Best Hatchback Vehicle for Drums?

[chris perra]

Cool,. Do you find that the Fit has more or less cargo space? Than the protege, which I assume is like a Mazda 3?

[gretsch-o-rama]

How did wagons get left out of this? I drive a jetta wagon that I love and I'm more heterosexual than a hatchback owner! lol

[chris perra]

I looked at a VW golf wagon, which is now based on the Jetta frame.. Great car, but pricey and the mileage on a regular engine is poor.
The TDI Desil would be awesome, but too pricey for me,.. If I had the Money I'd get a Golf wagon with the TDI and call it a day...

It's looking like I'm going to get a 2011 Matrix,.. they are blowing them out, I've negotiated an automatic with air and convenience package plus Bluetooth for $21333 in Ontario Canada.. A far cry from the 25 grand they wanted to charge originally.. We still have to negotiate my trade in,..
But,..as long as I can fit all my stuff,.. I don't think I can get a better deal..

[Matus]

I've got this Peugeot Partner. I guess it's not available in the US, being a French-Spanish thing, but it's just great and I guess European forumers are used to seeing it.
As a regular vehicle it works just like a regular car, but with more space and higher profile. The trunk is huge as it is, but if you fold the back seats you can fit up to 1,2m cases (that would be my hardware hard case) and whatnot.
As an example, I could fit my whole set (20",8",10",12",14",14"snare), cymbal bag, pedal and rockbag caddy hardware bag without even folding the back seats. But that was just too tricky and didn't like it for the driving, so I just fold them and lay it all down. In full load mode I've had it carry two full drumsets, and a huge bunch of different stuff (carpet, tables, small fridges, etc) from a drumming event we did. The suspension's great, wit reinforcement bars on the back and whatnot.
I got it with a 2.0 HDI diesel engine. It runs at 2500 rpm when you get to 120 Km/h and I've done like 800 Km with one full tank (60 l) with 4 people and luggage in it. Got it in 2006 and with some good care it's working like the first day.
My only concern is they "updated" the model and I'm not sure I like the new one. They made it too wide for my tastes, as the cool thing with mine is that it fits most parking places. It's not even 1,80m high and any modern coupé would be longer.

[chris perra]

Wow, that a killer vehicle,.. wish we had one here...Diesel to boot..

[willyz]

I've got a Jetta from '99 that is not a hatchback, however I can comfortably fit my gear that I use for most gigs- kick (22x18) and toms (10x8/14x14) in the back seat, snare drum on the floor of the front passanger seat, and then the boot will easily fit the hardware bag, cymbal case and more.

It's certainly a little cozy, but it works if you gig with a small kit.

[Randy Walker]

i traded my ford flex for a mini cooper coupe, drums fit nicely.

[chris perra]

I bought a Matrix, for those who might wonder a Matrix has slightly more cargo room than the Kia Soul and fit all my gear with leaving the front seat open... Now is the time to buy one as they are blowing out the 2011, they only made $550 on the deal.. Not a happy bunch to say the least... But I am..

[Da Chooch]

luv my '07 toyota prius. luv the fact that it can hold 22" kick without any problems. can hold up to a 6 piece kit and all hardware with no sweat but still has room enough to seat a front passenger. also love the fact that it has GREAT gas mileage (my average is 42-44 mpg) plus it has a backup camera that aids me when i back out of a venue when the back of my car is stacked w/ drum equipment and visibility is at a minimum. surprisingly great pickup as well.

[Tombo 7/4]

Congrats, the Matrix is a good choice. The flat floor cargo is great just like the Fit. I just didn't feel ergonomically comfortable when I tried it. Apart from that, I found it a great car.