Downsizing my vehicle

I currently drive a Honda Pilot. It's a good value, as SUVs go, and I got a decent deal on it when I bought it new in the Fall of 2005. But the financial revolution I have been going through has revealed something to me . . . I don't need an SUV. I didn't then, though I made lots of arguments to myself that justified getting one. I bought the SUV out of desire, not need. In many ways I am ashamed of myself for this, as I always try to be sensible with my money. I thought I was being sensible . . . I couldn't find a used Pilot or Toyota Highlander for less than I was getting this one new. My mistake was thinking I needed one of the two.

Driving this car has hurt me financially. There are no two ways about it. I get about 17.5 MPG city, and maybe 20 highway. Depreciation has not been that terrible, since it is a Honda, but the extra cost of getting an SUV automatically increased the deprecation over other vehicles I could have purchased. Between this and fuel costs, I'd say it was a mistake of several thousand dollars.

That's a mistake I'm going to try to (partially) correct by ditching it for a more sensible vehicle. Gas just keeps getting more expensive, and I'm not far from paying $60 for a fillup. I'm sorry, but that's just not going to cut it for me. I can't stand that kind of expense. So I'm starting to look around at used compact cars . . . Civics, Corollas, Sentras, and any of a number of hatchbacks. If I buy used, I will come out ahead on the deal. My vehicle is worth about $19k and I don't plan to spend more than $15k on a compact car. I still owe some, but it's less than $4k. If I did the deal right now, the swap, after taxes and such, would be even or better, and from here on out I'd be getting some money back in better mileage and depreciation.

Anybody else going through these same deliberations? Fuel costs are just out of hand. It made little sense for me to buy big when I did, and it makes even less sense to keep paying for that mistake.