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Looking to get a new vehicular object. I am wanting to know what would be the best for hauling a tuba or two inside the vehicle? It also needs to have good gas mileage.

Define good gas mileage.

My first 2 suggestions were my last 2 cars. For +30 mpg: Pontiac Vibe or Toyota Matrix (same car, different badges). For mpg between 25-30: Kia Rondo.

My advice: Just follow what Dave Ramsey says about car loans.

Tubaryan12 wrote:.....For mpg between 25-30: Kia Rondo.

+1. However... the Kia Rondo isn't sold NEW in the US anymore under that name. Canadians can buy it badged 'Carens'. Good transports. My 'Jumbo' travel case even fits in the back!

Suburban - any year.

I can carry two tubas and one other person in my Honda Civic LX coupe. Scoot the seat way forward to get the big tuba in the back seat, then put it back for comfort. The smaller tuba fits in the trunk. 36 mpg highway.

I can't say it's "the best," but it works great. Even better when I'm only taking one tuba (which is almost always).

I have a 2000 Taurus wagon. 27-29 mpg, plenty of room for most of my menagerie at once. Good lookin' car too. Otherwise, one of the Nissan or Scion boxes seem like they would be perfect for 2 people and a coupla tubas. And, they aren't a massive expense.

Classic Toyota pickup. I've been jonesing after one of the new Tacomas for a while now; I see two sweet quad cabs between my girlfriend's place and the office that have me drooling and I don't even like quad cabs. I wish I had the finances and need for such a thing.

jr2262euph wrote:Suburban - any year.

No, a Yukon.

Mark wrote:

jr2262euph wrote:Suburban - any year.

No, a Yukon.

Of course! For the gas mileage, obviously!

I have a new Subaru Outback. Great car, usually get around 29-33 on the highway. I can fit two tubas in trunk, no problem. Can fit about 5 with the seats down.

I got a Chevy Sonic 5-door hatchback last fall when my Chevy Aveo died from a broken timing belt. The seats fold down as necessary, and I can haul way more than one tuba in it. At times, with no passenger, I have hauled in it: double bass, combo amplifier, extension speaker cabinet, two bass guitars, tackle box of accessories, music stand, music, assorted other accessories, and a tuba - Miraphone 186BBb in its gig bag, and I probably could have fit another small item or two as well. It has good gas mileage, the turbo only kicking in when you're passing on the highway. Yes, this motor has a timing chain, not belt, so I'm looking forward to many tens of thousands more miles on this automobile than on the previous one.

TubaTinker wrote:

Tubaryan12 wrote:.....For mpg between 25-30: Kia Rondo.

+1. However... the Kia Rondo isn't sold NEW in the US anymore under that name. Canadians can buy it badged 'Carens'. Good transports. My 'Jumbo' travel case even fits in the back!

It's the Rondo in Canada as well. It's the Carens in the rest of the world. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kia_Carens

I didn't think about "new" when I originally posted.

Depending on how much you have to haul the tubas around, it might not make sense to buy a car based on this requirement. I would think a pod on the roof would carry one tuba and if you carry several, a small trailer or shelf that fits in the trailer hitch like you use for a wheel chair. Just another option if you happen to want or have a Smart Car or something small. . .

How many people do you have to carry, and for long distances or not?

I have a Honda Fit. Great little car: small, convenient, inexpensive, good gas mileage. The best part is how flexible the back is: the rear seats can fold up (leaving a big empty area where the rear seats usually go), or fold down. I get 35 mpg in city / highway driving, and nearly 40 mpg on long highway runs. Can seat 4 adults comfortably. Can seat 5, if they like each other, or are small (elementary school kids). Can handle three people and one full-size tuba in a hard case, or 2 people and two full-size tubas in hard cases.

Honda Element. Recently took two tubas, two euphs and the people who play them to an out of town gig. Also, a very comfortable RV for a cross country trip. Not mine, but "Boxy" sure is useful. Decent gas mileage, and Honda has a very good longevity record...

Inherited a '09 Camry from my late father in law. Great riding car and good mileage for its size(30- plus MPG hwy). PT-20 in Cronkite gig bag fits along with large music tote for quintet in trunk. Never liked leaving instrument cases/bags in sight.

Our daughter had a Nissan Altima for her and three of her closest friends; our son got the family 1995 Buick LeSabre for him and three of his closest tubas. He's still got it.

alfredr