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[Jack Arnott]

I find the 2nd generation (2001) Jeep Grand Cherokee to be very practical.  I needed something to haul drums & sound equipment, have good tow capability (6500 lbs w/ V8)

Jack,
An appropriate sedan for you, would be a Subaru Outback. Hauls assets!
The 2015 Outback was the most silent car I have rode in, and hauled 3600 pounds of trailer cross country no problem with a complete trailer neophyte (the EX) towing it.
Art

Cost no object, Mercedes GLK Turbo Diesel.
Cost a factor:
Subaru Outback or XV

Hello Again,
I have been reading the answers, and looking into what is suggested. I would do the Subaru, but I am questionable on the towing capacity. Subaru lists it at max 2700 lbs. Also have questions about the transmission. There is some chatter that it might not be suitable for towing. Can't find anything to back this up, or refute it. I am surprised that Art says it is the quietest car. This is big to me, but Consumer Reports says that the constant variable trany is loud. Now I don't know what to think.

The Flex seems not me. I have looked into it, and am revisiting it, but it seems too Big Toaster for me. Setting that aside, it seems out of my price range for mileage. Kind of the same with the Toyota and Something Else. The Ford Crown Vic route seems interesting, but find not any around here.

Oddly enough, the Jeep Cherokee stands out. I say that, because I have not been a fan of Jeeps. It seems that they are expensive to drive, (trying to get away from that with the Saab), and not very comfortable. BUT, our house guest has one, and we went to Moab in it, and I really liked it. Comfortable to drive, much quieter than our two cars. I am wondering about it's trany. It has 8 or 9 speeds, depending on year. That seems ideal for towing, to me. I really had fun switching to manual to see what gear we were currently in, because I could not hear or feel it switching. Any experience towing with the 8 or 9 speed transmissions? Also, it gets about the same mileage on the highway as my wife's Subaru, but not as good as the Saab.

The towing capacity on the Jeep seems all over the place, depending on model, engine, and tow package.

Regards, Jack

[Rob Spence]

Hello Again,
I have been reading the answers, and looking into what is suggested. I would do the Subaru, but I am questionable on the towing capacity. Subaru lists it at max 2700 lbs. Also have questions about the transmission. There is some chatter that it might not be suitable for towing. Can't find anything to back this up, or refute it. I am surprised that Art says it is the quietest car. This is big to me, but Consumer Reports says that the constant variable trany is loud. Now I don't know what to think.

The Flex seems not me. I have looked into it, and am revisiting it, but it seems too Big Toaster for me. Setting that aside, it seems out of my price range for mileage. Kind of the same with the Toyota and Something Else. The Ford Crown Vic route seems interesting, but find not any around here.

Oddly enough, the Jeep Cherokee stands out. I say that, because I have not been a fan of Jeeps. It seems that they are expensive to drive, (trying to get away from that with the Saab), and not very comfortable. BUT, our house guest has one, and we went to Moab in it, and I really liked it. Comfortable to drive, much quieter than our two cars. I am wondering about it's trany. It has 8 or 9 speeds, depending on year. That seems ideal for towing, to me. I really had fun switching to manual to see what gear we were currently in, because I could not hear or feel it switching. Any experience towing with the 8 or 9 speed transmissions? Also, it gets about the same mileage on the highway as my wife's Subaru, but not as good as the Saab.

The towing capacity on the Jeep seems all over the place, depending on model, engine, and tow package.

Regards, Jack

Go to a dealer and find one that is like one you might be interested in. Then, open the drivers door. There are two important stickers. One lists axel capacities and tire specs.
The one on the "B" pillar, yellow or maybe yellow & white, will list the capacities of this vehicle as it left the factory.  The available carrying and towing (tongue weight) is going to vary depending on which options were installed. That's why the marketing numbers are all over the place.



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[Stephen Kirby]

My son has been towing a car trailer around with an 97 Grand Cherokee, 5sp auto.  3.73 rear end, 5000lb listed towing capacity.  With his brother's race prepped Civic on it, it's got to be well over 3500lbs.  They yanked it up to Laguna Seca from the Central Valley couple of weeks ago making 65 over the mountains when they had a free run.  He told me that the '04s and up  have 6500lb tow capacity.  Both of them are mechanics and live cars.

[Robert Healey]

My son has been towing a car trailer around with an 97 Grand Cherokee, 5sp auto.  3.73 rear end, 5000lb listed towing capacity.

I have an 1998 Jeep Cherokee (regular, not Grand) with the 4L I6 engine that I like a lot. I don't have a tow package, but with a transmission cooler and a hitch it is supposed to be a great tow vehicle. It is also a very reliable vehicle in the engine and driveline with normal preventative maintenance - but it is 20 years old with 175,000 miles. I have had to replace essentially every piece of rubber in the vehicle including gaskets, bushings, and rubber hoses. Suspension and steering components are also reaching the end of their life. If you want something that you can leave alone for 300k miles without worrying about major maintenance, a 20-year old Jeep isn't it.

[lindsay Dean]

Toyota 98 and above 4runner or Tacoma v-6 auto.
 Every Toyota ive owned has had over 300,000 on them with original drivetrain body bushings bearings a/c still running and driving tight
beyond normal maintenance service. my wifes highlander has 316,000 original drive train .
The build quality is superior to
 dodge, chevy, gm, ford, and any of that 160,000 crap they build
that need practically
  every part bolted to them after and around that mileage point.
                Trust me the engineers know this and don't care.

[Jack Arnott]

Well, a friend of mine that has been working on this for me found a 2004 Porsche Cayenne turbo with 67K miles, for $16K.
I will be spending a bit more than expected, on a bit older car, but wow, it sure is much nicer than what we have now.
Will be holding off until tomorrow to seal the deal, but it seems like we are doing it.

[Tim Weaver]

Good choice! I almost got one (non turbo v8) for my wife. All reports are that they are extremely reliable and great driving vehicles.

Make sure the coolant tube under the intake has been replaced with the metal version. Thats about the only thing to watch for.

[Jack Arnott]

Good choice! I almost got one (non turbo v8) for my wife. All reports are that they are extremely reliable and great driving vehicles.

Make sure the coolant tube under the intake has been replaced with the metal version. Thats about the only thing to watch for.

Thanks for the advise. Yes, Consumer Reports lists them as extremely reliable, in all areas except inside electrical, and that one is quite low, which I take to be window switches, and the like. Which is what I have a lot of problems with with the Saab. *sigh*

Again thanks for the intake help.

[Tim Weaver]

Thanks for the advise. Yes, Consumer Reports lists them as extremely reliable, in all areas except inside electrical, and that one is quite low, which I take to be window switches, and the like. Which is what I have a lot of problems with with the Saab. *sigh*

Again thanks for the intake help.

Being a shared platform in the VAG family typically those electrical gremlins are poor grounds. They get grungy after several years, but a good clean 'n' tighten usually has them working well again. Unfortunately finding all the ground points can be tough.

The coolant pipe that runs under the intake was plastic from the factory. They are prone to cracking and leaking coolant. Often times the leak is slow and the coolant cooks off before it has a chance to puddle under the car. Keep an eye on the coolant level if you have a plastic pipe. Otherwise, there's a metal version of the same pipe (from another car) that solves the problem.

[Jack Arnott]

Being a shared platform in the VAG family typically those electrical gremlins are poor grounds. They get grungy after several years, but a good clean 'n' tighten usually has them working well again. Unfortunately finding all the ground points can be tough.

So, I bought it!

And it won't start. Dead battery. Do you think this is the problem?

[ProSoundWeb Community]