Suggestions Sought for SUV to Buy

[FoxtrotGolfXray 5.0]

Hi all,

We are currently considering replacing our near on 8-year old Tezza. The first obvious choice was a new Tezza, but as much as we love them, they are a little short on features these days compared to its competitors, so thought we would consider other options out there.

One that seems to be getting a good rap at the moment and is in a similar price bracket to the Tez is the Kia Sorrento, so we organised last weekend for a test drive of a Platinum. I didn’t mind it (it didn’t grab me though), but the missus hated it! The biggest thing for her was that she likes to have the seat set up high so that she can see the bonnet. In doing this in the Sorrento, it meant that her head was very close to the sun visors/headlining, giving her the feeling that, if she were to brake suddenly, she’d hit her head. This is not something that is an issue with the Tez.

We have also considered a Jeep GC, but I am put off a little by the reputation that Jeep’s have as well as the fact that to get the same sort of features as some other cars on the market, you need to spend a lot more. We looked at a second hand one that a work colleague had coming off lease, but it had more kms on the clock than our Tez and was going to cost us about $20k to changeover even though it was a few years newer. The other thing I found with the JGC was that it seemed to ‘float’ a lot more over the bumps than the Tez. Not to say that the Tez is uncomfortable, more so that the GC seemed a little less connected to the road. I also did not like the seats, as they seemed way too wide (made for Americans?) and I tended to slide around in them (but that may be because I was used to the Recaro seats in the Focus ST )

We also tried the Everest which, at the Titanium level, has some nice features, but I think it is a little overpriced. The other factor for the missus was that it was too high, and she found it uncomfortable (she has bad knees) to get in and out using the sidesteps. Similarly, a friend has a Prado, which the wife really likes (interior especially) except for the height factor.

So, we seem to be locked into a new Tez. As much as I understand the missus’ wants (she is by far the main driver) I wonder if some of these likes/dislikes are because she has just got used to the Tez over the years and would similarly adapt to the new car over time.

So, here’s the criteria:

Approx $50-60k.
Would prefer brand new, but am prepared to consider near new
Similar size (interior) to the Tez
Similar height from ground to seat as the Tez (ie no 4wds such as Everest/Prado)
Seating position must allow for observation of the bonnet without positioning head on windscreen/headlining (and I realise this is a hard one to determine without knowing the height of my missus)
Not particularly fussed about diesel v petrol

Any suggestions/input greatly appreciated.

Craig