My budget is limiting, and my wife insists on blind spot sensors, so I am looking at a 8-10 year old vehicle. Would you rather buy a high mileage CX-5, Forester, CR-V, or RAV4. CX-5's are the cheapest of the group, but is it better to buy a CR-V or RAV4 with 130k+ miles or a CX-5 with 100k miles?

I bought a CX-5 with blind spot monitors for our first teen driver 4 years ago, it was under $11K and has given us zero issues. Get the normally aspirated 2.5L. Nice little cars.

Can't go wrong with a 2.5i Subaru or Rav 4, based on my research - but I've never owned either

I don't know anything about them, but those little buick crossovers are going pretty cheap. Probably not a good sign, but maybe.

Here you go, 2016 Ford Edge with 70k miles on it.
https://www.carvana.com/vehicle/3920086

Just having a little fun searching for this to see if it was possible.

A drummer friend of mine has a 2020 Ford Edge for carrying his drums.
And my mom drives a 2015 Ford Edge with about 165,000 miles on it.

As far as needing blind spot sensors, that is not a feature I would have gotten but, in this post Covid world where everyone is driving insane, all the time, it's a very useful feature.

I got them on my 2020 Jeep Wrangler because a couple weeks before I bought the Jeep in early 2020, I was driving a rental Dodge RAM on I-80 from Reno to San Jose and some lane splitting motorcycle rider decided to shoot past me while I was changing lanes. The blind spot sensor in the RAM saved that dude's life.

I have the blind spot sensors on my 2014 BMW 7-Series and it never ceases to amaze me how many folks will creep up in my blind spot.

I definitely see how a beginning driver could benefit.

Mookie said:

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Crosstrek is a good option.

CX5 is a good value.

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I'm concerned the cargo space in the Crosstrek is too small, although I haven't seen it in person. This vehicle needs to carry a lot of lacrosse gear.

I didn't think about an Edge. How is the reliability?

ATL Aggie said:

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I didn't think about an Edge. How is the reliability?

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I've got no qualms about my mother driving it between Waco and Galveston like she did this weekend. Even with 165,000 miles on it.

She doesn't really do much maintenance. Maybe oil changes, tires. I think that's about it.

Ford recently issued a recall to fix the backup camera which has been out for a year or so.

The only real chronic problem she has is the 3rd brake light and getting water in there.

I was going to fix it for her but after watching an internet video, it wasn't something I was going to be able to replace in 30 minutes and I needed to drive home so I put it off until another trip.

Wife and I pulled 210,000 from our 2012 Edge Sport. I took a look at the 2016... but it's a 2L 4-banger.

Hard and fast pass.

Fuel efficiency? Get a bike.

JamesPShelley said:

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Fuel efficiency? Get a bike.

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Or move to Texas where gas is $2/gal cheaper

I do long for the days of $6.50 at the pump in California every time I fill up on sub $3 Premium in Texas. LOL

My daughter got a CX-5 earlier this year and loves is. We got a great deal on a 2017 w/ 115K miles and other than the ghost screen issue, it's been flawless and has front collision warning, which her FX37 unfortunately did not.

If you get a CX-5 w/ the ghost a screen, a $215 replacement took be 30 minutes to swap before the Arky game. Next up is figuring out how to upgrade to natively run Carplay.

I'm a Subie fan but couldn't talk her into a Crosstrek

There's also tutorials online to disable the touch screen, it fixes the ghost screen problem as well for free. You can't use the touch screen when it's in drive anyway.

I drive a 2019 CX-5 with 130k miles and have had no major issues. Planning on giving it to my daughter next year when she turns 16.

I saw some about disabling it, but figured I'd install the screen since it was already ordered. Plus if she gets Carplay then I'd think touch will come in handy.

ATL Aggie said:

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Mookie said:

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Crosstrek is a good option.

CX5 is a good value.

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I'm concerned the cargo space in the Crosstrek is too small, although I haven't seen it in person. This vehicle needs to carry a lot of lacrosse gear.

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I had a 2017 Legacy and 2020 Outback for company cars. I really like the Subarus. Bought the Legacy and both of my kids drove it in HS and then gave it to my Nephew. They all loved the car. The Crosstrek would have plenty of room.

