Hunting rig <15K

[ramsdude47]

Serious longshot, but why not. Feel free to chime in with recommendations for other vehicles to add to my list as well. Unlikely to buy a truck, though I would consider it. I’m located in Fruita, CO and would fly and drive for the right deal.

I’m looking at crossover/SUVs with very minor/not true 4WD off-road capability that still get decent mpg (~25 combined), and can tow at least 2000lb. There aren’t too many vehicles that meet these criteria, so I will list what I have found thus far:
1) Older Toyota Highlander Hybrid (ahead of the pack by a large margin - only 7.3in clearance though)
2) Jeep Cherokee/Patriot
3) Subaru Outback, ideally newer than 2015
4) Subaru Forester LL Bean/2.5XT ONLY
5) Ford Escape 2.0T

Notable omission: Mazda CX-5 (and CX-9, 2016 or newer). I think I just found my 1b behind a HH.

 

[Silvereagle50]

Watching. This could be interesting.
Don’t remember,,, did you have a price range?


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[ramsdude47]

I have <$15K in the title, though my actual hard upper limit would be closer to 20K.
For me to go above 15K would probably require major services done recently like timing belt, new tires, pristine records/1 owner, maybe some aftermarket mods, etc.

 

[DakotaBPNW]

Crosstrek

 

[jofes]

Xterra?

 

[Silvereagle50]

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/6c004709-1aa6-4868-81a4-d2e1723a3cf2/

The highlander looks decent. Prices for 2008 and older less than $10k.


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[Silvereagle50]

Really not sure why you wouldn’t want a truck for a hunting rig.
I would really look at a Toyota Tacoma. Get an extended cab and add a topper. Everything would be in the dry. Not sure you’d get in the 20+ mpg though.


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[NDGuy]

Really not sure why you wouldn’t want a truck for a hunting rig.
I would really look at a Toyota Tacoma. Get an extended cab and add a topper. Everything would be in the dry. Not sure you’d get in the 20+ mpg though.


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lol and nowhere near sniffing 15-20k

5 year old Toyota trucks are still 40k+

 

[deerhunt1988]

Xterra?

This but the 4wd gets you good off road capability and maybe 20mpg if you are lucky.

I've had my xterra for 4 years and absolutely love it.

 

[DenimChicken]

Not to nitpick or play the semantics game, but are you looking for a dedicated hunting rig, or a daily that will support your hunting adventures? Certainly will impact my recommendation and comments on whatninthinknisnimportnant and appropriate.

MPG makes it more difficult. Do you just want good MPG so you don’t drop a ton of gas money when you’re hunting and scouting, or you’ll be driving it regularly so it’s important?

We all compromise somewhere and the challenge is figuring out what is most important.

 

[180ls1]

Rav4

 

[Banded_spooney]

My wife’s CRV is pretty solid car for what it costs and I’d tow my quad trailer with it if I had too.

When I get her a bigger suv at some point I’ll pull a Claudio ongaro and turn it into a reliable efficient scouting ride rather than sell it.

 

[camelcluch]

Honda Element. Thank me later.

 

[Danny Hoey]

Isuzu VehiCross

 

[Felix40]

I think a truck would be better hunting vehicle but…

Honda pilot would be a really close fit.

My wife’s crv is pretty sweet with all terrains but it’s lacking the towing capacity you want.

 

[ramsdude47]

I don’t disagree about trucks making good hunting vehicles. But they cost too much and get garbage MPG. Half the people I know pay >$500 a month for a truck they literally never (or almost never) push harder than a Subaru could be pushed.

@DenimChicken, thanks for your excellent reply. The vehicle would be my winter commuter (motorcycle for 8-9 months), pull a raft trailer for rafting trips, and finally for family camping trips where a CRV isn’t off-road capable enough. MPG would be the first thing I would sacrifice since it won’t get a lot of use, within reasonable limits. I have a hard time swallowing worse MPG than an Outback. With that said I’m moving the Outback up to 2, I love the idea of a Jeep but the track record for reliability is questionable at best.

 

[keystone112]

I hit the wrong button on the xterra. I was trying to just “like “ it.

If not that, I would lean toward a Cherokee.

 

[Blind Squirrel]

Explorer Sport Trac 4wd. I took one up some pretty nasty roads right around Fruita. Would’ve been better with a 2-3” lift, but it made it. Was stock + good all terrain tires.

 

[Andrew12gauge]

Kia Sorento


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[Spoonman]

I use my wife’s old car, it’s a 2015 Audi Q5 TDI with 130k on it and it’s been great. Averages 34mpg, it’s AWD(worked flawlessly), and can tow over 4000lbs. It has close to 250hp and over 400 ft lbs of torque so it moves when you want it to also.