1991Jeep_Man

I need some help from you all, especially if you own the vehicle I'm about to display. To make a long story short, my mother is hopeful that her tax return will allow her to pay off her remaining loans from a local credit union and get another single loan for a new vehicle. Currently she has a 2002 Ford Escape 4 cylinder 5 speed. While the vehicle has been somewhat reliable, its had its downfalls. Just a few months after purchasing it used, the clutch failed (lies from the dealership she bought from. Won't go there and or how they treated us, but let's just say their sales have dropped since they decided to be unruly and lie about mechanical condition to my mother), then another few months after my mother got money she didn't have to repair the clutch, the pedal and slave went out. Again, I enjoy the fact that ***** who sold this lemon actually had to sale one of his branches of auto manufacturing dealerships in response to actions I took (all legal.. just remember the power and determination of one voice can do wonders).

Further down the line, add multiple other failures, she needs a new vehicle. And I will be the first to think she deserves it.

SO, I was drafted this time to do some research for her since my XJ has expanded my mechanical knowledge 20 fold. After much searching, I found 7 candidates for her to decide from. BUT, of them all, this was my special recommendation:

http://www.kernmotorco.com/VehicleDe...-VA/1654039953

Only 5 years old, only a tad over 60k miles, and check out the goodies. The biggest thing I like is the heated seats for my mother because she has joint issues, and when she rides with me in my '07 Focus with heated seats, they seem to really help. Plus, she needs an automatic, as the shifting is taking its toll as well. I've done a fair amount of research, and from what I gather this is a descent DD. My mom doesn't offroad at all or any of that, so the lackluster offroadability of the Compass doesn't factor in here. She just needs 4x4 for the mountain snow (for the really deep stuff, the good ol' XJ of mine does duty work for all family). Navigation would help her tremendously since she travels often for my little sister's softball stuff. All of this with 29 mpg highway? You'd think perfect, right?

Right now, my only iffy point with this vehicle after further research is the CVT. I've seen reviews claiming the CVT is very smoothe, descent, etc... and then I've seen a few reviews where these transmissions have issues. Needless to say, that's the last thing my mother would need. Whatever she gets, I want to make sure it will hold up without any failure. I change her oil and everything, so that's always taken care of. I have always preached the importance of maintenance. So what do you guys think? Anyone have experience with this vehicle? Or even with this CVT?

I'd really appreciate any feedback everyone. I know it's a long read, but I just want to make sure I take every possible consideration into account before I put my final stamp of "let's do this" on a vehicle for my mother. Thanks again!

Edit: Btw.... I suggested gettin a Jeep Cherokee for the ultimate reliability, but it was bad enough suggesting a Jeep in the first place. At the first mention of XJ, she said if she hears "Cherokee" one more time, she's sewing my mouth shut lol.

wvtruckpuller

Eugene Jeep

I haven't heard anything bad about the CVT in these. Maybe i just haven't been listening hard enough though. I did replace collapsed lifters on one of these, and heard thats a common problem with them. In all they seem to be alright though, and they are pretty easy to work on. Almost feels like a luxury vehicle when your sitting in it haha