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So I will start by providing a short history and background of what I've had, done, and what I'm trying to do.

I have owned a '99 Durango, having paid 15k for it back in '01-'02 at 75,000 miles. The reason I purchased it was based almost solely on cargo capacity and utility. I was getting ready to start my 4 year college journey 2.5 hours away and would have to move in everything for the year in 1 trip. Also while in college, and being in a fraternity, I was the guy that stuffed 7 others in the Durango on social events. I have loved every minute of having this capacity and utility, but the MPG has all but ravaged me over the years and will continue to get worse. 12mpg (on the best of days) plus the countless repairs that are coming in to play after 10 years just can't continue in today's economy. This of course leads me to my search for the next vehicle.

Back in 2007, I discovered the Pontiac Torrent and fell in love with it. The clearance of the vehicle was comparable to the Durango, the cargo capacity was notable even though I have to give up the 3rd row seating. The feature rich interior however was very impressive and the ride was very smooth. The suspension was also impressive for me. Lastly, the v6 was sufficient power for my taste as I don't have a great need for a 3 second 0-60mph.  Topping this off with double the mpg from what I'm used to with a fuel tank capacity of almost half that of my 24 gallon tank on the Durango is also ideal on a monetary note. On a feature-oriented end of things, I can't live without the moonroof and the premium sound system (Sun and Sound package.) Theft deterrent and the preferred package are also necessary at this point.

Having said all of that, let's move on to the active search. Because I am in the "after college transition," I wasn't in a position to go get a new vehicle, or even a used one, so instead I had to put thousands of dollars in to keeping the Durango running...even though in the end it would cost me more. I am finally to the point where I can not justifiably dump more money in to it. Recently, I began revisiting vehicles to downsize what I have and make a more economical attempt to resolve this little issue. I have went to every dealership in the area and looked at every competitor to the Torrent (including the Murano, Escape, and Vue) in an attempt to not be impulsive. I then realized that 25k was a bit too much for me to be spending right now. I also desired a better mpg than 18/24, so I began my search for a mini-torrent style utility vehicle. I have searched every option available which spanned Rouge, Yaris, Fit, Prius, and finally found that the closest next step down was a Pontiac Vibe GT. Unfortunately, the clearance of the vehicle makes me uncomfortable, the back seat is punishing, the mpg *could* and likely *should* be better, and the cargo capacity was slightly disappointing. This Vibe kick has been my last month in short. I found myself trying to make myself like the Vibe GT. Then I found the issue I was running in to was that I would need to fully load the Vibe GT which is of course the best of the best in terms of the trim itself...which lands me around 23k at the end of the day. Well now I'm back to square  one where I'm back to the same price range as if I had just had the Torrent in the first place. The good news is I'm 95% happy with the base Torrent as it is. I would simply prefer leather seats ($1000 aftermarket)...actually I almost need them as cloth drives insane. Because of all of this, it seems now that I'm 1-2k difference between almost complete happiness and artificial happiness. It also seems that the big argument is that I can either complain about one of two things: a) hate the mpg of the Torrent (even though it's still double what I was getting in some instances, it's going to be the bottom of the mpg standard soon,) or b) hate the clearance, lack of cargo capacity and utility options etc. (What would you do?) At this point, I almost feel I may as well just stick with a Torrent now?  The last thing that comes in to play here is that require the 0% offer from GM which of course is scheduled to end on the 30th of this month. I don't know how much longer the Durango is going to hold out before I have to repair it. I also don't know how much I trust the 0% deal to be around when I will need it (which of course drives sales.) Another thing to point out in this topic, I have debated heavily on FWD vs AWD. Living in southwest Michigan, and loving the capacity to cut through deep snow without reserve. I used AWD on the Durango frequently throughout the winters here, however I get the feeling this is because it was in fact a rear wheel drive vehicle and I needed to compensate. Do you have any preferences or words of wisdom on this trade off? I think I'd prefer slightly better mpg over AWD but I don't know for sure. Lastly, insurance...the safety of the Torrent seems to surpass the Vibe...does this mean the Torrent may prove to be a cheaper insurance rate?

Having said all of this, I have several questions/topics I would like to ask the community in hopes of getting real world responses.

1) In general, based on these preferences, would you take a Vibe GT or a Torrent (Base)?

2) MPG vs cargo utility and features: does the mpg of the Vibe GT outweigh the features and benefits of the Torrent?  

3) In either case, is getting new "cheaper" than getting it used? Would you consider a used vehicle if the price made the difference? What's available in this regard these days?

4) Torrent seating: I would need leather I do believe and I don't need the engine/motor of the GXP, so I'm assuming aftermarket would be the way to go...however I found that this would likely cost at least $1000...alternatives...justified...cheaper to get GXP...?

5) 0% dealings: any speculation as to what will happen with this deal? Any general opinions of this? Also consider other current GM incentives.

6) AWD vs FWD: Which would you prefer? Is AWD really necessary? Is the mpg gain worthwhile? How does the Torrent handle deeper snow in FWD?

7) General idea of safety on the Vibe GT vs the Torrent.  

8) Insurance: Is one going to merit better/cheaper rates than the other? What are these rates typically?

9) Paint color: out of my pre-selected colors of light silver, white, or black, I feel black is the way to go. Sharp lines looks very catchy to me and I don't mind a few dirty spots. My only concern is chipping and such...any thoughts on this?

10) Chemical paint sealer: I have been hooked up with a company that will apply the chem protection to the paint for a yet to be determined amount, but will remove and replace this protection for free for 5 years...it's received very good reviews and has been around for over 25 years. Is this protection going to actually do a considerable amount of "protection (chipping, scratching, or just bird droppings...)?"

11) What happens to the trade in value of either vehicles...particularly if the Pontiac line gets axed?

I realize this was a very long post but I prefer to get all the info  out there to merit the best input. Thank you so much for productive responses!