Hunting Vehicle

[BrianSmart]

Hi! New to archery hunting as of last year. Finding it wicked fun and frustrating! My (obviously) general question is - what are you all driving? I have a little 2005 Subaru Impreza and it's great on gas mileage, peppy, AWD, but it's the RS not an Outback version so sits a bit low for Forest Service and logging roads. Last year I even managed to stuff a deer in the back!! It stunk to Holy Heck, but it worked. I'm tempted to keep it, get a little lift for but, but realize that any larger game just ain't gonna work, plus any longer/bigger trips there just isn't enough room for gear/coolers, etc.

Thoughts? Advice?

I do want to get a truck, but given current conditions and being in a new job (thankfully 'essential') I still have a paycheck coming in. However, that doesn't mean I NEED to jump into a car payment....

Thanks.

 

[FLAK]

Get the lift, maybe some off road rubber. Your good.

 

[Jagger0502]

Unless you are going into some true 4x4 areas the car will get you where you need to go cheaper. I have a big truck (13mpg) and because the gas millage sucks I hardly ever take it anymore for most trips if I don’t need to haul a lot of gear or haul the boat. I have a cross trek that my buddy and I have done a few week long hunting trips with and have been able to fit all of our gear in plus a cooler big enough for a few deer. His car he has a hitch which is nice for the extra room having the cooler on it. Even trips with my dog hunting grouse and camping out I can fit two in my car with the dog crate. The truck is comfy and really nice but the gas kills me. If I had a newer truck that got 20mpg+ then I am sure I would take it more but the car works in most cases. I am not looking forward to driving my truck from PA out to MT this fall to hunt elk...

 

[LineandBuck]

You might find some helpful opinions in this thread: Ultimate Dedicated Hunting Rig

 

[RAPTOR]

Lots of good truck deals right now, and most companies are offering 0% financing

 

[BrianSmart]

You might find some helpful opinions in this thread: Ultimate Dedicated Hunting Rig

Yeah.....RIGHT after I posted my question.....I found that thread.....total Noob "use the search bar' dork mistake!!

 

[BrianSmart]

Lots of good truck deals right now, and most companies are offering 0% financing

I've seen those offers....but holy cripes are trucks spendy these days! my 1991 Toyota was 13K NEW!

 

[colersu22]

Probably going to be a good time to pick up a brand new truck or even used with everything closed down still. I have seen multiple dealers offering 0% and anywhere from 3-6 months no payment. They will have lots of inventory that they will need to move to get sales so good prices are coming.

 

[brettdunn7]

Probably going to be a good time to pick up a brand new truck or even used with everything closed down still. I have seen multiple dealers offering 0% and anywhere from 3-6 months no payment. They will have lots of inventory that they will need to move to get sales so good prices are coming.

I’d like to know when. I’ve been looking and prices haven’t changed at all around here.


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[BrianSmart]

I’d like to know when. I’ve been looking and prices haven’t changed at all around here.


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Same here!! Have seen the 0% for like EIGHTY months.....Eight ZERO!!

Sad thing is....he's probably right.....a LOT of inventory and back payments might be happening....

 

[22lr]

My first car was a 1990 Honda civic 2dr hatchback. I would fold the back seats down, throw a tarp down and throw my deer in there. Worked like a champ! I almost miss that ole car, was a great reliable beater that got great MPG. I just never took it down anything more than a decent dirt road.

Nowdays I drive a Tundra with the crewmaxx cab, plenty of room for 2 carseats and tows the camper like a champ!

 

[Newtosavage]

I made cars of various kinds work for many years. A lot of older guys can recall when the same sedan you took to church on Sundays, doubled as your hunting rig. We just made do. Nothing wrong with that. I've put deer in the back of a VW Golf TDI before. If you can quarter them in the field, a whole deer will fit in a pretty small cooler actually. With the seats folded down, I could have gotten two coolers in that Golf that were big enough to handle a quartered elk.

