Recommend a car (page 6)

jeanV

I love Subaru and I highly recommend it. It is also fun driving, despite being a Japanese car. You might spend a bit more on fuel and tyres becasue of the AWD but it is a good compromise.

German cars are OK, but not as good as they used to be (unless you put big money on the table).

In any case take a test drive before buying. The only time I didn't (with a VW) I regretted it!

JH

The problem is the weather here - cold and extreme in winter (so you want AWD) but then in summer ... you want FWD (for ecomony) and totally different driving requirements.

I keep my "all season" tires on 12 months a year, and I drive a bit slower in the winter, and I have no problems because my all season tires are just about always new. I change cars often. But Snow tires have a softer rubber, so it stays flexible at very cold temperature, and that's why it's normal to have them on in the winter, and not all season tires.

I still think that all you need, is a front wheel traction, with 4 good snow tires. (Studded tires are an option too)

Winter tires are divided in 2 categories here in Quebec, and must be the same in Alberta.

Ice or Snow.

The "snow" tires have deeper grooves to drive in deep snow, while "ice" tires look different, and grips on better to ice surface.

Out of the 2, most people have "ice tires", because the roads are generally cleared of snow, but there is always ice making it slippery.

http://www.1010tires.com/tire.asp?tirebrand=Goodyear&tiremodel=Ultra+Grip+Ice (copy and paste in another window)

Satans little helper

We bought a Toyota Echo (Yaris in the UK/Canada) when we first landed here and I wish we had spent $1000 more to get a corolla. Toyota will give you a safe, reliable and cheap to run car which ever model you go for but the Echo is not really comfortable for long journeys, you also get very limited boot space.

The Camry is fantastic if you are looking for a slightly larger family car but if you are going for AWD then I would look very hard at the Nissan Xtrail which comes in at the same price as the Subaru Forester.

nvrgnbk

I love the feel of a German car.

I've had many Golfs and Jettas.

But I have to admit that, Japanese cars, in my experience, have been less problematic.

Honda, Nissan, Toyota, Subaru(for wintry conditions)

mouthy

Sigh!!!! Thanks Simon.... I was truly worried about you & yours. I wanted to send a few $ to you as settling in Canada can be a lot of work & a lot of expense .

I am happy that your liking it so far & I hope you never regret the move. I am sorry to steal the thread folks, But the Green family is far more important than ANY car > dont ya think??????

tan

Honda is my car of choice...oh and I also like the Volvo S60 or Volvo 80.

Why Georgia

My husband and I are pretty practical people...so we have 2 practical cars. We live in Massachusetts, which gets snow and other yucky weather and we also own a home which requires a lot of work and trips to Home Depot.

We also have 2 - soon to be 3 children...so we need room.

I want to go where I want to go when I want to go and he feels the same way. I also wanted to feel safe in case we are ever in an accident.

I used to be a paramedic, so am not fond of little tiny cars that turn into coffins when you crash.

I have a Land Rover Discovery II that seats 7 people and has 4 wd and goes everywhere...its sporty and extra safe.

My husband drives a Ford F150 Supercrew cab pick up truck.

We bought both of our cars when they were a few years old so we didn't have the loss of devaluation and we love them.

Chrystal

Nathan Natas

How has your Land Rover been behaving?

I really like the looks of the Land Rover, and it's history in expeditions around the world, but the one thing I CANNOT get past is that it is a product of British design, and my prejudice, derived from years of reading ROAD & TRACK and other such magazines, is that automotive engineering is not England's strong suit. In other words, British cars are problematic in many ways and very expensive to keep running, because they keep breaking down.

I don't say this to offend, but simply to relay what I've heard through the years. British automotive electrical systems especially.

ninja

get a tractor.....really good in any conditions....plus you can really annoy folk who get stuck behind you on single track roads

Recommend a car

bisous