I’m interested in a 4 door sedan (max price is $35k) that’s (a) midsize, (b) quiet and © a very smooth ride).
Any suggestions?
Don’t know the price, but I have heard the new Honda Accord is very good on that.
Avalon would be tops on my list, given those requirements (same size as an Accord these days). If smaller, a Camry V6. You might also check out the Malibu v6.
Are they quiet? I usually shy away from Accord because Consumer Reports usually gives them below average on that score, but if Honda’s addressed this I’d be interested in hearing it.
Thanks!
That ceiling price gives you lots of good choices. Start with a copy of Consumer Reports New Car Buyers’ Guide from the local bookstore. Follow that up with a few weekends taking test drives of the ones that look interesting.
Toyota Camry, Ford Fusion, Honda Accord, Hundai Soanta and the new Malibu all have good rides. Of those the Camry is the quietest, while the Accord is the noisest but the most fun to drive. The Mazda 6 is a nice car, but you would probably find it too jumpy and sporty to be serene.
I forgot about the Mazda 6 - it’s all new for 2009, and Car and Driver criticized it for being too quiet, so it’d be worth a try.
The Hyundai Azera should be added to the list. A worthy competitor to the Toyota Avalon, the Azera sells for ~$3,500. less than the Avalon. I have ridden in my brother’s Azera, and it rides very luxuriously while being very quiet.
I’ll second the Azera, just rented one, drove it from KC to Topeka and back. Very smooth, and a high-quality interior. Got 25 mpg at 75 mph.
My brother reports 29-30 mpg while cruising at 65-70 mph in his Azera.
Since you mention quiet as a desired feature, whatever you test drive make sure you try rolling the windows down to see how that affects noise.
I didn’t think to do that when buying a new car a couple of years ago and found to my distress after buying an otherwise very nice Chevy Impala that it makes a terrible sound if only a couple of windows are opened. You have to have all four open or closed to avoid the problem.
Actually, Marnet, this is characteristic of most cars nowadays. Since fuel economy tends to be better at highway speeds with the windows closed, car makers are not really interested in designing for elimination of this noise. In fact, this tendency to make noise when a window or two is opened is a byproduct of the aerodynamic design of the bodies of modern cars.
One more option - you might be able to find an ES350 at a discount within your price, just barely. Very quiet and Very smooooooth.
Thanks VDC. I wasn’t aware of that.
I confess to having been stunned to discover the terrible deep bass harmonic beating sound that happens if I put a one of two windows part or all the way down but how that disappears if all four windows are opened. Weird.
Guess I’m showing my age but I fondly recall from my childhood the little vent windows both in front and rear windows that could be angled out to control air flow with the main windows open or closed. You could ride all day at highway speed with open windows and not get battered by the wind one bit in either the front or rear seat if those little triangular window vents were opened.
The Buick LaCrosse is about the quietest car on the road in this class. Buick uses safety glass in the side windows to reduce road noise - no one else does. This is the same glass as the windshield. It is a plastic film sandwiched between two pieces of glass. It’s more expensive, but very quiet. Drive a Lacrosse and a Lexus and see if they are equally as quiet. Or is the Buick quieter?
The Accord is definitely NOT a quiet car. Probably the cheapest made car in this category. It is a sigificanlty over priced under featured ‘buzzy’ car. It is a real disappointment. Consider the Sonata, Altima, Taurus, all much more featured and very noticeably quieter - and at lower cost