Don't discount this US car...the Vue is a hit!

My wife and I are expecting our first child ANY day now. We realized that our second car, MY car haha, was severly inadequate for loading and transporting a child (it was a 1999 Monte Carlo). After just buying a car in February (see my review of the Hyundai Sonata) it was time to replace the other car and send the Sonata to me.

My wife has always been an SUV fan, but I am more of a thrifty type that thinks SUVs are a waste unless you are really using them for the reason they first came around...hauling lots of stuff. They usually get VERY poor gas mileage and they are just too big for their own good. Then we started looking at crossovers...the best of both worlds: better gas mileage, a little smaller, nice power, good storage, etc.

After looking through all our options, we narrowed it down to three cars...all were from the same family: Chevy Equinox, Pontiac Torrent, and Saturn Vue. We drove each and they were all VERY similar so it was going to come down to finding the one with the best mix of the features we want, lower miles, and best price. We settled on the Saturn Vue and couldn't be happier.

The Vue had some distinct advantages that the other two didn't have, namely a Honda V-6 engine and the dent resistant plastic body panels. We fell in love with this car right when we first saw it. We weren't even planning on buying for a while yet when we bought the car, but when you are looking for used cars, sometimes you have to jump when the right one shows up.

Our favorite features of the car included the VERY powerful Honda V-6 engine...there aren't many domestic cars that come with an engine like this one. We all know Honda makes the best engines in the world...its what they do best. This engine packs a punch yet gets very good gas mileage (in the mid 20's on the highway and low 20's around town in my estimation).

We also love the leather seats with seat warmers for those cold winters here in Minnesota. The seats are quite comfortable, they could be a little softer but I find them to have nice back support and are a nice size for someone of my stature.Our car came equipped with a radio with XM built in as well as onstar. We don't subscribe to either yet, but as an avid Sirius user, I like that I have the option. We love the power moonroof, audio in jack for our mp3 players, legroom, folddown rear seats and front passenger seat for packing long items, gas mileage, and its stylish look. The only people that have sat in the back have been my in laws, my father in law is 6'4" and was comfortable sitting in both the front and back of the car which really shows the size!

One thing I have noticed as we've driven the car around more is that its a little noisy...not so much the car itself but the road noise. Its not a deal breaker but its noticable at times (its not a window issue, but probably just how the car is insulated from road noise). I don't expect Lincoln quality but its a little below my expectations. The steering is a little loose, though I am told this is intentional due to some kind of assisted turning feature that the salesman pointed out to me when I bought it. Some might find it annoying, I like it though.

Its not a perfect car, you see my cons for my gripes, but after a month with this car, we love it. It would have been nice to have a warranty that transferred over to it (fixed for 2007) but nonetheless for the price, we got a car that gave us everything we were looking for!!