New car/suv

[Anonymous]

We have a minivan and a sedan, 20 and 15 years old respectively. Looking to replace both (one of the kids will be taking the sedan) With kids out of the house and both of us working from home for the most part, we really need one good vehicle that can be used locally as well as to haul stuff around once in a while (home depot shopping, moving kids out of dorm and back, etc.).

EVs: We don't mind leasing EVs to test things out and did look into Ioniq 5. Once you cut through the noise the "deals" are not as great as they are cut out to be. A $249 lease is really over $450 once you factor in the downpayment. The capitalized cost on which the lease is based on (SEL trim), is also pretty much the same as a well-respected/reviewed gas SUV (e.g. Subaru outback Onyx. This matters if we were to buy out the lease or plan on buying the car at the end of the lease).

Hybrid/PHEV: Not sure if the premium in cost over a regular gas car is worth it. PHEVs are nice for gas-free local driving. Not sure if there are good lease deals on those. Have to look.

Gas: We are looking at the usual suspects - CRV, Subaru (outback/forrester), Toyota.

Any deals/recommendations/thoughts?

[Anonymous]

Hybrids are arguably the worst of both worlds, with all the maintenance requirements and expenses of gas vehicles and the only advantage being better mileage.

EVs are a sensible choice if you have a place to recharge easily and if you don't routinely take drives which exceed the vehicle's range. This is especially true if you have solar power at home and can recharge your car from it. Otherwise you will need to decide if recharging during a trip poses more of an inconvenience than you want to deal with. For some, when a EV meets 99% of their actual use requirements, renting a gas-powered vehicle for an infrequent long trip may make sense. EVs are problematic for those living in conditions where access to charging is inconvenient, like most apartments, and townhouses or SFHs without garages.

Your use case should drive the body style choice. Generally, sedans handle and perform better and weigh less than their SUV class counterparts. They often have a more comfortable ride, which can be a factor on longer drives, as they use different tire types and their suspensions are tuned differently. Some people prefer the height/enhanced sightlines of SUVs or crossovers, and don't mind the clumsier handling tradeoff. You'll have more AWD options among crossovers and SUVs, if you need that functionality. And, cargo carrying capacity is going to be greater with a SUV or crossover.

[Anonymous]

some SUV's drive better than others. I really like my CRV because it drives like a car.

New hybrids depreciate at a much faster rate than their non-hybrid versions.

EV- would not do this if this is the vehicle you will be driving longer distances, think college drop off. because I would hat to have to stop to charge it mid way.

[Anonymous]

some SUV's drive better than others. I really like my CRV because it drives like a car.

New hybrids depreciate at a much faster rate than their non-hybrid versions.

EV- would not do this if this is the vehicle you will be driving longer distances, think college drop off. because I would hat to have to stop to charge it mid way.

If you are driving 250 miles to your child's college, I would bet that you would not mind a 20 minute break to stop for charging. I don't know about other EVs, but a Tesla takes about 20 minutes (since it preconditions before arriving at the supercharger). If there is a supercharger midway, I would get an EV. You likely want to stop to use the bathroom and get a coffee or bite to eat anyway.