Need a new Daily Driver SUV
 

I'm in need of a new (to me) daily driver SUV, and as always look here first for good advice.

I'm presently driving a Land Rover LR3 that just turned 80K miles and has to go due to a mileage cap on company vehicles. Overall I like it a lot, but not enough to take my chances and buy it outright with my own money. Another LR is not in the cards since work will no longer pick up the tab on such a horrifically depreciating hunk of metal. Just about any other manufacturer is fair game.

Budget is under 40K. Used is fine so long as mileage is under 36K. Certified is preferred, but not essential. Fuel is reimbursed, so I'm OK if MPG is not in the 20's. Given this, we're likely talking 2008-2012 model years.

I "need" something utilitarian that has:
-full size SUV with seating for 5+
-4wd
-towing capacity over 6500-7000 lbs
-reasonable maintenance costs and no major known issues

I'm thinking GM/Chevy Tahoe/Yukon (maybe Suburban) and Ford Expedition. These seem pretty bulletproof and cheap to maintain. I think a few Toyota's may also fit the above, but don't know much about them.

Any suggestions on what to look at and what to avoid? What am I missing?

Vin

Tahoe/Yukons are virtually bullet proof.

Mine has 120k on the clock, runs great. My neighbor just sold her 01' had 225k on it.

Current gen drives real nice.

Yukons are full time all wheel while Tahoes are selectable.

Suburban is big, depending on where you live or where you'll be driving it they can be hard to find parking for.

I'm with him ^^^, plus $40k gets you a virtually new one or a new one, depending on trim level and equipment. But your company won't like the depreciation on any of these rigs, that's guaranteed.

I've always liked full-sized GM products (SUV & trucks). Have owned several.
That said, recently bought an '08 Land Cruiser 100 series and absolutely LOVE it. I mean, absolutely positively love it!

A newish TLC V-8 would be very near the top of my list of favorite machines. My buddy's mom has a diesel new TLC in Italy, incredible rig.

That said, new Tahoes are really nice.

I like my 1st gen Sequoia. Have you looked at the 2nd Gen. It is a bit bloated, but nice, IMHO and should hold its value better than the US manufacturers.

G

Don't buy a Tahoe/Yukon before driving a Nissan Armada. We had a 2004 that we drove from 65k to 120k and it was flawless. Really fantastic DOHC V8, bigger 2nd row by far than the domestics, good sized fold flat 3rd row, good space behind the 3rd row. Lots of thoughtful touches, like a one handle second row fold mechanism that was easy enough for my kids to do. We drove all of the competitors and the Armada was by far the favorite, if we were buying a new SUV we would get another.

The Sequoia is nice but pricey for what you get. The Expedition is seriously dated and underpowered, Ford has really let it languish without update. The Durango is nice but not real big inside. As mentioned before by others, the Tahoe/Yukon are pretty nice to drive and a big improvement on past cheap GM interiors. Used 100 or 200 series Land Cruiser would be a great truck. For an unconventional choice you should look for a used TDI Audi Q7. Massive towing power and I think about 26 MPG highway.

One other unconventional suggestion, our family car is a 2012 F150 SuperCrew 4x4. We got a loaded XLT brand new for about $33k. The 2nd row is massive, much bigger than any SUV. It has a front bench with folding console so it seats 6. We put in a Bedrug and fiberglass tonneau cover so we have a huge lockable trunk. With the 5.0 I think our tow rating is 9500, and the Ecoboost is more like 11,000. It's basically an SUV with a huge trunk and more towing ability.

Thanks!

A visit to my local Ford dealer confirmed the Expedition is not for me.

Off to Nissan and Toyota today to test drive a Sequoia and Armada. Both look very nice on paper but I need to do some research on reliability etc. I don't expect either to have any glaring flaws.

Q7 Audi... there is an outlier. As much as I despise the brand it is a really nice looking SUV.

Vin

Give the Touareg a look. V6 has plenty oomph to tow my 4,500 combined car/trailer. (The chassis is rated for over 7,800 lbs.) Added plus, the interior is on a par with the Cayenne. i.e. very nice.

Bill K

I have a tahoe, I have had a few minor issues, and as big as it is 5 people is still a tight fit. when it comes to towing, it will haul my bikes OK, but I dont like hauling my race car with it, even though it has the towing package, the gearing still over works the engine. actually use my girlfriends cayenne to haul my race car and it does a better job. my biggest gripe with the tahoe is the MPG is just terrible.

