Best Island Car/Truck/Suv?!?

Military surplus Humvee. Not the GM junk, a real one.

Military surplus Humvee. Not the GM junk, a real one.

...Except for the low gas mileage 🙂

Truck - Nissan Frontier (made in US) or Toymotor Tacoma.
Car/wagon - Subaru
SUV - Nissan Xterra
Toy - Jeep Wrangler

I've got a 1997 Toyota Tacoma that I purchased in 2000.
It's in excellent condition, has never had any major issues and has served me very well all these years. Toyotas in general, have a good resale value.

A good midsize P/U may be the best compromise depending on your passenger needs.
If you are looking at buying one here - take your time and look around for awhile - the best ones for sale here are often word of mouth.
If you are bringing one down - have new brakes, maybe clutch replaced, look for an original bedliner, get all the fluids replaced and cooling system flushed.

I like these:

http://www.gmc.com/canyon-small-pickup-truck.html

i had a ford escort-had no problems. have a nissan sentra-no problems. hubby has a low to the ground car-pot hole problems but if you go slow not too bad

I had a Ford Fiesta and could go anywhere except scenic roads.

Military surplus Humvee. Not the GM junk, a real one.

The GM junk H2 and H3 are a Chevy Tahoe and Trailblazer in disguise. FYI

I loved my Ford Explorer - super comfortable ride, high enough off the ground to deal with rough roads and easy maintenance and service. Would definitely go for a Ford Escort.

Military surplus Humvee. Not the GM junk, a real one.

...Except for the low gas mileage 🙂

Truck - Nissan Frontier (made in US) or Toymotor Tacoma.
Car/wagon - Subaru
SUV - Nissan Xterra
Toy - Jeep Wrangler

The Military H1 gets lousy diesel mileage. Eight MPG highway, four city.

great info than you.

That's Mr. Bulk Sausage please.

Military surplus Humvee. Not the GM junk, a real one.

...Except for the low gas mileage 🙂

Truck - Nissan Frontier (made in US) or Toymotor Tacoma.
Car/wagon - Subaru
SUV - Nissan Xterra
Toy - Jeep Wrangler

The Military H1 gets lousy diesel mileage. Eight MPG highway, four city.

How easy is it to service a Subaru on STX??? Is there a Subaru Dealer?

Recently purchased a new Ford Edge from over at Metro Motors. Really love the ride. Same size wheels/tires as an Explorer and looks to be about the same clearence underneath. Got the AWD with the standard 2.0 ltr engine. Works great for my gravel driveway with a fairly decent grade, and it walks right up it with ease.
I wanted a Wrangler, but the wife wanted something more civilized with a smoother ride. Have to admit, I think the Edge was the better choice now.

I'm with your wife and you were wise to heed her advice. I've never yet met a comfortable non bone-jarring Wrangler and never have "got" the appeal when there are so many well built comfortable options. Hadn't ever owned a Ford before the Explorer and of all the vehicles I've owned here it was just the best. Have to look at the Edge, never even heard of that one. Good luck with it! If Metro STX is anything like the Metro on STT they're really good people to work with.

They treated us very well so far.
Free service & oil changes first three years too, so I'll definitely stay with them for now.

A co worker has a Subaru, it's a nightmare to get parts for. I have a Wrangler and a 4 door pick up. Love them both, the Wrangler is not comfortable but I love it, like some people say....It's a Jeep thing.

Any vehicle now a days works great on the Islands. The main issue is ground clearance, low vehicles tend to bottom out in some areas outside of town. I used to drive a Toyota Corolla all over the Islands and never had any real issues, but had to be careful on some roads. Most of my wife's family drive regular cars on the Northside of St. Thomas with automatic transmissions with any issues and last 10 years or longer. But to me, the perfect Island vehicle would be a Honda CRV, small, compact, good on gas with a high ground clearance.

Ground clearance is certainly a problem and must be considered. I have always felt the biggest issue is -- can I get this car fixed without big problems?
The internet parts availability is a huge help but finding a mechanic who can understand repairing a less common car you have here has always been a serious consideration.
We all used to drive VW's - everyone could fix them - even BMW had a good dealership here at one time and they were popular - American and Japanese trucks seem to have a good record of durability and fixability [ a word?].
With all cars getting more electronic complications it is an issue worth considering - Can I get this car fixed here easily?

I third the round clearance. I had found many of the compacts would bottom out on the speed bumps in the residential neighborhoods, some of them even when creeping of the the bumps.

Military surplus Humvee. Not the GM junk, a real one.

...Except for the low gas mileage 🙂

Truck - Nissan Frontier (made in US) or Toymotor Tacoma.
Car/wagon - Subaru
SUV - Nissan Xterra
Toy - Jeep Wrangler

So,...if it's a choice between a Nissan Frontier and a Toyota Tacoma, which one and why? For STX specifically. I'm leaning toward the 4x4 versions but is that really necessary? Are there actually roads on STX that require 4 wheel drive, like to get to some of the West End beaches?

I get around fine with the 2WD Tacoma, I've done a little, not a lot off road. Nice ground clearance. Don't think 4WD is really needed unless you plan on pulling a lot of weight through a lot of muck, but as I think as someone said recently, posi-traction/limited slip diff isn't a bad idea. I've seen a lot of Tacoma's on STX. and I recall it got a good recent review in consumer reports.

There's a trail down to the tide pools as well as quite a few other roads through the rain forest on the west end that I wouldn't travel without a 4x4. Many of those roads, like even the one to Ridge to Reef, are passable under good conditions, but you need to also consider how the weather works here.
They say if you don't like the current weather, just wait ten minutes, and thats quite true. On a beautiful, clear, dry day, the skies could open up and then your not just on a dirt road in the middle of a rain forest, your in the middle of a sloppy raging river of mud and loose gravel.

I might as well ask,....any thoughts on a Hyundai Santa Fe AWD? Vin numbers start with a 5 so, manufactured in USA. No import duty,...I think. Easy to have serviced on STX???

I don't see any Hyundai's on the USVI Craig's list. Makes me wonder if they are popular/easily serviced on island.