STX car question.

You'll see mostly Jeeps here -- all models and years.

You'll see mostly Jeeps here -- all models and years.

What percentage would you say are jeeps? Would you say part are more readily available for jeeps or are part hard to get for all cars.

I can't really say, as I've never had to buy parts here. There are several mechanics on island, and a NAPA, if that helps. As far as a percentage of Jeeps... I don't know, maybe 40%? Somebody else chime in here. Does that sound about right?

There are alot of Toyota 4Runners on STX. I see them all the time.

Strange question. Every car is driven here, as anywhere else. Toyotal trucks lead the market, just like they do in Topeka, followed by the usual assortment of SUV's and economy cars. It's also about what you can get a good deal on here, for the time you need. Good to plan ahead for parts, I guess, but just not worth the trouble, IMHO. 🙂

NONE of the auto part stores carry common parts, I have a Jeep Wrangler and could not get an alternator, power steering hose at any of them not even the dealer.... They all want to order the parts. My Jeep is great tough easy to drive TOP DOWN!!! and easy to turn around very important!! I recommend JEEP....

You'll want something with high clearance. I have a Honda CRV that I like a lot.

40% Jeeps? Meaning almost half the vehicles on the road are Jeeps? I wouldn't go that far. I think it depends on what part of the island you're looking at... I drove by Cane Bay the other day and spotted tons of Jeeps, but I haven't noticed as many on other parts of the island. Seems like lots continentals drive Jeeps, whereas locals seem to opt for either big trucks or little economy cars... not sure if that's accurate, either, but just what I've noticed.

There's no guarantee that what you need will be in a store/dealership, even if you have the most popular vehicle. You can order a lot of things online now, though... although that does take longer than walking into a store.

A friend of mine owns a Ford Explorer here on StX and loves to point out his Explorer is more popular than my Jeep Liberty.

To settle the debate, one day driving across the island we played a game counting how many Explorers and Libertys we saw. Unfortunately for me, Explorers beat Libertys something like 15 to 10. Had I been able to count all Jeeps, I would have easily won --to which he retorted, "then I would have gotten to count all Fords and still beat you." ....which is probably right. Lots of Ford pickups here.

One of the most reliable and cheapest part sources here are the local junkyards... and they are full of Nissans, Fords, Jeeps, Exploders, and Toyotas.

There are a lot of Libertys on the island, and I should point out that it is the only car my mechanic warned me to avoid while car shopping.

There are a lot of Fords, Toyotas, Suzukis, Chevys Dodge/Chrysler/Jeeps, fewer but still lots of Nissans and Subarus. There are Porsches, at least two Rollers I know of.

I have been astonished by the availability of parts on STX. I've been able to walk in and out with parts I thought would surely need to be ordered.

Quality Auto Parts is my first stop, then Napa. There's a place next to Subway across from Cost-U-Less who are very prompt and reasonable for ordering parts when necessary.

Good Luck.

Without a doubt, what you want on island is a reliable car. That is the most important thing. Jeeps are very far from that so unless you are handy or are just bring one to sell, don't do it, unless you can afford it maintain it. Paid off and reliable are very very good things here when you are just trying to get your feet on the ground. Everything cost more here. I personally see a ton of economy cars like the small toyotas and hondas. Every once in a while I see someone that screams tourist in something flashy like a light blue convertible thunderbird.

On STX we do not have major hills, we are mostly flat. Having some clearance is nice for the potholes, but you will get along fine without it as well.

Don't buy into the tourist thinking that you have to have a jeep here. The only road I can think of that you have to have a jeep for is the "path" to the tidepools and really your taking your life into your own hands with driving that no matter what you're in.

Thanks for all the input. So as long as I have some clearance I should be fine. Looks like I will be selling my Jetta since not one post mentioned any VWs

You'll find most every model of non-luxury domestic and Japanese brand sold on the island. Even some luxury American (Cadillac) and Japanese brands. What you won't find a lot of are late model European cars although there are a spattering of BMWs, Volvos, Mercedes, and VWs. Getting the latter serviced on island is a real crap-shoot.

In terms of what's popular I think from my own counting experiments that the single largest brand is Ford followed fairly closely by GM and Chrysler (Jeep mostly.) What you will see in inordinate numbers (meaning disproportionate to their mainland market share) are Isuzus and Suzukis.

For basic supplies (e.g., spark plugs, wipers, oil, etc. there are multiple sources on island.) For parts specific to your car you need to go to NAPA, Quality, or my favorite the new place in 5 corners. Personally I usually find I can order what I need cheapest from www.rockauto.com even with shipping (and they ship direct to your door via USPS.)

