Need some help here. I currently own a 2006 Scion XB which ultimately is a bit too small for me when lugging my gear to races. I do own a roof rack but sometimes like to throw the bike inside the car (even with front wheel off), which with the Scion requires me to lower the back seat and the front passenger seat, thus losing all passenger seats. Even with the bike on top, I still have the back seat down since there is no trunk with the XB. Since this car is also my commuting vehicle, gas mileage is a primary concern. I live in a state with lots of snow, and the XB is not really a great winter vehicle either. Ultimately, worse case I would like a vehicle that can seat at least three, with all my gear inside. External hitch is a must for racking three bikes for family outings.
3 car that are very similar, Toyota matrix, Mazda 3 and subaru impreza. All about the same in term of room and luggage space. Wagon are great for the triathlon lifestyle.
The impreza is AWD and amazing for winter condition but wont be as good on gas millage compare to matrix of mazda 3.
I went for the impreza…so much fun to drive and great to carry my bikes!
I’ve had one for a year or so. Great for lugging gear around. You can fit a double blow-up mattress inside with the seats folded down for road trips. It’s great on gas… for the size of vehicle. You can get a good hitch, roof rack, etc…
A few downsides are only 2 rear seatbelts (centre is cupholders) and a little PIA to get people into the rear seats.
Never heard of it, looks like a good small commercial vehicle. Love the cargo management. Since triathlon is a pretty small percentage of the actual miles driven, it isn’t really what I am looking for.
Ended up buying a used 2005 Saab 9-2x. Basically a fancier Impreza wagon. You can get them fairly cheap. Has all wheel drive, roof rails and i attached a hitch for a good Thule rack for the bikes. Its exactly what i was looking for.
If you’d like to buy another Scion, the TC can fit a bike and gear w/only the rear seats folded down (laying on its side). Even more room if you pop the front wheel off. I have one and that’s how I carry my bike and gear around:
If you’re considering a small SUV, the new 2010 Hyundai Tucson is another option - I checked it out yesterday. I believe that you can carry a bike standing up with the front wheels off. IMO, it’s a great value and very sharp looking. Also gets 31 mph highway. Starts at $18,995:
I have a Mercedes B200 - very similar size/shape to a Toyota Matrix. If you fold the back seats down, there is a bike rack that you can attach 2 bikes to by the front drop outs, and still lots of room for bags. If you wanted to take 3 people plus 1 bike, the back seat is a 60/40, so you could fold down just one side and put the bike in the back on its side, and again, still have lots of room for gear.
It is front wheel drive, and with snow tires on, it is great in the snow. I am in a quite hilly neighbourhood and my previous C230 rear-wheel drive had a hard time getting out of the neighbourhood on really snowy days, even with snows on. Plus it was a sedan without fold down seats so I had to put my bike in the back seat upside down and I was getting scuff marks on the ceiling. To put it into the trunk, I had to take both wheels off which was do-able but a pain.
It is a 4 cyclinder so it is great on gas but still has plenty of power for the highway. It sits a bit higher than a sedan. It feels like a mini-mini-van to me!
And even though it is a Mercedes, it was quite reasonably priced, comparable to the Matrix.
Plus… heated front seats which are heavenly in the winter and for after a tough workout, any time of year!
I looked at the Hyundai Sante Fe before I purchased the Scion, cannot remember if the Tucson was around then. That looks like a great suggestion. Thanks!
It is a “World Car” that Ford has been making for a while, based on the Focus platform, There are a few companies that are working on a camper version similiar to the old VW / Westfalia, The US version of it is actually a short wheel base model, hopefully Ford will bring the long wheel base version into the US market.
The Tucson was probably around back then, but it wasn’t very good (according to the Hyundai salesman). The Tucson is smaller than the Santa Fe and is more comparable to a Nissan Rogue or Honda CR-V. The 2010 Tucson is completely redesigned. It really is quite impressive in person. I’m hoping to test drive one next week or so…
If you’d like to buy another Scion, the TC can fit a bike and gear w/only the rear seats folded down (laying on its side). Even more room if you pop the front wheel off. I have one and that’s how I carry my bike and gear around:
If you’re considering a small SUV, the new 2010 Hyundai Tucson is another option - I checked it out yesterday. I believe that you can carry a bike standing up with the front wheels off. IMO, it’s a great value and very sharp looking. Also gets 31 mph highway. Starts at $18,995:
BTW, I learned that the FWD with snow tires outperforms AWD w/all-season tires in wintry conditions. According to Car and Driver magazine, anyway.
Hope this helps!
Of course… that is the same as saying that lance amstrong on a 100$ bike outperform a age grouper on a 5000$ bike… The tire are the most important thing in the world and people that buy AWD put winter tire for the winter… if you live in a winter condition, its the only smart thing to do as all season tire suck at everything… like a touring bike sucks at riding mtb trail or riding on a road crit…
Definitly, getting a AWD isnt a excuse for not putting winter tire but when you got your winter tire on…oh my…those car are insanly fun!!!
I work at a dealership and drive a different car every week, so I think about this daily.
Here are some of my favorites. One thing you didn’t mention was budget. But if you previously had an XB, I’ll talk about things in that price range vs the 911. And I’ll include more cars than SUVs cuz that’s what you have now.
Toyota Matrix/Pontiac Vibe. These are twin vehicles, just the badges are different. The Vibe of course is less money. Like someone said, it has AWD. Honestly though, unless you live in areas that they don’t plow very well, AWD is overrated and you get less MPG.
Dodge Caliber: Similar to the Vibe in terms of hatchback and being able to fit the bike in the back seat if you don’t want to put it on a roof rack.
Someone mentioned the Impreza. I do like the style and sporty looks of that car. With the wheel off I can fit my bike in the back seat with the front seats up just slightly. On raceday throw the bike on a roof rack and throw your stuff in the trunk. Also available as a hatchback.
Honda Element. Cool thing about this are the floors are rubber so if you get all muddy, it’s easy to clean off. I took a Jeep Patriot to a race one time and the cargo area had the same concept with a plastic cargo space. Kind of annoying though you only have one thing in the cargo and it slides around on every right turn.
The Xterra. I like the bin on the roof. I always thought it would be easy to throw a wetsuit up there and dry off on the way home. My tri coach had one of these.
I owned a Nissan Maxima for a long time and used a roof rack. Loved the styling and had good trunk space.
Scion TC?? I saw a few people mention this. If you think the XB is small, wait until you get in a TC. And if you’re over 5 10" you probably won’t be able to put the seat back as far as you would like. And that’s without ANY gear in your car.
Hope that helps. Go to carmax.com and every car has a bunch of interior and exterior pictures for more visualization.
-Kyle
Another thing I don’t care for with the XB is that there is no hitch option. I’d like to be able to take 3 bikes with me to a local park using a hitch rack so I could do rides with my wife and son.
One car I looked at briefly recently was the Mini Clubman; this appeared to have a bit more interior room, but with the roof rack and hitch option, gives more versatility than the XB and way better gas mileage. The XB is at its core a good cheap car, so the Mini was nice in comparison in that it seemed a bit more substantial for not much more money.