The road clearance is more of an issue IMO than the space. But I also hunt from plenty of roads that don't require 4wd, and prefer to when I can. Although it's plenty capable off-road, I don't need to beat up my Silverado any more than I already have.

The bonus to the car is you will go further, and more often due to the improved fuel mileage.

 

[ZDR]

one thing to realize about new trucks (1/2 ton) is while they are advertised to get 20+ mpg, that is under ideal circumstances. driving around town/mixed driving expect 13-15mpg at best with 10-12 mpg likely. This is my experience + plus good friends that have a 19 chevy w 5.3l V8, one Tundra w 5.7 V8 and one Titan w the 5.6. I did average 19+ on a recent roadtrip though and that was nice...
I ordered my truck right before the current mess, it was delivered during the mess and I ended up getting much higher rebates than expected.

 

[wyosam]

Even elk don’t take up all that much room once quartered. I’ve hauled elk home a bunch of times in my commuter (Prius), and once had 8 quarters in (and two heads/racks on the roof) of an early 80s 2 door Subaru hatchback. + two guys backpack style gear for a week. Drive what you want, but don’t feel like you have to buy a vehicle that doesn’t make sense the other 11 months of the year. I’ve got a truck too, but really only use it if I need it. I’ve also carried quarters two at a time on my motorcycle.


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[Fitzwho]

There's a brand new Subaru Crosstrek with a lift and AT tires for sale just down the street from my office for $24,500. I have seriously thought about driving down there to see if I actually fit in it, then get it for the wife and steal it for all my hunts...

I get 17mpg in my Titan XD, which I just build $2.50 per gallon at that rate into my budget for each hunt, but hell, I filled up with diesel last week for $1.68 a gallon. Nice on the pocket book, rough on the soul (I work in the oilfield).

 

[Mt Al]

You're good to go with the Imprezza, plus you get huge man points. I'm biased though. Been hunting out of my truck and Subaru outback since they started making outbacks. If your imprezza has a roof rack, you can strap two antelope and one mule deer up there, ask me how I know! If you drive fast enough and have enough wiper fluid, the blood won't be too bad on the windshield.

Imprezza might be tough to sleep in, but you can sleep one comfortably in the back of an outback with the seats down. Maybe trade up/sideways into an outback or some other smaller AWD vehicle with good gas mileage? Older Lincoln MKX/Ford Edge have great reputations with some people and decent mileage.

Just my opinion, but I don't care about zero percent on new vehicles at this point in life. Interest cost may be real, but so is depreciation, licensing and insurance. Plus even thinking about scratches, etc, isn't something I want. I hope I'm in a financial situation to think othewise someday soon!

 

[BrianSmart]

You're good to go with the Imprezza, plus you get huge man points. I'm biased though. Been hunting out of my truck and Subaru outback since they started making outbacks. If your imprezza has a roof rack, you can strap two antelope and one mule deer up there, ask me how I know! If you drive fast enough and have enough wiper fluid, the blood won't be too bad on the windshield.

Imprezza might be tough to sleep in, but you can sleep one comfortably in the back of an outback with the seats down. Maybe trade up/sideways into an outback or some other smaller AWD vehicle with good gas mileage? Older Lincoln MKX/Ford Edge have great reputations with some people and decent mileage.

Just my opinion, but I don't care about zero percent on new vehicles at this point in life. Interest cost may be real, but so is depreciation, licensing and insurance. Plus even thinking about scratches, etc, isn't something I want. I hope I'm in a financial situation to think othewise someday soon!

Thanks Man!! I've already been looking at lift kits (already bounced enough rocks under there) and better tires.....plus a roof basket is really a great idea too....along with full wiper fluid and driving fast!!

 

[Koontznicholas]

You Subaru guys are serious lol!

 

[Scrappy]

You definitely do not need a truck. All the meat off my bull is inside my little rav4 plus all the gear a person could ever need to hunt.

 

[Wmmichael20]

Heck any mid size suv/crossover like the outback or even the newer Jeep Cherokee trailhawk would work well. And get decent mileage is always good.