have a spill lip and keep the floors looking new. Kids are incredibly messy even when they're not supposed to be...;)

I'm curious how a used '05 Armada will drive vs. the new one that you already sampled? I'll bet it won't be nearly as tight and rattle free. The Armada is pretty sweet but they seem to get a lot of money - like a landcruiser.

About the captain seats - the kids will love them and it makes cleaning and 3rd row access a breeze. The fussy baby syndrome goes by pretty quickly, replaced with the arguing youth/teens, and trust me those captain seats make it harder for them to push/pinch/hit each other. YMMV.

We love our '05 Armada LE! 47k and no issues. It's by far the best SUV we have ever owned.

Want to buy it? ;-)

Matt, how old are the kids? Might be a few years before space really is an issue. Course none of that matters if the wife wants an Armada. Just let her get it and be done with it. My wife and I just got rid of the Jeep Grand Cherokee when I concluded a BMW 325i, 5 speed, was a lot more fun to drive and got 10 more miles to the gallon. My wife just came back from going with our daughter to visit her mother in South Dakota (1400 miles round trip) and declared it the most comfortable car she has ever driven. Oh and they got 6 inches of snow while she was up there and the car handled just fine.

David, really our only requirement is the 2nd row bench and the same/less miles than the SRX. That's what the wife wants, so that's what she'll get, I'm tired of hearing her complain that her car is too small.:rolleyes: For me, leather vs cloth is a toss-up. Leather requires frequent treatment to look good and is cold in the winter, but doesn't stain as easy. I'm anal enough that I try to avoid food in the car and clean frequently, so the stain thing isn't really a huge issue. We're not agressively looking right now, I want to sell the SRX so I can pay cash, or trade straight across. Hey Red Baron, want an SRX?:)

Kurt, kids are 4 and 10 mo, but we'll eventually end up with a couple more, or so goes the plan. Really the issue is the other kids we tend to haul often, my wife's younger siblings like to come visit. She's the oldest of 10, right now my kids have an 8 year old uncle. How weird is that? I'd love to sell her on an E46, but it's not happening. However, I am hoping to pick one up for myself within a few months.

I'm somewhat jaded to driving American Iron. About the only domestic vehicle I'd consider is a diesel truck or C6 Vette. My wife wants a Mercedes R-class and that would allow me to get the diesel truck as a tow vehicle for the track. We'll likely stick with the Armada for a good while because it meets all of our current needs and we really do love the vehicle.

Booooooo! SRX >>> R-class.:D

An Armada is certainly affordable:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Nissan-Armada-SE-05-NISSAN-ARMARDA-SE-FLORIDA-1-OWNER-29K-MILES_W0QQitemZ230284100489QQcmdZViewItem?hash=ite m230284100489&_trkparms=39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A10% 7C240%3A1308&_trksid=p3911.c0.m14

The longer you put-off that purchase, the cheaper it's going to be. Vehicles like that are depreciating like a tuna sandwich. There are probably 10 of them for sale for every person that actually wants one. Maybe 20.

Wow, that is low. They'll be at $1/lb for a sub 30K mile, still under warranty, one soon!