Best used Subaru model for me?

[me]

I currently own a Mazda Protege sedan. Great car except
cant haul ANYTHING in it. Good for carrying people
only

I'm gonna sell my Protege to my 21 yr old nephew who is
in college. It will make a good car for him.

having said that I've been thinking abt what my next
car should be.

I think id like a station wagon style car. Something
that hauls cargo as well as people. Something I could
sleep in back of if needed while on road trip.

I live in north Missouri where it snows. But I don't
"need" all wheel drive but do want at least front wheel
drive

And.... good gas mileage is a plus. Maybe 27 mpg
overall.

Want to buy used as well. Maybe a 2003?

Given all that info what Subaru model would be a good
fit for me? never owned a Subaru and know little abt
them so if you can advise me before I start hitting the
dealers I sure would be appreciative. Thanks!

 

[Tom Reingold]

I currently own a Mazda Protege sedan. Great car except
cant haul ANYTHING in it. Good for carrying people
only

I'm gonna sell my Protege to my 21 yr old nephew who is
in college. It will make a good car for him.

having said that I've been thinking abt what my next
car should be.

I think id like a station wagon style car. Something
that hauls cargo as well as people. Something I could
sleep in back of if needed while on road trip.

I live in north Missouri where it snows. But I don't
"need" all wheel drive but do want at least front wheel
drive

And.... good gas mileage is a plus. Maybe 27 mpg
overall.

Want to buy used as well. Maybe a 2003?

Given all that info what Subaru model would be a good
fit for me? never owned a Subaru and know little abt
them so if you can advise me before I start hitting the
dealers I sure would be appreciative. Thanks!

There are two platforms on which all Subarus are built. The Impreza and
the Forrester are one. The Legacy and Outback and B9 Tribeca are the
other. I might have left out some models.

The Legacy is a little longer. I don't think you could sleep comfortably
in the back of an Impreza.

They all get worse mileage than you wish for. My 2000 Legacy L wagon
with the 2.5 liter engine gets less than 24 mpg, and I do mostly highway
miles. I believe the newer models are even less efficient, since the
market has been demanding higher power engines.

Tom

 

[me]

They all get worse mileage than you wish for. My 2000 Legacy L wagon
with the 2.5 liter engine gets less than 24 mpg, and I do mostly highway
miles. I believe the newer models are even less efficient, since the
market has been demanding higher power engines.

Well are there any other Outback-like vehicles on
market made by other makers that get better gas
mileage?

 

[Tom Reingold]

Well are there any other Outback-like vehicles on
market made by other makers that get better gas
mileage?

Probably a Ford Focus. I believe they're fairly inexpensive.

Another Mazda would be great, too.

Honda stopped making the Civic hatchback! What a shame!

I had three Saab hatchbacks. They are really really big, bigger than
they look. But they are expensive to run.

 

[Body Roll]

Honda stopped making the Civic hatchback! What a shame!

There is an awd Civic on stilts (for some reason renamed to CRV).
I would imagine aftermarket Civic suspension bits may fit.
I'm not a big Honda fan [yet] so I'm not 100% sure.

I currently own a Mazda Protege sedan. Great car except
cant haul ANYTHING in it. Good for carrying people
only

Well, I made the same mistake you did and missed a short window of
opportunity to get Protege 5. Ended up with the sedan but saved 6.5
grand (US).

From my personal experience: I absolutely *hate* the Outback Sport I

ended up with.
Some might argue that it's an Impreza in the worst state of detune (one
look
at the cambers in the chassis repair manual is very enlightening). But
if you read
STI vs Evo comparisons patiently you'd notice that STI has the same
numb feeling
to it compared to Evo. According to the reviews that is.
My wife has commented that she also gets a numb feeling in the Outback
Sport.
The connection to the road is just nonexistent. I don't know how much
fun to drive factor
is important to you but for me its a dealbreaker. The car would
probably last a long time though.
I'll get rid of it as soon as something worth my while such as Mazda
Kabura surfaces
in the US. Not an option for you as it's not a cargo hauler. CX-7
perhaps? If you're into heavy irons. If you want something lighter save
yourself some trouble with the Impreza and try a baseline and GT
version of Legacy. Dunno how much it was bastardized in the last 14
years though. I suspect quite a lot.

 

[Zeppo]

There are two platforms on which all Subarus are built. The Impreza and
the Forrester are one. The Legacy and Outback and B9 Tribeca are the
other. I might have left out some models.

The Legacy is a little longer. I don't think you could sleep comfortably
in the back of an Impreza.

They all get worse mileage than you wish for. My 2000 Legacy L wagon
with the 2.5 liter engine gets less than 24 mpg, and I do mostly highway
miles. I believe the newer models are even less efficient, since the
market has been demanding higher power engines.

Tom

Yes, but the mileage isn't that bad for a car that size and the
legacy/outback platform is built like a rock. We've bought 2 used Legacies
and 1 Forrester for the kids in the last 7 years and haven't regretted one
of them.

My step-daughter was rear ended by an 18-wheeler in her legacy sedan
and walked away unhurt. Back and front of car crushed but the passenger
compartment untouched. Made a believer out of me.

Jon

 

[me]

Well, I made the same mistake you did and missed a short window of
opportunity to get Protege 5. Ended up with the sedan but saved 6.5
grand (US).

How come you didn't go with the Mazda 5?

 

[Body Roll]

How come you didn't go with the Mazda 5?

I don't need a six seater (yet, hopefully).