staarma

Wife has a 2008 Buick Enclave. Every option on it except for the tracking headlights which I thought may have been over the top. It is a great ride and fits our needs but the mileage has been terrible at an average of 16 mpg. I don't know why it's so bad but she's done with it. It's back in the shop now for the third time with another problem. I drove it the other day and I noticed the steering didn't seem right. It pulled a little and made noise just before the stops right to left. Power steering was making a little noise too. Airbag light is on again so I took it in. The steering rack is shot. Guess that's why the steering didn't feel right. So that was the last straw. Anyone have a suggestion as to what we could get that holds up to 7 people, has rear entertainment for the three boys, all wheel drive, has a little jam in the motor but can get better than an average 16 mpg?

rip 112

An Excursion with a Cummins in it...

Oh wait you want a new one, how about a Toyota SUV? I've heard good things about them, maybe a Sequoia or something. Don't know about if its all wheel drive though...

hamilton71801

We almost pulled the trigger on a Dodge Journey earlier this year but an '03 Cummins came in the picture and changed our mind. The Journey's mileage was ok but that wasn't much of a selling point with us anyhow. It seemed like the best bang for the buck at the time. If you're looking for something with the luxury of the Enclave, don't even bother with the Journey.

rip 112

Porsche Cayenne seems to fit the bill, but I bet its pricey too...Lord knows what problems they may have also...

staarma

lol, I'm not sure we have a Porsche dealer in the state. We have a Mercedes dealer about 200 miles away. I was thinking a common rail Mercedes SUV but I don't know much about them.

I will look into the Toyota Highlander. I've seen a couple around but I know nothing about them either. I don't think you could classify the Toyotas as luxury or not unless you went with the Lexus twin. Maybe I'm asking for too much. Might just go with an Escalade with 400+ HP at least for the mileage you get something.

dj_souvlaki

you wont find anything with the comfort the enclave has. honestly its been a rather solid truck over on our side. like we barely see them in for repair just maintenance.

only problem off hand i can think of is the rear drive shaft bolt re calls thats it. and a tsb on the rear tail lamps not working intermentant. thats really it.

go for a suburban.

staarma

Don't get me wrong, the Enclave is a really classy, comfortable ride even for my frame. I really like all of the features and creature comforts but the mileage is the biggest thing. My truck averages better. We may look into Suburbans. I like the LTZ package they have. It may rival the Enclave interior about as close as you'll get.

Dodgezilla

Sounds like she may not be a "Mini-Van" kind of woman but the Honda Odyssey is really nice when optioned properly. We have a really nice T&C but only because it cost so much less than the Honda. I don't think you're gonna get good mileage out of any big SUV unless it's a Hybrid......

96_12V

I second that. If most people really evaluated thier driving needs - verses their "wants" you may not need all wheel drive. 24+ mpg is a lot better and much better resale value down the road.

Can you make do with a bit less overall? I know my Accord still has not had the problems your Enclave has with nearly 200k miles on it. It's paid for. And entertainment for the kids is games, books and watching out the window - like when I was growing up.

patdaly

Might want to at least drive a Honda Element.

Plenty of room for even me.......and it felt really solid, co worker has one and gets 24-25 MPG with the AWD top of the line model.

Won't comfortably hold 7 though, at least on a trip.

Mexstan

Take a good hard look at the Infiniti line. For my money they are very hard to beat. Any Nissan product for that matter.

cbtumedic

Suburban or tahoe would be worth a look, my old '94 4x4 got 14-15mpg avg. and I drove it hard (had to otherwise you'd get run over.) The new ones are bound to get better than 16 on avg if you drive them right and they have the displacement on demand, or you could pick up a tahoe hybrid. Both seat 7, but the suburban does it better. The boss lady has a new one and the only thing I don't like about it is that it doesn't have LATCH hooks in the 3rd row for kids seats, wouldn't be a prob if hers had a bench instead of buckets in the 2nd row though.

staarma

She is kind of over mini vans. We traded a 07 Honda Odyssey for the 08 Buick. She didn't like the Honda because it pushed really hard in the front on snow and ice. She had another Honda Odyssey before that and a Grand Caravan before that. So after three vans she's just not excited about another one. She is looking at the Tahoes now and thinks she may want one. Those Hybrid Tahoes are not cheap at 50k+. I keep telling her she can either get mileage or size but not both. We'll see what she comes up with. Either way she will be making the decision this time.

dj_souvlaki

I completely forgot about the hybrid model. absolutley love those trucks. was even looking at one for myself over my 2001 suburban. they are nice trucks.

Nick02Ram

I love those FX40's, I dunno what it is, but they always catch my eye. What about the Jeep Commander? I haven't heard a whole lot about em, but they look pretty nice. My uncle just bought an '07 Mercedes Bluetec car (not SUV) for less than the G8 he was looking at, and he loves the thing, Mercedes may be expensive, but they have very good safety features and all sorts of other little odds and ends in em, so if the price is right...