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High gas prices, what is the 'new' best fly fishing/recreating vehicle?

26K views 91 replies 58 participants last post by  IveofIone 
#1 ·
With gas prices at an all-time high (likely to go higher, and who know how high they'll go), is this causing you to look at your fly fishing vehicle differently? If so, why and how? And, if you replaced your vehicle, with what you would you replace it and why? If gas prices aren't making you think of purchasing another vehicle or, if you are already in the market for another vehicle and gas prices and gas mileage aren't a decision factor, why?

I'll use myself as an example. A 4x4 extra cab pickup or even a Suburban has always been a dream rig for me. However, I live in Seattle, and parking garages are part of life. So, larger 4x4's and vehicles have always caused parking challenges. I wouldn't use the truck as a 'truck' that often and I have a 4 year old, so an SUV made sense. I drive a Grand Cherokee with a small V8. It's my everyday vehicle, and is my recreating vehicle, as well. It is easy to park, it's tough, has OK room, maneuvers well in the boonies, great in the snow, and it has good power to pull a reasonably sized boat. However, it's gas mileage isn't the best.

I've been considering replacing it with a quieter rig (it's a little noisy) that gets better gas mileage. Hybrids are an attractive option, but everyone is on that bandwagon now, driving up the prices of the better vehicles (say, a Highlander). And, although they are rated for X towing capacity, that's with the gas and electric motor both in use; the towing numbers don't consider how effectively the electric motor works (which is the power plant in use at low speeds) when pulling a boat/trailer up the loading dock.

So, one of my more viable options might be to maybe 'downsize' to one of the smaller 4x4 SUV's; maybe a Honda CRV, RAV4? Subaru has always seemed a practical alternative, but it seems like folks fall in to two camps, love 'em or just think they're OK. I've been told by some that they average low 20 mpg in their Subaru, while others with the same model say they averaga high teens. Anyone else have comments?

Maybe other options, such as the sport wagons? Like the Volvo XC70? Other car based wagons?

Or, if I want to stay with a SUV that is similar in size to the Jeep but gets a little better gas mileage, maybe a Honda Pilot, Toyota Highlander, or even their luxury cousins (MDX, etc.)? Jeep offers the Grand Cherkoee in a diesel that gets reasonable gas mileage (I think 20/23 mpg), but they're relatively new and pricey, and the decent mpg is offset by the higher (relatiely) costs of diesel. VW offers an awesome V10 diesel option that offers huge torque and decent gas mileage and the luxury amenities of a Porsche Cayenne, but I'd need to win the lottery to afford one.

A buddy of mine advocates the two rig setup. One rig that is comfortable and gets great mpg for everyday driving, and a beater 4x4 as the recreating vehicle. Of course, that means he's incurring twice the costs for licensing/tabs and insurance as if he just had one vehicle. And, he has to find room to park two rigs at his house.

So, what's a person to do? What are you doing, if anything, and how are the high gas prices affecting your evaluation of a daily use or recreation vehicle?
 
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#75 ·
I'm in the Two vehicle mode! Daily driver and local transportation VW TDI GOLF (54MPG Diesel), Garbage/Sailboat/Toy/expidition rig/hauler S10 4X4 getting 22mpg when not towing the Sailboat. Yea it get's abused and overloaded, but I only use it when I must.

I'll stick with the TDI and in the future will look for same, as I prefer to drive something that gets good if not GREAT mileage and has HUGE range. My TDI I go 800-850 miles on a tank without running dry (usually 1gal remaining when I fill up). The Truck would have to fill up 3+ times in that distance..... GRRR.

But The VW just can't do the 4X4 stuff. So each trip must be planned accordingly.
 
#79 ·
Honda Element and Subaru Outback/Forrester -

I'm looking at a new car, a couple of questions about the above cars:

The Honda Element has a towing rating of 1500 lbs (and supposedly an internal cargo capacity of only650 lbs.) vs. the Outback at 2700 lbs (and RAV 4 at I think 3500) -- what does this tell me? does anyone know why the Element towing/cargo limit is so low? what's the limiting factor?

On the Outback/Forrester - the current listed estimated mpg is 20/26 ... from this post it sounds as if people are actually getting better than the sticker mpg? Or does anyone know if any changes for 08/09 models have reduced mpgs? I know the Forrester is bigger ...

I'm looking to downsize a little (well, really, my 02 Rodeo p.o.s. died a catastrophic death) and I really appreciate this thread. FAF
 
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#80 ·
Honda Element and Subaru Outback/Forrester -

I'm looking at a new car, a couple of questions about the above cars:

The Honda Element has a towing rating of 1500 lbs (and supposedly an internal cargo capacity of only650 lbs.) vs. the Outback at 2700 lbs (and RAV 4 at I think 3500) -- what does this tell me? does anyone know why the Element towing/cargo limit is so low? what's the limiting factor?

On the Outback/Forrester - the current listed estimated mpg is 20/26 ... from this post it sounds as if people are actually getting better than the sticker mpg? Or does anyone know if any changes for 08/09 models have reduced mpgs? I know the Forrester is bigger ...

