Need board advice
Son is getting license and my f150 so looking at an SUV and never owned one. We checked out the Acura RDX and MDX and Lexus RX350 so pretty familiar with those. And I'm familiar with the explorer. We are going to cast a wider net so considering these 3 options

I did drive a rental pallisade just a little bit a month ago and it was nice but it was brand new and above my price point so not familiar with older models.

I have found some leftover '25 Mazda cx90s premier package with under 10k miles that are around $33k but not familiar with these at all.

Plan is to drive this primarily as my commuter in Houston which is 20 miles one way...half ends up being highway and half stop n go. I estimate I'll put on about 32k miles between now and when kid goes off to college. At that time, I'll be looking at a new truck So for now I am going to be looking at used so years 2018-current and under 70k miles. That way when I get new truck this thing is only 10 years old and 100k miles or less. I've found options anywhere from $22k to $33k

Looking for input...good...bad...key issues on them to pay attention for




TIA

My wife is on her 2nd Highlander 2021 XLE. Both have been/were flawless.

Toyota dependability. If you want something nicer, get a Lexus.

If newer, go with the Mazda. If it's a pre-new engine Highlander, it'll be bullet proof. Toyota has had a lot of engine and transmission problems with the latest generation.

If you can find CX9s they're very competitively priced since the CX90 rolled out. I did find them louder than average but they're extremely affordable right now.

if Highlander, I'd go with a 3.5v6 version.

No experience with the Korean brands.

While it makes little sense, I've seen on some occasions the Lexus option a better deal than the Toyota, as some just look for the Toyota brand so the demand pushes up prices. So take a peek at the Lexus TX, if looking at a higher end Highlanders. Probably nothing will come of it, but there's a chance.

CX-9 and CX-90 are both very nice. My wife has the first, my mother in law the second. Would recommend either.

So I have a CX90 and love it. It's genuinely fun to drive and feels a lot sportier than some of the other 3 row SUVs which I test drove (Highlander, Pilot, telluride, palisade, etc.). Since you asked about drawbacks, the only one I've found is it has a longer wheelbase which makes parking in tight spaces a little trickier.

That said, go test drive each of them. They're all good options, you'll figure out which one you like best.

If you want a 3-row CUV and you're not carting kids around, go with the Mazda or Acura. The others are going to be better if you're putting kids in the third row, but they're also very much mom-mobiles. The CX9/CX90 reliability is top-notch too, right up there with the Highlander.

Not a 3-row, but have you considered the Honda Passport?

Just drove the following...

2019 highlander xle...very underwhelmed with the engine. Felt underpowered. Not bad ride, decent inside and seats were okay....but it was xle...going to look at limited trim

2024 cx90 preferred plus....very responsive engine...3.3 turbo...road noise was okay....inside was good...seats were okay

2024 atlas SE with technology...it was the 2.0 turbo engine so it was better than highlander but not as good as cx90. Inside seemed much nicer than the other ones we looked at. great space in back.

2023 explorer limited....has 2.4 L with turbo....I have the 2.7 boost in my f150 and like it so this wasn't a surprse that I liked the engine here. inside was nice. Not as nice as atlas and just a little below cx90 but above the highlander but that's tough b/c highlander was xle trim. Liked the space in 2nd and 3rd row

So are you leaning Atlas? To me how you like the engine is the start point...if you don't like it then move on. Incidentally I have a 2020 highlander with that same 3.5 V6 and love it specifically for the power and responsiveness ha

If we're throwing in new suggestions we love our 2022 Subaru Ascent.

We test drove some 2024 CX90s for my wife yesterday. The models with 2nd row bucket seats were extra nice. Downsides: the rear a/c didn't seem to be nearly as cold as her 2010 CX9, and there's no ceiling vents in the back. And no touchscreen controls in the dash.

We looked at a Telluride as well, but the poop colored suede / shag carpet headliner was comical. The drive and comfort were excellent though.

ghollow said:

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I can't speak about the others but my wife drives a 2019 Highlander. It has been one of the best cars we have ever owned. We bought it two years old with 25k on the odometer. Currently has around 85k. There is a reason they are so popular.

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We have a 2018 bought with 40k miles, now at 84k.

Door trim piece came off, rear gate lift cylinders replaced, otherwise flawless

Quote:

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between now and when kid goes off to college.

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Dumb question, does your kid want to drive an SUV to college? Doesn''t really strike me as a cool college car. Kudos to him if he values quality over cool.

But I'd make sure he's on board with the vehicle. The better he likes it, the better he will take care of it.

he likes the truck and plans on taking that to college.

the SUV will be TBD based on what we buy

Ahhh....misread your post, then

Last year, I bought a 2024 Mazda CX-90 PHEV (Plug in Hybrid Electric Vehicle) Preferred AWD with ~5000 miles on it for my wife. She loves it. She previously drove a 2020 Mazda CX-9, which she also really enjoyed. With the 2020 Mazda CX-9, we had a 2nd row bench seat whereas with the 2024 Mazda CX-90, we have 2nd row captains chairs, which she also likes. The CX-9 didn't have actual A/C vents in the 3rd row seating whereas the CX-90 does.

The Mazda CX-90 PHEV comes with a 2.5 liter 4 cylinder engine which provides around 320 horsepower when using regular unleaded gasoline. Mazda also offers a 3.3 liter turbocharged inline-six cylinder engine.

The charging cable for the electric portion of the vehicle plugs into a regular 110 outlet, which makes it nice since you can just plug it into one of your garage wall outlets when you get home at night. She plugs it in every night. Fully charged, the first 26 miles you drive is 100% electric but it also has an 18.5 gallon capacity fuel tank. You can drive close to 500 miles on gasoline alone. Then if you plug the electric portion in every night, it will increase your overall mileage capacity between fuel ups. According to Mazda, when you use both gasoline and electric power, it allows the CX-90 to achieve an estimated 56 mpg combined, which means you can drive over 1000 miles between fuel ups.

The 2020 Mazda CX-9 we had was a Touring level, which didn't offer all-wheel drive (AWD) in that package. All Mazda CX-90's come standard with AWD.

drumboy said:

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Haven't driven one, but I think the CX-90 looks the best of these 3. My daughter's CX-5 has been great and the interior looks cool, plus you don't pay the 'Toyota tax' but they're supposedly very dependable.

Mom has a Highlander and no complaints there.

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I was going to look at a -90 or -70 next, but carcarenut (YouTube channel) is a bit negative on the powertrain from what I watched. Yes, Mazda's are fairly bulletproof over time (I got my son a CX-5 which has been a great car) but the hybrid/I-6 configuration I was disappointed to see how they made it all work, despite my bias in favor, after looking into them.

The Honda twins (Passport for 2 row) look pretty solid to me right now, fwiw (which isn't much), if considering long-term ownership, with a cylinder-deactivation caveat.