Today, I embarked on a journey to trade in my 2016 Honda Accord for a 2021 CX-5 Signature, but fate had other plans. At Enterprise, I was unexpectedly tempted by a 2022 Nissan Rogue SV with less than 100 miles on it. The deal seemed too good to pass up - only $255 a month with a 60k mile/5-year warranty, and a stress-free, fair experience. Plus, there’s a 7-day, 1000-mile return policy, albeit with a $200 restock fee.
But here’s where it gets tricky. I couldn’t shake off my initial fascination with the CX-5. So, I headed to a Mazda dealership and found a tempting 2022 CX-5 Premium, a lease return in great condition. After an exhausting 6-hour negotiation marathon, I managed to bring them down from a $8k over-list dealer add-on price to a more reasonable $28k. But the deal still included a $698 LoJack fee.
Fast forward, I’m sitting in the finance office, and the deal is set at $315 a month for 72 months, including a warp 100k mile/7-year warranty and a bi-annual oil change package.
In a whirlwind of stress and second-guessing, I signed the papers for the CX-5 but then rushed back to Enterprise to return the Rogue. The Mazda folks weren’t thrilled when I expressed my doubts about the deal and I left Mazda with the Rogue.
So now, Reddit, I’m decompressing and reevaluating. Was the Nissan Rogue the smarter choice for long-term value and reliability, or did the CX-5’s allure and features justify its price? I’m second-guessing my decision and could really use your perspectives.
TLDR: Opted for a new Rogue with a solid warranty at Enterprise, but a visit to Mazda led me to start negotiating a 2022 CX-5 after hours of negotiation. Ended up with the Rogue but wondering if I made the right choice. What do you think?
Run from both deals.
Do not base your vehicle purchase on a monthly payment with an abnormally long term. 48 months is plenty, 60 is pushing it, and 72 is flat out absurd.
The Rogue is not a good car. They are generally cheap but their CVT transmissions are the worst out there, even Chrysler has better CVT transmissions. Toyota and Honda have better CVTs, but CVTs in general are not reliable transmissions compared to the 6-speed auto in the CX-5.
The CX-5 deal is a bad deal considering the expensive LoJack fee, the largely unnecessary extended warranty and the oil change package. Buy a CX-5 and finance it for 5 years if you absolutely have to, with the goal being that it is fully paid off when the factory powertrain warranty expires. Do the basic services yourself if you have the tools and you’re willing to watch a few YouTube videos. Or take the car to an independent shop for basic maintenance, and follow the maintenance schedule as outlined in the owner’s manual. Then you can take the money saved from the warranty and the dealership oil changes and put it towards an emergency fund, which you may never need to use.
The alternative is to buy a used CX-5 at a much lower price, but you’ll need to be ready for any potential repairs should something happen outside of warranty.
IMO, if I were buying my daughter a car tomorrow, I would be looking for a good deal on a used 2015 or 2016 CX-5. Very reliable, cheap to maintain, and probably easy to find on the used market.
Thank you for your insight.
I have a 20k emergency fund. And financially stable and could afford more a month.
I am going to redo numbers at 60 months.
Any other years that you would suggest?
Sounds like you’re in a good spot financially, but I would still reconsider a 60+ term, it’s just money thrown away on interest, but whatever works best for you.
2017 is a good year if you prefer the design of the 2nd gen. Personally I don’t like to recommend the 2018+ N/A CX-5s because they have cylinder deactivation, and those engines may have issues with cylinder head cracks that Mazda hasn’t resolved. Actual failure rate is pretty low, but still. 2022+ turbo models are good too, as long as you’re okay with the potential extra failure point down the line with the turbo. I have a 2018 CX-9 with 103k kms and it’s been nothing but good to me.
Thank you so much for the help!
What do you think the reason Consumer Reports rates the 2022 rogue with high reliability?
Can I trust consumer reports?
I try not to base my decision on only one source, regardless of how credible it may be. I try to include multiple sources, from outlets like CR, Car & Driver, online forums, Facebook groups, Reddit, etc.