I'm looking to downsize a little (well, really, my 02 Rodeo p.o.s. died a catastrophic death) and I really appreciate this thread. FAF
http://www.elementownersclub.com/forums/index.php
 
#83 ·
Dustin,

I mainly ride my bikes recreationally. I tried commuting a few times, but I live too close, ~ 7 miles. I just begin to break a sweat as I arrive at my office, so I normally ride after work about 30 miles. I use my mountain bike for my shuttle vehicle when I float rivers tho.

Sg
 
#84 ·
Dustin,

Every morning, that it is not raining I pack my shit up and head to the office on my bike. It is only 4 miles away and I don't break a sweat but it loosens my muscles up after they get tight from running. Plus, I don't really want to be all that sweaty before I get to work. Some days, I don't feel like riding to work but I do it anyways. I am guessing I am not really saving that much money but it makes me feel like I am doing my part. I ride a hybrid and it works great for mellow trails and cooks pretty good on streets.

http://www.specialized.com/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=34058
 
#90 ·
You mean if you get lucky you take out the 12 pack in the cooler side so you can fit in your fish? That is what I thought you meant...built in cooler and all.
 
#89 ·
'09 Forester. Very roomy (part of the reason I bought it over the Outback). Never below 20 and a high around 25 so far (still breaking in). One thing on my mind... do I want to leave a nice new shiny high mileage car at a put in, with all the breakin's people have been reporting. Makes me think a second car beater fishmobile (or a Kawa KLR) is still an attractive option regardless of mpg.
 
#91 ·
A little tip for you Subaru drivers. If you look under the hood you will find a tab that says FWD, and you open it and find nothing. You can put a 15 amp fuse in it and just use front wheel drive. My buddy showed me this and says you can get up to 4 more mpgs. This was on a outback not sure about the rest, but take a look.:thumb:
 
#92 ·
Richard, I have been following this thread for several days as it has made interesting reading. I went back and reread your original post this morning to see if we had actually answered your questions. There has been a lot of good input and it is clear that many people are thinking the gas problem through now that fuel cost are taking such a big bite out of the average budget.

I asked my self the same question 3 years ago as the handwriting was on the wall then. I had wanted a new fishing rig also but already had a Ford Explorer and a Dodge pickup so it made little sense to buy another rig primarily to go fishing in. Instead I decided that I had to get something that delivered at least 30mpg to justify the expenditure on a new vehicle. We went to the auto show in Spokane to check out the crop and were particularly interested in the Honda Element. With snow and ice on the roads here 3 months of the year and the trip to the supermarket 80 miles over an icy pass the Element seemed like a great choice. But the mileage was nowhere near 30 and when we sat in it the whole idea fell apart. My wife with a 36" inseam and me with 4 bulging disc in my back each felt like we had been strapped into an interrogation chair during the Spanish Inquisition. Next we tried the new Outback but the seats were no better and it just seemed far less practical than the Element. We tried most of the Asian cars and almost all lacked decent thigh support. Some very nice vehicles out there but most were cursed with very poor seats. It amazes me that you can buy a vehicle with every conceivable-and often useless-accessory on it but the one thing that you use 100% of the time you are in the vehicle comes in one-size-fits-all and is often over styled and under developed ergonomically.

We stopped by the Ford booth and sat in a Focus and bingo-the seats fit! Plenty of head room, shoulder and leg room and a 33mpg rating as well. In July of that year all of the manufacturers were having a fire sale on their product offering employee pricing along with rebates. I used that opportunity to pick up a new Focus very well equipped for a paltry $13,400. That was less than the Honda Fit, Nissan Versa or Toyota Yaris that were just coming on line-all smaller cars with small engines but similar mileage. I ordered 4 high quality snow tires and another set of wheels the day I bought the car and have used them for 3 years now with great success. Performance in the snow is just amazing and the 4WD rig sits in the driveway now on all but the heaviest snowfall days of the winter. Although I lust for a European Focus TDCI CR 2.0 with 134hp, 251lbs of torque and a mileage rating of 42 mpg I am content with the 31-33mpg I am getting and don't drive enough to warrant anything more.

So I fall into the camp of buying something that is more efficient than just 22-25mpg and planning ahead for gas prices over $6. When I bought my car the first tank of gas was $2.31 a gallon and that was just 3 years ago this month. Today it is $4.46 and if we play that forward another 3 years 20 mpg is going to sound like pretty poor mileage. Buy something that will make sense 3 or 4 years from now as today's prices are just temporary. Should Iran and Israel get into a pissing match or some other explosive event occur, gas will be over $6 before you can pull into the next gas station.

One last thing-there are hundreds of thousands of ten to fifteen year old SUVs out there that many people are trying to unload right now. On Craigs List I often see mid-nineties Explorers with fairly low mileage for under 3K. These are dependable rigs that often go well over 200,000 miles with few problems. A 4WD rig for 3K that will haul a couple of Super Fat CATs inside or a pontoon on top, haul a drift boat, carry wet dogs or sleep two comfortably is a bargain indeed. And if it gets trashed by some tweakers at a road head the pain won't be near as great as if your Belchfire Eight Turbo just had the navigation and DVD ripped off along with the 20" Look At Me alloy wheels. Happy shopping, Ive
 
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