FFRR vs Q7 vs Merc GL

[hunt_the_fox]

I have £12k to get a big 4wd. I will be using it as a station car day to day and 5-6 times per year for trips to the alps. Looking for diesel for economy for the long trips otherwise as reliable and refined as possible. Which of the 3 would you recommend or is there anything else I should add to my shortlist? I kind of need a prestige type vehicle as I sometimes need to give lifts to clients. Thank for the help!!

[Speed addicted]

I've owned a Q7, not the most fun thing to drive but huge and comfortable. Passengers always commented on just how much space there was in the back of them and the boot is huge if you don't have the third row of seats up.
Mine had a few irritating niggles, mainly stupid things but they add up. The trim seemed to be fairly flimsy for a premium car too.

I've looked at various Range rovers over the years and they do seem to break often and expensively. Lovely interiors but I've always been put off by the bork factor.

Have you considered an X5? Better to drive than the Q7 but with firmer suspension so more crashy in town, £12k would get you into something pretty decent.

[GG89]

Reliability is the key word in there that you are going to struggle with. Any £60k+ 4x4 at your price range is going to be a big gamble in terms of reliability + BIG bills.

[rog007]

Volvo XC90.

Typically:

https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/...

End of thread

[Big GT]

I would look for a VW Touareg 3.0TDI Altitude. Lots of space and much better image that the others.

[hunt_the_fox]

Thanks for the replies. Just clarification on the reliability point, I don't mind a punchy maintenance bill as that will be covered by work. What I really want to avoid are problems that could see me stuck on the side of the road.

I had considered the VW/Volvo option but really was after views on the above 3 and perhaps a Cayenne?

[toon10]

I know of three people including my brother who went down the sub £20k RR route (although all sports not FF) and all proved to be absolute money pits. I'm not a fan of the Q7 but don't doubt it's a capable machine. Not sure what sort of condition you would get on a premium car like that at your budget point. I'd be looking at an X5. I'm sure they do a 7 seat version if you need it.

We have an older Volvo XC90 which is superb at what it does although it's not the nicest of drives. Cheap, comfortable and practical though and totally anonymous if you're leaving it in public car parks all day. We're getting about 32mpg with urban driving but it'll do a lot better on a run.

[Herbs]

I'm on my 2nd Q7 which i picked up for £14k with most of the option on it and only 65k on the clock.

I looked at all the usual suspects but they were too flawed for what i was looking for unfortunately. It would have been a Touareg if it wasn't a Q7.

Happy to elaborate on my thought process if it helps.

[hunt_the_fox]

Herbs said:

I'm on my 2nd Q7 which i picked up for £14k with most of the option on it and only 65k on the clock.

I looked at all the usual suspects but they were too flawed for what i was looking for unfortunately. It would have been a Touareg if it wasn't a Q7.

Happy to elaborate on my thought process if it helps.

Thanks, it would be great to know why you went that way.

[Herbs]

hunt_the_fox said:

Herbs said:

I'm on my 2nd Q7 which i picked up for £14k with most of the option on it and only 65k on the clock.

I looked at all the usual suspects but they were too flawed for what i was looking for unfortunately. It would have been a Touareg if it wasn't a Q7.

Happy to elaborate on my thought process if it helps.

Thanks, it would be great to know why you went that way.

No worries, I test drove them all and my thoughts were as followed (i've already got a fun car so wanted something comfortable and relaxing to drive but still handled reasonably well (for the size!)

Range Rover - 2008ish - I looked at one when i bought the first Q7 and had my heart set on one this time round but it drove like a boat and the interior looks very dated, coupled with reliability issues, it was again a non-starter for me.

Range Rover Sport 2008 - Drove better than a FFRR but still not great and interior and reliability issues remain. Others did it better and it's now in the realms on becoming a chav wagon.

Mercedes ML - 2009 Much better than the previous version and drove ok but not a fan of the Mercedes interface and wasn't the most comfortable - looking a bit dated in and out. Missing the fizz.

XC90 - Really dated and uninspiring

Porsche Cayenne - Best drive of the lot but dated interior, high running costs and marmite looks. Newer version light years ahead and would be my choice with a larger budget.

VW Touareg - 2nd choice and almost ended up with one but trying to find one with the air suspension and level of kit I wanted proved too difficult. The ones i wanted were right at the top of the market and lots more depreciation to do.

Mazda CX7 - cheaper alternative and actually drove very well. Manual only which proved to be a deal breaker and big gap in prices due to reliability issues around 60-70k mileage

Kia Sportage - nice, newer but cheaper interior and depreciation still to come.

BMW X5 - my other initial choice along with the Range Rover as loved the external looks. Unfortunately interior had dated badly, most seemed to suffer bad scratches to the sat nav screen and ran the same idrive as my old 2005 6 series. Very hard ride and engine wasn't the most punchy. interior space seemed on a par with a 5 series and coun't imagine fitting 7 people in comfort in.

Audi Q7 - what i ended up with, they are very spec sensitive especially externally but managed to find a good one with only 63k on the clock, panoramic roof, parking sensors, bose, sat nav, bluetooth, fridge, keyless entry and start, s line interior and external bodykit, voice command. They come with air suspension as standard which for me offers the comfort in comfort mode and can push on in dynamic mode. The 2nd roof of seats slide and the third row are proper seats and still offer a decent size boot when in use. It feels like a premium car and well put together. It is big and can be awkward to find a space but it's easy enough to park as the visibility is very good. The depreciation is very low which helps with running costs (ave 25mpg, 30 on a run)

The usual advice applies which is get out there and drive them and you'll know which is best for you.

[ZX10R NIN]

I'd say a Jeep Overland should fit the bill you can get a lovely low mileage ones for your budget but the interiors are a little more low rent than the VW/Q7/Cayenne etc all of the Former have the same drivetrain so it just comes down to looks & interior out of those three

GL420d (If I was going for a GL it'd have to be the V8 Diesel just to lug the weight around)

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

I would be tempted by the 5.0 V10 Touareg

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

Grand Cherokee

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/2017...

[Defconluke]

How about a Discovery instead of a Range Rover?
12K gets you your pick of Discovery 3 models such as THIS high spec HSE model or a little bit of budget creep allows you to pick up an early Discovery 4.
Stretching to 15K gets you something like THIS Discovery 4 with the updated interior and exterior and the 3.0 engine which has a useful power bump over the older 2.7 unit.

Depending on what your station commute is like then an RX450H could be an interesting alternative? It's the japanese mercedes don't you know

Edited by Defconluke on Wednesday 16th August 23:32