My wife had a 2022 RAV-4 company care. We both hated it. Uncomfortable seats and terrible road noise

I would maybe throw a curveball and add a Prius to the list of options if storage, reliability, safety, and gas mileage are all desired features. Especially for a teen driver.

I drove a 2012 model for several years to commute in Houston traffic, initially very skeptical, but it was quite roomy. I took those lame wheel covers off and rocked the black underneath and thought it was a decent look as well.

ATL Aggie said:

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I didn't think about an Edge. How is the reliability?

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I have a 2013 V6 with about 76k miles on it. Great little car.

HollywoodBQ said:

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JamesPShelley said:

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Fuel efficiency? Get a bike.

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Or move to Texas where gas is $2/gal cheaper

I do long for the days of $6.50 at the pump in California every time I fill up on sub $3 Premium in Texas. LOL

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You're not kidding. I'm paying $4+ for premium. However, I've never much concerned myself with mileage, instead desiring a comfortable and stylish ride. Performance is important as is longevity. 4 bangerss just don't have the juice. HP/torque and all... but winding out a 4 banger while pulling a hill? That's just BS.

Since my property taxes don't increase more than 2% a year... it's a tradeoff for the price of fuel. The whole annual property tax increase that other states "enjoy" discourages a move/relocation. I'm not a fan of taxes on unrealized gains.

We've had a 2013 Edge with the V6 since new and it has been very reliable up to 183k miles so far. We switched it from my wife's daily to our backup car earlier this year.

The only non-wear parts I have changed are: the electric radiator fans, the evap purge valve, and a stupid door handle sensor. It's never stranded us.

I would not recommend the turbo 4 cylinder version though, my sister-in-law had one and it was problematic after 100k miles.

drumboy said:

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My daughter got a CX-5 earlier this year and loves is. We got a great deal on a 2017 w/ 115K miles and other than the ghost screen issue, it's been flawless and has front collision warning, which her FX37 unfortunately did not.

If you get a CX-5 w/ the ghost a screen, a $215 replacement took be 30 minutes to swap before the Arky game. Next up is figuring out how to upgrade to natively run Carplay.

I'm a Subie fan but couldn't talk her into a Crosstrek

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In 2022, we bought my teenager a 2020 CX-5 that only had 8k miles on it and paid about $20k for it. 3 months later, two cars in front of him ran into each other on the freeway and the front collision warning system prevented him from plowing into them. Unfortunately, the 2 cars behind him didn't stop fast enough and he got rear ended, causing about $8k in damage to his CX-5. Fortunately, no air bags deployed in his CX-5 and it protected him enough that he walked away completely unharmed. I assume both of the cars behind him were totaled since neither was drivable immediately after it happened. Based off that experience, my first recommendation for new drivers is always a CX-5.

He's been driving it for 3 years now and it's been flawless except for the ghost screen issue. I need to look into getting that disabled or replaced.

Complete Idiot said:

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Can't go wrong with a 2.5i Subaru or Rav 4, based on my research - but I've never owned either

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My wife owned a Rav4 for a number of years and I've driven several newer ones as rentals. It's a decent little car. Don't see myself owning one ever, but would make a great commuter or kid car. I didn't have any issues, but I think the cheaper CX-5 would be better for a new driver just because it's cheaper and kids are going to wreck it.

I gave my mom my 2007 Ford Edge about 10 years ago. It is still a daily driver for her. The only thing she has replaced on it over the years is the water pump. Before I gave it to her I replaced all the rubber joints and that was it. Pretty good for a 18 year old daily driver.

Have you considered a Delta 88?

Rule 1:

Found a well cared for 1 owner no accidents 2015 and jumped on it. MIleage is high but the price was right.

Congrats! Not sure if pre-17 has the ghost screen issue, but I installed a new screen in my daughter's recently and it looked complicated, but took less than an hour.

I know this isn't the advice you're looking for, but one of the greatest dangers to teen drivers are distractions from teen passengers. I know they aren't as cool as a SUV, but a single cab pickup could reduce the danger.