What is VehiGAZ replacing his VehiCROSS with?

[Thmstec]

I hope none of those votes for smart car are serious. You can't go from the VX to that. Maybe as a second car if you live in NY or LA?

I voted porche, but my second and third votes would go VW or FX depending on whether on-road or off-road were the primary interest.

The FX was headed up by the same lead designer as the VX right?

[Gussie2000]

Yes,the FX was designed by the same people,my company provides alarm monitoring to an infiniti dealership in long island,NY where i had the chance to test drive one,it has a excelent handling though.

The manager took pics of the FX-45 & my VX together last year to write a background of the engineering team that designed both cars to customers for ad purposes so they can have an idea about simon cox & staffing.

[Jolly Roger VX'er]

Touareg would be what I would get (but in a TDI) - the Cayenne is basically the same truck (but no diesel option and an available Hi-PRO option but a lot more money).

--John

That was my vote & guess as well. Although, for the money....its hard to beat the price on a new FJ!

[Riff Raff]

Hmmm, based on the previous thread statement that the deals on new 2008 models were quite a deal-- I picked the FJ Cruiser (plus I'm a FJ (FJ-40 fan)). My second pick for you would be the Porshe Cayenne, as I know you already own a White Porshe 928 and probably lean towards that brand anyway. Either would be a good choice; but, I'm still waiting for the Hummer HX/H4 (concept) to be actually produced by GM.

[Ascinder]

After seeing that FJ perform at Moab last year, I vote for that. It walked up rocks a lot of people struggled with. Pretty impressive.

[VehiGAZ]

The 2008 FJ!!!



You were right, Eric, but I had to try to throw you guys off. The deals are almost once-in-a-lifetime - we paid $6100 under sticker off this loaded-up model between the discounted price and $3k Toyota incentive. It's not a VX, but it's pretty neat all on its own. We started out shopping the luxury SUV segment, but the lady of the house made the unarguable point - we use our truck for skiing, camping, and taking the trash to the dump (all dirty activities), so why do we want fancy-pantsy leather and carpeting that will only get trashed? Good point... That sent us to the Toyota store.

Porsche voters: the Cayenne S was a very close second choice. Mid-to-high $30's (list price) for a low-mileage CPO in perfect condition. Specifically, this Cayenne S...



It drives solid - like a quiet tank. I was worried about how all that mass would behave on slippery, snowy roads, but I figured it had to be decent. But ultimately, the thought of being a two-Porsche household was just a little too... embarrassing. My wife said if we got it, she would not even mention it to her friends at work.

The Caddy was briefly considered, but it's not as nice inside as I expect a Caddy to be. Car & Driver really liked it, which is usually good enough for me, but we never even drove one.

The Infinity FX45 had a lot going for it - price, space, style, and speed (not to mention the stylist's link back to the VX). But paying to replace 20" tires made me sick to my stomach. And every review I read, either professional or consumer, had something to say about the "harsh" ride (not sporty... just harsh). I figured that would annoy me at some point or another, especially driving the busted roads we end up on when skiing & camping.

The Touareg was a bit of a red herring in this mix - it's reputation as a POS is quite well established, although I missed that "review" you posted, Ldub - what an eye-opener! The wife thought it looks too bland, too.

And for all you Smart Car voters - FU2!

[Ldub]

Did you get the offroad package with locker(s)?
You can always join us in the fun out Moab way, with Jay Dunford & his "honorary VX"...

[Riff Raff]

VehiGAZ-- Ah, hah!!! I was right on target. I guessed the FJ Cruiser (because of your previous statement regarding 2008 deals). I said the Porshe Cayenne was second (because you like the brand).

Welcome to the FJ family. You and I "still" have something in common. You have the "newest" FJ, and I have the "original" FJ which started the whole revolution-- the FJ-40. The FJ Cruiser is kinda' a modern-retro, based upon the original FJ-40 (of course, you already knew that). Congrats.

[LittleBeast]

Things that make the FJ less cool than the VX (no offense Jay I really like your blacked out FJ):

-you could serve a meal on the front table top, I mean front bumper
-the brake lights require red flags because they stick out so far from the body
-someone forgot to paint the roof
-didn't think visibility could be bad through the front windshield until now
-FJ is the exact opposite of aerodynamic
-4 tone color scheme = confusing (body color[varies], roof color[white], bumper color[silver], trim color[black])
-wheel wells look like they were cut with an exact o knife and do not mesh with the tires at all
-largest surface areas on the FJ are the hood closely followed by the front turn signals
-if the VX looks like a martian vehicle, the FJ looks like a Martian got excited with a cardboard box

but in all honesty I am glad you and your wife could decide on something for your family, good luck not regretting loosing the coolest vehicle you will ever own though

[etlsport]

so do i win your VX free of charge?

[pbkid]

BOOoo! We have something on common too! You mentioned taking trash to the dump and your first inkling was an FJ... that's where I would take an FJ too! Anyway, congrats on your new (F)ake (J)eep!

awww, you guys are no fun.....

first off, you guys wont be making fun of him when he's getting you unstuck or pulling you up an obstacle in moab...

secondly, the FJ is much much more road friendly than a jeep.....he said he was getting it for a familiy car....he needs something with a REAL back seat and something that he can drive all the time...

i think the FJ is a great choice....i would consider trading my VX for one too...at least he wont run out of parts

[VX1032]

I heard they have really weak diffs that can't take 32's, or at least the early ones, and they come stock with 32's!!

Oh well, they look interesting, but not my cup of tea. Way too big for my taste. We were in the woods with my VX and a couple FJs last weekend and they kept getting pinned between trees, wheelbase was holding them up.

[VehiGAZ]

Yes, I got it the version with the rear locker, plus a bunch of other goodies... roof rack, rock rails, front bling-bling skid plate (can be used as heavy-duty aluminum foil, from what I hear), stereo with subwoofer. They all have 32's on them, I believe. The heavy-duty off-road Trail Teams package has some gnarly off-road tires, but I didn't want them.

The FJ is definitely bigger all around, but as I said, that's exactly what we needed. Through shopping for a new ride, I realizes that the VX is really one of the smallest SUVs out there - EVERYTHING we drove felt substantially bigger!. I was not considering the off-road prowess of the VX compared to the FJ - in all the time I've had my VX I've driven only 5-10 miles off-road, and most of that was fairly light-duty. I just don't have the opportunity here in CT - it's basically illegal most places.

NJ99VX - the problems with the rear diff were apparently fixed sometime late in the 2007 model run, so I shouldn't have any of those problems.

I do not like Jeep products that much - which annoys my Jeep-salesman neighbor to no end! My sister had a Cherokee for several years, and she had a lot of problems with it. The ventilation systems have always been kind of crappy on them, too, which I cannot stand. You shouldn't have to fight a foggy windshield every time it's cold out!

And my wife likes driving the FJ more than the VX - which means I don't have to take the helm every weekend on the trips to & from Vermont. Btw, you should have seen her face light up when she heard that there are TRD exhaust & superchargers package available for the FJ!! I think I created a monster out of her when I souped up the VX!

The VX will always be the coolest vehicle I've ever owned. There is nothing like it, and I am happy to have been fortunate enough to have one as a daily driver for 4 years.

[Scott Harness]

Man! I really don't know what I would get next.

[kodiak]

The FJ is a good pick. It’s the only one in your list that can do some serious off roading. Yeah, the VX is small. That’s one of the reasons I love it so much, it’s like having a VW GTI on a ½ ton truck chasse and it still handles like a GTI.