Pore Jud is deahd, pore Jud Frye is deahd.

They're the small SUV's...when they originally came out they were both tiny, underpowered and lacked refinement. They've grown up a bit to be pretty nice AWD's.

I borrowed a friend's Forester one weekend to go camping. Personally, I couldn't take the lesbian jokes to actually buy one, but it was a pretty solid car, handled nicely, and we fit a ton of crap in it.

Mr. B has a seriously fancy pants truck that we take camping. If the tent gets cold, the truck is like a luxury hotel! It's the best of both worlds.

I'm going to put the Forester on my "look at" list since I had such good luck with my last Subaru (what is it with the lesbian jokes, I've heard those too!), but the hose-down-ability of the Element is really tempting.

discussion here that may interest you boomer
Non technical disussion by ordinary blokes

http://www.woodworkforums.com/showthread.php?t=42974

I liked the Element that I took for a brief spin - I'd have to drive it longer to get a better sense of it. I love the CRV as a passenger more than I do as a driver - but I'm a bit crazy about how much I love being a passenger in the CRV - love that the back seat's higher than the driver.

The hoseability just has such huge appeal - I realized tonight I could throw Set and the dogs in - and get everyone clean at the same time Set's not precisely taken with the concept.

Subaru's are pretty dang nice - but the hosing ...

Toyota's are just no-go land for me. I can't handle how their windshields are set in - I have to lean back the whole time I'm driving.

I work with a woman who owns an Element. She loves it, and can roll her bike in the back door without taking off a wheel. That's a mountain bike, not a cruiser.

I recently purchased a Saturn VUE AWD V6 and am very happy with it. If you want something bigger, the Outlook fits the bill and even improves on the VUE's gas mileage without sacrificing power.

you can hose down an element?












WAAAAAAAAAAAY cool

but they are WAAAAAAAAAAY ugly...

I wouldn't want to hose down my car, unless it was ridiculously muddy. On top of that, I think you have to take out all the seats if you want to do that...probably not as easy a chore as you think.

I'll check out your link, dadpad. Thanks!

I'm not familiar with the Saturn either.

I'm realizing how little attention I pay to cars -- telling one from another is difficult.

That's a good point about hosing, Slappy. It probably isn't something I would have to do often but it would be nice to have the option. I supposing knowing that you could leads me to think that cleaning up would be a snap as far as just wiping it down without having to worry about carpet, upholstery, etc. Here in Waterworld, wiping up is an ongoing chore.

The Saturn is a lot more car for the money than a CRV. But the CRV is a great car - no question - one saved my daughter's life.

nope.

Sorry boomerang. I should have taken a peek at this days ago...
I drive an Element and absolutely love it. It handles well and has loads of cargo space. The back seats flip up and hug the sides so the whole back is open, if you like. I've hauled everything in her, dirt, plants, furniture, etc. The only drawback is that it is definitely a four seater. There's no riding three people in the back. I work from home so, like you, I don't drive every day. In three years I've managed to put only 10,000 miles on her. She seems to do good on gas and I've never had a problem. I love my Element and would highly recommend it to anyone.
I've never hosed her down. Never had to.
What some call ugly, I call distinctive. She's the cutest thing in any parking lot!

Thank you for the testimonial, eoe!

They are indeed distinctive, which is probably why I know about them since I'm pretty challenged when it comes to cars. When Mr. B asked what kind of car I might be interested in, an Element was the only car I could name.

It seems like a handy little thing.

They were originally marketed, as the story goes, to young white males 18 - 25. I figure, I must have been a young white guy in another life because the moment I saw one, I knew it was the only chariot I wanted.

Now isn't that interesting!

I wonder what kind of car is supposedly marketed to my demographic?

I guess I'm the only one that thinks the Element looks like an orthopedic shoe.

I vote for an all-wheel drive Subaru for the tough terrain of the Northwest. My Outback has literally taken me safely through floods, icy mountain roads and mudslides.

Yep. Guess you're the only one.

Not the element so much as some of those crossover vehicles, like the Infinity GX or whatever it is, and others like it. They look like shoes.

Shoes!?

Ha. That's funny. I've never thought about it that way. If Converse made a car that would be the one for me.

Despite it's luxury hotel features Mr. B's truck is an actual truck which can endure many obsticles. My car would mostly be an out and about, errand running thing.

Breadboxes. For some reason, those cross-over vehicles remind me of old-fashioned breadboxes.