2003 Suzuki Vitara Four-Door

Well, after having reached its 85th B-Day (85,000 miles), the 1999 Mitsubishi Galant was sent off to the glue factory by the missus. In light of our great penchant for travel, she decided her next car was going to be along the lines of a jeep, a sturdy, dependable ride with reclining room and storage space for supplies and whatnot. She was looking at the Tracker, the Jimmy and the Montero, but lo and behold, when I came home that fateful day, the 2003 Suzuki Vitara Four-Door was sitting in the driveway.

The 2003 Vitara Four-Door is a 4-door, 5-passenger sport-utility, available in two-wheel and four-wheel drive. She ended up with the 4x4 and I don't think your dealer will dicker over the price, depending on availability. The 2003 Vitara Four-Door's closest competitors include the Buick Rendezvous, the Jeep Wrangler, and the Toyota RAV4, although the trucks I mentioned earlier ranked higher on our list.

Both trims are equipped with a standard 2.0-liter, I4, 127-horsepower engine that achieves 22 miles per gallon in the city and 25 per gallon on the highway. A 5-speed manual transmission with overdrive is standard, and a 4-speed automatic transmission with overdrive is optional. We went with the automatic because yours truly can't drive a standard to save his life.

The great thing about this is that it's a maneuverable little jeep that the missus can handle without any serious transitory problems. It doesn't have any fishtail problems although you might be surprised by strong gusts of wind on a bridge or highway. The 4x4 will also help you if you get curious along a mountain trail or just decide to make your way down a grassy knoll for a picnic. Our model had a CD player instead of a cassette deck, so be prepared for that unless, of course, you want to add a tape player of your own.

The seats stretch back far enough so you can kick back and rough it overnight. There's a rack on top so you can bring extra supplies for a weekend on the lake or in the hills. There's also plenty of room in the back to accommodate luggage you don't want exposed on top. This is not to be confused with an SUV, but there's definitely enough room for that weekend away from home.

Affordability, comfort, storage space and maneuverability, this is a great jeep for the missus or for anyone not too crazy about driving a bull through the china shops of urban America.