Largish Family Car - SUV?

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Yeah, i was just looking to see where the RX facelift dropped in. I came close to buying a 2016 iirc but ended up with a slightly newer LX which was a fantastic car. I never had issues with the CVT but then i'm not one where i think i've driven many cars i've ever thought were particularly bad.

The fact you can get on the Lexus Relax 10yr warranty also means you have no concerns at all. Servicing is generally pretty cheap too.
 
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grudas said:
Maybe an s4 avant the 14-15 plate on with v6 supercharged engine, meant to be reasonably reliable and big inside.
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No idea why you'd pick this when his budget is 3 times the amount they go for, if nothing else he could get the newer version which is better in every way until they changed the engine for a diesel in 2020. Think they've got the much better gearbox than the 2014-15 ones as well.
 
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[TW]Fox said:
No idea why you'd pick this when his budget is 3 times the amount they go for, if nothing else he could get the newer version which is better in every way until they changed the engine for a diesel in 2020. Think they've got the much better gearbox than the 2014-15 ones as well.
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Mostly because I was looking at one and had done some research into them.. I’ve not gone further as it’s above my budget.
 
A few thoughts...

Maserati Levante - forget it. These are such poor cars, the Ghibli is similar and I've considered one before, but it's difficult to justify. The new Grecale is a huge improvement, the interior is so much better, looks decent too.

I am not a big SUV fan, but I really like the XC90 (particularly if you want 7 seats) and the full fat Range Rover. Ensure you have a good warranty on the latter, as you'll know their reputation - although I bet it's not as bad as people say.

The X5 is a solid car but you'll pay a hefty premium for a high spec one. I had a 2021 X5 45e for a couple of months while my car was waiting for parts. Feels like a regular car though, where as the big Range Rover has a fairly unique driving position...
 
grudas said:
Re Volvos, I recall that the newer ones - s90, v90, xc90 are all a bit average reliability wise. Theres some cost saving going on.
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The thing that hit the the Volvos with the new models wasn't anything electrical or mechanical, it was the google software change, there was some pain with the switch over.
 
My fave is still the XC90, but as Fox has said, probably worth a test drive to see what like.

Out there suggestion, but since you are considering the Arteon (I am assuming R here), then look at a Tiguan R. Should get a decent one in budget. The Touareg R might be out of budget though, but is more like some of the other options.
 
grudas said:
Lexus RX. The cvt drama is from people who read the stories of old Nissans blowing them up. Lexus does cvt boxes well and while they do take some getting used to - aka one gear / the way it drives. It’s a few days and you’re good.
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They have 2 different CVT versions and the newer hybrid one isn't really CVT but has many of the same advantages and disadvantages.

Pretty much all CVT implementations, even early ones, are luck of the draw though on reliability - either tend to last 100s of thousands of miles or trash themselves prematurely without much in between.
 
Rroff said:
They have 2 different CVT versions and the newer hybrid one isn't really CVT but has many of the same advantages and disadvantages.

Pretty much all CVT implementations, even early ones, are luck of the draw though on reliability - either tend to last 100s of thousands of miles or trash themselves prematurely without much in between.
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to be honest with you I've personally not heard any horror stories with lexus CVT's.. I've driven and known people who have owned some high mile gs450hs, rx400h etc with CVT's and 0 issues.


nissan cube we had was known for CVT problems but again, original box with some servicing at 150k km without issues.

personal view is this :

if you like how it driver, I would completely not worry about the reliability part of CVT's in newer lexus cars, and like @sandys said, there's the 10 year warranty on top
 
sx_turbo said:
Personally I've been very unimpressed with the boot space in SUV's unless going for the huge ones like the XC90. The boots on then tend to be tiny and don't even stack that well

Estate cars seem to have better load carrying abilities.
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It's the main thing that put me off SUVs. There are a few with decent sized boots like 7-seaters in 5-seat configuration (Kodiaq etc). Similarly saloons often have small boots for their length, it's only really estates and hatchbacks that tend to be practical.
 
[TW]Fox said:
The boot on every saloon I've owned has been huge - the issue isn't size, it's access (Which, to be fair, hasn't been an issue for me or I'd not keep buying them).
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The shape can be awkward and lack depth at times. A friend of mine had a Passat which in terms of headline volume isn't that bad but I remember it being annoying fitting large items in.
 
sandys said:
The thing that hit the the Volvos with the new models wasn't anything electrical or mechanical, it was the google software change, there was some pain with the switch over.
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I'm terms of quality, looking at second hand cars, the seating material is often worn and cheap plastics scratched etc. Now this is reflected in slightly cheaper prices (compared to other 'premium' brands) but Volvo of old were known for their quality, unless I'm mistaken?

Are they any worse than other cars/manufacturers though? Probably not. Just not what they used to be.

And I'm sure I read about auto box issues with older Volvos, not sure about the current ones. Do they still use Ford engines/parts?
 
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No complaints here, all feels very premium and the size of me and the missus the seats gets some abuse, even the dog hasn't managed to scratch it, probably says more about the owners of the cars you are looking at.

No Ford, gearbox is a Toyota/Aisin box, so not perfect, because Toyota, but its rare for many to have an issue.
 
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sandys said:
Probably says more about the owners of the cars you are looking at.
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3 year old S60s mainly. Guessing all ex-lease/company cars so nobody gives a crap. Still, see more wear than I'd expect but perhaps it's my expectation that is wrong.
 
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