my mom's getting a fuel efficient car!
 

yup, driving her truck has been getting pretty expensive. its a 5.4L ford f-150 supercrew 4x4 with the towing package. she has a long commute to work, but she still needs the truck for farm use. i told her to get me some numbers to crunch (her current mpg, weekly work commute miles, etc...), and i would calculate her savings & payoff time. she only has dialup, so i'll just use the online calculator stuff that would take forever for her to load.

she's been looking at the yaris, and kinda likes it. she basically wants a 2 door, stick shift, a/c something with no other options. it has to be new/year or 2 old, she can't chance an old car that may have some problems. (when she gets a call, she HAS to be there).

it'll be just her, just for her work commute, and will rack up a lot of miles really fast (her truck is an '06 and already has over 130,000 miles). she really wants a 2 door (a 4 door would just be wasted space/extra weight).

is the yaris a good choice?

Glad to hear she is looking at a different vehicle! I think at this point, any small car would be a HUGE improvement. Of course the Yaris is a great vehicle too.

What about a smart fortwo?

the added mpg of the smart + added price just doesn't add up for me. isn't there a year waiting list too? plus her commute starts in the country and goes into highway. she'll want something a little more substantial when she's side-by-side with deer and 18 wheelers.

not saying the smart isn't a safe vehicle, but it reminds me too much of the jap mini-trucks that are all over my work. one front end collision = no legs.

i'm gonna sift through the 'net for 2 door standards, and see what else is out there. but i appreciate any and all recommendations from this site.

I know its a 4 door but have her look @ the Scion xD. It's cheaper than a yaris, has more standard equipment and would make her happier in the long run.

Scions retain their value more and are fixed price so there is no fear of getting a bad deal.

forgot about scion. the tc is a 2 door, but i like the style of the xd.


for myself, i have considered the xb. honestly, i hated it when it came out. but my love of small, boxy vehicles has made it much more attractive to me.

wonder if the xb can tow an 8' x 10' trailer with a load on it (2 atv's for example)?

xB is limited to a class II hitch so based your decision on that. My experience with that is nothing heavier than 2000lb.

Can't beat a Toyota RAV4. Women love them! :thumbup:

Your mom would look hot in a Mini Cooper ;)

I know a lot of people who love the yaris, and you can find them at near new to avoid that initial depreciation hit, so I'd give that a whirl. :thumbup: for a good choice.

hmm, thats not too bad. my mom has a lighter duty trailer that's a little narrower than mine(6x10 vs. my 8x10). maybe a swap will be in order, she really likes mine (she used to use it to haul hay when i lived with her)

no suv for her. before this, it was only fullsize trucks, REAL (aka old and 4x4) suv's and muscle cars. plus the insurance crap for suv's is outrageous

she's as much of a car nut as i am (she taught me how to rebuild a carburetor when i was 11), so she would appreciate that comment :thumbup:

yeah, she actually prefers the look of the yaris.