Without a doubt, what you want on island is a reliable car. That is the most important thing. Jeeps are very far from that so unless you are handy or are just bring one to sell, don't do it, unless you can afford it maintain it. Paid off and reliable are very very good things here when you are just trying to get your feet on the ground. Everything cost more here. I personally see a ton of economy cars like the small toyotas and hondas. Every once in a while I see someone that screams tourist in something flashy like a light blue convertible thunderbird.

On STX we do not have major hills, we are mostly flat. Having some clearance is nice for the potholes, but you will get along fine without it as well.

Don't buy into the tourist thinking that you have to have a jeep here. The only road I can think of that you have to have a jeep for is the "path" to the tidepools and really your taking your life into your own hands with driving that no matter what you're in.

Hi ya Hiya,

Need to respectfully disagree about "only road you need a Jeep for"...

If you live here and like to explore certain off-road areas of the island, hard-to-get-to beaches, and some of the goat paths up along Scenic and out west, then a 4x4 is a great idea, -Jeep or otherwise. A 4x4 is also handy for picking up your kids at their friends steep mud & gravel driveway in the rain *-) (You know who you are Mr. Canada) You want a real SUV not only for the traction and sturdy frame, but for the ground clearance as well.

Nice tough SUV tires are also a plus on this island. I've had zero flats in the Jeep, but several on our little Toyota that has the small tires.

I also wouldn't recommend going down the Sandy Pt road in a Yaris.

I agree with Neil. I would not say STX is flat at all. There are plenty of hills, steep roads & driveways. I used to have to park at the bottom of my friends hill and walk all the way up because my car couldn't make it but now I have crossover with better clearance and it's no problem. We also have a neighbor that takes about 7 minutes to drive the less than a 1/4 mile up our road (I know how long it takes because his brakes squeeeeeeeek all the way up) to his driveway because he has a car that is low to the ground. There are plenty of places that are not very accessible with a small car with low clearance.

I third Neil. I've got a Wrangler and it's been great, especially for Sandy Point and Scenic Drive. It's durable, really durable. We're off island for eight months and store it outside at a storage place. When we return, put in a new battery, starts right up. And we've got a great mechanic on island who does a great job with maintenance.

You can get another car, but in my opinion, nothing beats the durability and versatility of a Jeep.

Bernie

As far as flats go, it is in large the quality of the tires, the roads you generally drive on, and luck.

To say there are plenty of place you can't go without 4x4 is a pretty big stretch to me. Before we got our SUV we had a civic (very low clearance) and had no trouble going in the rain forest, all around salt river, around cotten valley's steeper hills, etc... If you Really Needed a SUV to live here we would be an island of SUV, but we're not. There are more regular cars and small suv (with little clearance), then mid to large SUVs on the the island.

I have no trouble with anyone loving jeeps. I know a guy that buys them cheap in florida and sells them here for a profit and that's all he does. I just don't think its fair to misrepresent what's needed here to someone who's thinking of moving here and worse thinking of buying a new car just to move here, well I guess that's no so bad if you don't have to worry about money. 🙂

Zigmo, if you don't own the car you are bringing in full (no loan), you must have permission from the lender in writing to be able to ship the car here.

Also no one cares what kind of car you drive here. No one cares what your house looks like here. It's one of the many perks of living here, people are much less concerned about what you make here versus who you are. That being said getting things done here and fixed here can be very time consuming, so to me living here that means I want the most reliable car possible to cut down on the things I have to do, so I can do more of what I want to do.

Again thanks again for all the incite. Hiya, my car is paid off. I am good with doing my own repairs up to a point, but would want the most reliable car I can afford. My biggest Passion is photography and would want the vehicle that can take me to as much of the island as possible.

That being said I found a guy that might trade me his Honda 4x4 crv for my jetta. It's not a versatile as a jeep but its better than my jetta for clearance and more reliable than a jeep.

As for people not caring what you drive, and what your house looks like. That is a big draw for me, ill fit right in.

My Honda Fit Sport is one of the most reliable cars with the best value, according to the car magazines.

Hondas are popular here on STX. I bought my car at Henderson International on STX; they have a very responsive service department.

just traded my Jetta for a AWD CRV this guy was selling on craigslist. One less thing on my list.

HONDA

There are alot of Toyota 4Runners on STX. I see them all the time.

Me too!:@)

I see, and know, quite a few people that drive Chevy callers, parts & tires can be found pretty cheap. I don't see a need for an off road vehicle; however, your intentions may be different. As far as car parts go, your better off going to pr or just5 ordering them on line. I just bought a brake master cylinder for a 92 Geo prizm. Cheapest was 94$ on the island. Found It for $45 with shipping. Good luck with the search.

What are "Chevy callers"?