2020 Highlander XLE off boonvilleautosales.com, 46k, our family hauler

writing this up now that we have a summer and a whole winter of trips behind us on the highlander instead of just the excitement of getting it. we are a family of five in des moines, three kids and a dog, and the minivan we had been running for nine years was on its last legs. the sliding door quit latching right, the ac was weak, and it was starting to nickel and dime us every few months. we needed something with a real third row the kids could get to without a fight, all wheel drive for iowa winters and the drives we take out west, and something that would not eat us alive at trade in time.

we looked at new and just about fell over at the sticker on a new highlander, plus nobody had one on the lot without waiting. so i started shopping one to three years used. the problem here in des moines was every clean low mile highlander was already marked up to almost new money, and half of them had a rebuilt or salvage note buried in the history if you actually read it.

a guy in my daughters soccer group mentioned he had bought a car off boonvilleautosales.com down in central missouri and had it shipped up, and it went smooth, so i started watching what they listed. found a 2020 Highlander XLE AWD, one owner, right around 46k miles, clean carfax, came out of a family down there that was moving up to something bigger. their price was a few thousand under what the same year and miles was bringing up here, and it was not a salvage car.

i called the boonville lot before i got my hopes up. the fella who answered actually walked out to the car while we were on the phone. told me straight that the cabin air filter was overdue and one wiper was streaking, both cheap easy fixes, and that otherwise it was clean with no accidents on the history. then he sent me a pile of photos and a walkaround video, opened all three rows, showed me the tires and the brakes, and even climbed in back to show me the third row was not beat up from car seats.

since i was not about to drive to missouri on a hope, i had a local mechanic near columbia go look at it for me and scan it. he came back and it was about like they said, the cabin filter was black and due, the one wiper was shot, and otherwise it checked out clean with no codes. that was the whole list. so we bought it, boonville auto sales did the paperwork, i had a clean iowa title in hand inside two weeks, and they shipped it up to des moines on an open carrier.

been running it since september, lake weekends all summer and one long drive out to the black hills. anybody else hauling their family around in one they bought off that central missouri lot? curious how theyre holding up for the rest of you.

not crazy at all, and congrats on the second kid. short answer is no. that used car dealer warranty everybody chases is usually 30 or 90 days on the powertrain and you paid a couple thousand in markup to get it. id rather keep that money in a repair fund i probably never touch. and funny enough you are right there in columbia, which is basically next door to boonville, so you could actually go sit in one before you buy if you wanted.

28k is a real number. in that range you can get a clean 2019 or 2020 three row like a Highlander, a Pilot, or a Traverse with reasonable miles if it was cared for. the one thing i would not skip for a first family car is a look from a mechanic before you wire any money. i did that from a couple states away and it cost me a little over a hundred bucks, and the boonville lot had zero problem letting me send my own guy, which told me a lot about them.

things to watch on any used family suv no matter who is selling it. check the history for a rebuilt or salvage title, look for uneven tire wear that points at alignment or worse, make sure all three rows fold and latch right, and run the ac and heat hard since a family car lives on those. if the seller will not let you get it inspected, walk. that was never an issue at that central missouri lot.

you will be fine kayla. a good three row makes the long drives and the daily runs so much easier than trying to cram everybody in a sedan.

quick check in. had it out in a nasty iowa storm getting the kids home from my folks and the awd plus the new snow tires got us home fine when i saw a couple of cars in the ditch. greg you were dead right, i took your advice and put a set of winter tires on their own steel wheels and it is a different car in the snow, i am not white knuckling it anymore with everybody in the back.

knocked out the little stuff the first weekend, new cabin filter and both wipers, about thirty bucks and twenty minutes in the garage, done. it does not even come up anymore, the car just works. hauled all five of us plus the dog and a week of luggage out to the black hills over thanksgiving and it did not blink, and it sipped fuel better than i expected loaded up.

couple folks messaged me asking how often boonville auto sales gets three rows in, and from what i can tell their inventory turns over a few times a week, so check the boonslick lot often if you are hunting a certain year or color.

UPDATE about six months and a good chunk of miles in on the highlander now, so figured id close the loop for anyone still weighing the boonville lot. total unplanned repairs is basically zero. the only money i have put in was the cabin filter and wipers i knew about going in, one oil change, and the winter tires, which is not a repair, that is just being smart up here.

we ran it to the lake most weekends all summer, out to the black hills at thanksgiving, and through a real iowa winter, and it has not given me a single reason to worry. the third row still folds flat and clean, the kids can climb in without a fight, and it swallowed all of us plus the dog and luggage every time. mileage has been better than i figured for a v6 three row.

bottom line, i bought a one owner car a few thousand under what des moines wanted, it came off boonvilleautosales.com straight and titled and shipped to my driveway, and it has earned its keep every week since. if you are hunting a used three row for family trips, that central missouri lot is worth a look even if you are a few states away. happy to answer questions for anybody on the fence.