Daily Driver recomendations

[paulk68]

Hey guys looking at daily drivers right now. I need something that gets great gas mileage as my commute is about 80 miles round trip a day. Also need room for 2 kids in the back. Looking in the 15-18K price range. so far i am looking at the the Chevy cruze, ford focus, ect. let me know if you have any recommendations. seems I can get new for almost the same price as used on some of these models.
thanks

[DBasher]

I rented a Chrysler 200 for my trip to Sonoma last weekend. I found it very comfortable (I'm 6'4") with plenty of room for kids. On the trip I saw a best of 37mpg and averaged 34mpg....that's pushing 75-78mph most the way.
Couple of things I noticed when running around town was the throttle response and 7 or 9 speed transmission felt "odd". It felt like the tranny needed a sport mode, it's definitely geared toward a light footed driver looking for mpg.

Chrysler makes an S model that has 295hp and some sportier features, if I were to buy one I'd be looking at that model....I think it's still gets 34mpg.

Ron Sutton and I had a great aero conversation while looking over the 200. He saw some aero being used that he was pleased with and I, like always, learned a few things.

[Evan Iroc-Z]

I drive a '12 Cruze 1.4T 60 miles daily and I really like it. I have had a few bugs with it that were fixed via warranty, but otherwise it has been bullet proof. I regularly see 32+ mpg with mixedish driving. I lean more towards highway, but still do city driving. I have over 90K miles on it right now.

The only thing negative I would say is it really is not a multi person car. I am 6'2" and I have the seat pretty far back. My youngest, 8 years old, needs me to move the seat forward to fit in the backseat. It's not too often we take my car, but when we do it can be tight.

[dhutton]

I bought a Mazda3 for my wife. Great little car aside from a little noisy on grooved pavement. She loves it and get 37.4 mpg average.

Don

[Build-It-Break-it]

I just bought a new Honda Fit ex that gets 34mpg city and highway combined most of the time 38mpg. Straight highway 40-53mpg depending on traffic. Fits myself, wife, 2 year old and 18 year old fine. I bought it strictly for work tho . Plenty of room inside. It was $17,500 through true car.

[Try2paz]

Originally Posted by DBasher

I rented a Chrysler 200 for my trip to Sonoma last weekend. I found it very comfortable (I'm 6'4") with plenty of room for kids. On the trip I saw a best of 37mpg and averaged 34mpg....that's pushing 75-78mph most the way.
Couple of things I noticed when running around town was the throttle response and 7 or 9 speed transmission felt "odd". It felt like the tranny needed a sport mode, it's definitely geared toward a light footed driver looking for mpg.

Chrysler makes an S model that has 295hp and some sportier features, if I were to buy one I'd be looking at that model....I think it's still gets 34mpg.

Ron Sutton and I had a great aero conversation while looking over the 200. He saw some aero being used that he was pleased with and I, like always, learned a few things.

those Chrysler 200's have the most F'ed up transmission.. i get stuck with them for rental cars and it constantly feels like the car cant figure out if it needs to upshift/ downshift.. whats crazy is the rest of the car is rather nice!

If you're in california i really like the lease deal on the new hondia sonata plug in.. its under 300 a month and gets you the HOV lane.

[Spiffav8]

Originally Posted by paulk68

Hey guys looking at daily drivers right now. I need something that gets great gas mileage as my commute is about 80 miles round trip a day. Also need room for 2 kids in the back. Looking in the 15-18K price range. so far i am looking at the the Chevy cruze, ford focus, ect. let me know if you have any recommendations. seems I can get new for almost the same price as used on some of these models.
thanks

The Ford Fusion! Laurie has a 2014 and I like it. It's comfortable to drive, rides decent, not a lot of road noise, nice options, good sized back seat and trunk. On the rare occasion I drive it to work, I get around 30-ish MPG @ 75mph. For a commuter, I think it's perfect.

[paulk68]

Thanks for all the replies guys, I ended up buying a new 2016 ford fiesta sedan with the 5 speed.(read that the automatics are junk) It is a little smaller than I would like but my girls are 5 and 7 so they do not need a ton of rear leg room. This is my first ever ford so I guess we will see how it goes but through work i can use the xplan pricing and all the incentives going on it was hard to walk away from the 11,690 price. Plus I know how hard my kids are on the interior so I will not kill me when they spill drinks and kick the seats with there dirty little sneakers. Hoping for a solid 5-7 years out of it. plus all the money I save on gas can be used for the CAMARO.

[Sieg]

Originally Posted by Spiffav8

The Ford Fusion! Laurie has a 2014 and I like it. It's comfortable to drive, rides decent, not a lot of road noise, nice options, good sized back seat and trunk. On the rare occasion I drive it to work, I get around 30-ish MPG @ 75mph. For a commuter, I think it's perfect.

You left out the cup holders.

Basher it's a Chrysler, my uncle has a couple........he's 85.

[DBasher]

Originally Posted by Sieg

Basher it's a Chrysler, my uncle has a couple........he's 85.

Better than a 50 something year old driving a Mazda...zoom,zoom! Besides isn't it technically a Fiat?