How terrible is terrible when it comes to Tahoe MPG? 14-15MPG in city/highway driving mix?

Vin

I dont think its that good, even on the hwy its pretty poor

I had a 2011 2wd Suburban as a rental for a week, it got right at 20 MPG with mostly highway driving. It was a base model truck with the 5.3, adequate power but not great. Fueleconomy.gov rates a 2013 5.3L 4wd Tahoe at 15/21.

Honda Pilot is very nice overall - not an "A" in anything (except space utilization), but a "B" in everything

Chevrolet Tahoe MPG Reports | Fuelly
Nissan Armada MPG Reports | Fuelly
http://www.fuelly.com/car/audi/q7

Agreed that they are nice SUVs, but also only rated to tow 4500 lbs. Per Vin's first post he needs quite a bit more, which generally pushes you into the full size body on frame V8 engine stuff.

The Buick Enclave is a nice solid machine. I believe towing is 5000 lbs and the gas mileage is not great The interior is on par with the European and Japanese SUV's. Currently considering one as I am GM guy also.

The Enclave is 4500 lb, the similar Traverse and Acadia are 5200. About the biggest knock I've heard on any of them is that the V6 can feel underpowered. Nice trucks, I personally ruled one out because I regularly tow a boat.

Jeep Grand Cherokee?

Used Cayenne? I have been looking at them, is there something wrong with them? V8 not Turbo.

Dean,

I considered the same, but the little I've read indicates these are expensive vehicles to keep on the road and in top shape. A few conversations with colleagues who own them seem to confirm the same. Everyone I spoke to loved them while they were on the road, but mentioned several trips back to the dealer for little things that never seem to be right.

There are a few known issues like coolant pipes and cardan shaft failures that are very typical and not inexpensive to fix in a vehicle that is not under warranty.

In the end, I decided to take a pass. This is my daily driver and I rack up alot of miles a year so something simple and reliable is what I'm after (even if this comes at the expense of being boring).

Vin

I just went through the same decision as you. I drove the Buick Enclave but did not like the V-6 engine or the chocolate colored dash.

I ended up going with the Yukon Denali.
Gas mileage is around 14 to 15. A little better on the highway, but not by much.

I love the truck. Just pulled a small trailer 1600 miles and it did great at 11.5 mpg

Doesn't meet your budget though. Paid around 55,000.

Awesome to hear another first hand datapoint.

I really liked the Sequoia I drove yesterday and there are quite a few used trucks with low miles in my area that are the right price. They seem to hold their value very well which comes as no surprise given the Toyota name.

Not too muck luck on the Armada as there are very few to be found around here. What I see looks nice so I'll continue to hunt one down but expect to have little negotiating power due to the limited supply.

This said, I'm leaning Tahoe/Yukon simply due to availability and willingness to negotiate. Some cursory conversations with dealers indicate I'm in a well equipped 2012 with super low miles or a stripper new 2013 for 40K or thereabouts.

I liked the Suburban even more, as it ate up expansion joints and rode like my favorite armchair, but the thing is HUGE and I live in a parallel parking universe.

Off to the dealers this weekend to see what kind of deal can be struck.

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions

Vin

I have an 04 Sequoia with 160k. Great vehicle. Only real prob was the brake throw sensor which cannot itself be replaced but is within the booster, and its pricey. Handles well, and very comfortable. Parallel parking is a snap. Ex had a brand new 06 Tahoe, numerous problems and she sold it. It handled well, and was comfortable, and I have pulled a trailor loaded with a PCar without a problem. That said, the driver seat got cracks in the leather withing two years; steering column knocked and GM sold a kit to fix but no warranty action, power locks would nut up.... just too much too soon to keep the thing.

If you own another brand ask the dealer about a competitive brand discount.

I know they exist, my neighbor who works for Cadillac/GM has told me my Mazda qualifies even though I already have a Chevy.

Just not sure how you get the discount.

This is the last year of the current Armada, I suspect that there are good deals to be had. You should be able to get new, or very close to new, for $40k. I looked at them in the $35k range before we bought our truck, all of the options were low mileage 2012 models.

How about the new Durango?