New car for other half help us decide

IvanDobskey said:
Nothing flash, but it's a decent car, certainly better than a similarly valued SUV.

It's a 17 plate Leon FR 1.4 150 ACT if you must know.
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Don’t see how that’s better than a similarly valued SUV. It wouldn’t last 5 minutes if I used it the same way I use my current SUV, so it surely depends on what your requirements for a car are. The Leon fits your requirements, my Range Rover fits mine. Doesn’t make either car better or worse.
 
andicole0 said:
Lol try that around my kneck of the woods.
Andi.
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With the way you're going on I was expecting to find that Robertsbridge was in the Highlands. But no, it's in Sussex, about 60 miles from Central London :D

I bet there is nowhere on the road network in any weather in Sussex that your Q5 would go that I couldn't get my Mini to go :p

(I'd be game for the same bet if you lived in the High Peaks, too)
 
[TW]Fox said:
With the way you're going on I was expecting to find that Robertsbridge was in the Highlands. But no, it's in Sussex, about 60 miles from Central London :D

I bet there is nowhere on the road network in any weather in Sussex that your Q5 would go that I couldn't get my Mini to go :p

(I'd be game for the same bet if you lived in the High Peaks, too)
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Back in the day I would have driven anything anywhere - in fact I probably have but now, being a bit more mature I like a bit of comfort. Yes your mini would probably get most places but there are some extremely wet narrow lanes here where one wheel drive would get you stuck. In addition the average distance between potholes here is probably less than the length of your car - very uncomfortable.
Stop being silly, all cars have a purpose for someone.
Andi.
 
To be fair Sussex can be a pain in a normal car with the state some of the country roads are in. I've had a few squeaky bum moments when travelling down that way for work in poor weather. Never got stuck mind, but something more suited to the conditions would've made it a lot more comfortable.
 
Firestar_3x said:
How does a car manage off-road vs something even as basic as a Jimny?
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How many people actually take their fancy SUV's off-road? Most of them get used for dropping little Johnny off at school 100 yards down the road :p

And not many of them are actually any good off-road anyway. Just normal hatchbacks on stilts with a different styling.
 
I don't like SUV/Crossover vehicles, but I can understand why people do.

The taller body tends to give good headroom and associated door aperture size.
The driving position tends to be elevated, altering your perspective of the road. Many people really like this. If you've ever driven a van, it's a similar sensation and can be quite enjoyable.
People like the chunky look.

My fiancée longs for a Range Rover Evoque. She loves the way they look, the way they drive, the associated brand image (whatever you believe that to be!)
She also likes large saloons, but not as much.
She thinks that hatchbacks look like little "bugs".

So when she needs a car, we'll likely get her an Evoque or an alternative SUV style vehicle. Because it's what she wants, and we don't live in a Communist dystopia where things like choice and personal preference are unaccounted for.
 
I used to think SUVs were a bit silly for 'normal usage' and generally people over here would laugh at how all the 'soccer moms' in the US seemed to drive them. Then over the past decade they have massively grown in popularity in the UK and perhaps more interestingly my view is softening. I don't know if it just some psychological phenomenon whereby if you are exposed to something enough it becomes normalised and even desirable, but I've gone from flat out dismissing SUVs as an option for every car purchase we've made, to quite fancying something like a Kodiaq when the time comes to look for a new car.

At the moment, I still consider crossovers to be out of bounds as they typically have relatively small boots so basically just mean you are paying more money to have worse fuel economy and a different driving position / styling.
 
jigger said:
More ground clearance and the ability to see over the roof of cars/hedges and so on. Softer suspension with more travel would be another obvious one.
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This is precisely why, in the countryside, an SUV can be advantageous. With 4wd they can be extremely useful at times. Add in the increased towing capacity (A4 avant - 1400-1800kg, Q5 - 2400KG) and you have a better overall package. The Chelsea tractor idea is a bit of an anachranism now.
Andi.
 
No it's the Saloon and Avant in Quattro 190 form.

If you routinely tow almost two and a half tonnes I doubt a 2 litre diesel Q5 is sensible anyway regardless of its plated limit.
 
[TW]Fox said:
No it's the Saloon and Avant in Quattro 190 form.

If you routinely tow almost two and a half tonnes I doubt a 2 litre diesel Q5 is sensible anyway regardless of its plated limit.
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Not the point of the original statement, just pointing out some of the advantages of an SUV which people may be forgetting when doing a comprison. I said nothing about regular towing. As it happens, maybe once a year towing a trailer with a Kit car on does not require anything more than a Q5.
What I'm trying to do is point out that an SUV isn't bad just because some cars are almost as capable, almost as big and almost as expensive.
Andi.
 
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