Big & comfy auto estate/SUV that can tow

[Squirrelofwoe]

Currently drive a 2004 Honda Accord estate, 2.4 petrol manual 'Executive' - it cost peanuts, it's reliable, it has all the toys (of it's time), and drives really well. I can also fit pretty much anything in the back due to the shape/size of the rear. The only problem is, when I brought it I needed an estate and it was my only car, so I wanted something that was both practical, and still reasonably fun to drive- this fitted the bill perfectly.

These days (40k miles later) I have a TVR for enjoyable driving, and so the majority of the time spent in the Honda is commuting - approx 12k miles a year with quite a bit of stop-start traffic.

I've decided that later this year I want to swap to something considerably more luxurious for sitting in South East traffic on a rainy Monday morning

-Big (I figure bigger = comfier)

-Estate / SUV (not too fussed which but do want to keep decent load carrying)

-Auto (my only auto experience so far is a 2017 Chrysler Pacifica hire-car in Florida, with a 9-speed auto- it blew my mind. Which means I'm either easily pleased or modern autos are just really good!)

-Decent/comfortable interior (very subjective but for reference I am a big fan of the Jag XF style interior). My Honda has electric heated seats, cruise, heated mirrors, rain-sensing wipers, dual-zone climate, electric tailgate etc. Heated steering wheel / reversing camera / adaptive cruise would be nice!

-Would prefer petrol but would take diesel if everything else was covered! I currently average around 28mpg on the work commute so wouldn't want to go much lower.

-Reasonably reliable. I'm not after miracles but I've been pretty spoiled by owning a succession of Hondas. I can stomach the odd big bill but I don't want to be getting any more familiar with the AA than I currently am.

-Something that can tow a reasonable sized trailer if needs be.

-Ideally something 2006/7 onward.

-Probably no more than £10k budget as I'm tight and would sooner over-pay the mortgage / save than spend £300+ month on car finance £15k would give me more options but I'm interested in seeing what's out there under £10k for the time being.

So far I have looked at:

-Jag XF Sportbrake (big fan but only just coming into budget on high miles),
-L322 Range Rover TDV8 (perfect on paper and I've wanted one since I can remember, but I assume it would ruin me mentally & financially)
-Toyota Landcruiser (crazy residuals means very few in budget- luxurious enough?)
-Volvo XC90 (a bit too 'school-run-mum' for me but they are popular for a reason)

I presume a BMW 5-series of some sort would be an option (an E39 was a consideration when I brought my Accord), and likewise the equivalent Merc offering- but I have no idea regarding Merc model names these days.

Whatever I get will be kept long term, so ability to do decent mileage would be ideal. I've only got rid of one car at below 140k miles so far.

I appreciate I am asking for the moon on a stick, but is there anything that comes close to meeting all of the above before I start the inevitable compromising?!

[Deerfoot]

Give the Volvo XC70 D5 a look, I'm trying to find one to replace my V60 with.

ETA something like this...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

Edited by Deerfoot on Wednesday 6th March 11:44

[Terzo123]

Jeep grand Cherokee.

[Squirrelofwoe]

Terzo123 said:

Jeep grand Cherokee.

That is an excellent shout, I've just been on Autotrader and these do seem to offer a lot for the money.

I am a big fan of the big boxy looks too. If money was no object I would love to import a new Chevy Suburban XL

Would I be right in assuming a Grand Cherokee would be pretty good on the reliability front?

[MaxSo]

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[BMW343]

Have a look at the BMW 530 GT or the 630 GT
8 speed auto and incredibly luxurious

[GreatGranny]

The auto in the XC90 is not brilliant so if you've been spoilt with a decent auto you'll be disappointed.

However IMO they are great cars (I've had 2) with fantastic seats and loads of room.
High tax, 30 mpg and potential for big bills go against it.

WE used to tow a 1500kg caravan and it was superb (but thirsty).

[Squirrelofwoe]

GreatGranny said:

The auto in the XC90 is not brilliant so if you've been spoilt with a decent auto you'll be disappointed.

The auto I drove in the Pacifica is the ZF 9-speed, apparently the same one that's in the Jag E-Pace, I thought it was marvelous. But then I've no other auto experience to compare it to!

[Geekman]

Squirrelofwoe said:

That is an excellent shout, I've just been on Autotrader and these do seem to offer a lot for the money.

I am a big fan of the big boxy looks too. If money was no object I would love to import a new Chevy Suburban XL

Would I be right in assuming a Grand Cherokee would be pretty good on the reliability front?

My dad had a 2006 Hemi one for years, nothing went wrong other than consumables, which were incredibly cheap anyway. Even the diesels are relatively solid I believe: my dad's V8 was on LPG which helped reduce the fuel costs.

[Squirrelofwoe]

BMW343 said:

Have a look at the BMW 530 GT or the 630 GT
8 speed auto and incredibly luxurious

I had no idea the 5 GT had got down to those kind of prices!

The equipment certain does look way ahead of a lot of the other stuff of that age/price. The only thing that puts me off is the look of the thing, I don't think I could ever warm to that exterior. I would have to go for the normal 5 series (tourer) I think.

Good suggestion though, they had not even entered my head.

[ZX10R NIN]

Jeep Grand Cherokee (these one share the same drivetrain as the Mercedes ML) Overland

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

3.0d Infiniti EX

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...


XC90 T6

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

[Squirrelofwoe]

ZX10R NIN said:

Jeep Grand Cherokee (these one share the same drivetrain as the Mercedes ML) Overland

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...

The Grand Cherokee is definitely a leading contender so far, I can't believe I hadn't thought of it.

The 'Overland' spec of the WK2 model (2011 onward) seems to come with pretty much everything, and seem to start at not much over £10k.

[Terzo123]

Squirrelofwoe said:

Terzo123 said:

Jeep grand Cherokee.

That is an excellent shout, I've just been on Autotrader and these do seem to offer a lot for the money.

I am a big fan of the big boxy looks too. If money was no object I would love to import a new Chevy Suburban XL

Would I be right in assuming a Grand Cherokee would be pretty good on the reliability front?

I had the older WK, a 56 plate. I loved it. Good performance, comfy and during my ownership, fairly reliable, with no big outlays.

[TurboHatchback]

I have a WK Grand Cherokee CRD (my second), I think they are very good. I wouldn't claim they are immune from problems but compared to all the other large 4x4s they are pretty solid.

I would also suggest the Skoda Superb 3.6 DSG 4x4 estate. I had one of those before the current Jeep and would definitely recommend it if you can find one without the panoramic roof or electric tailgate. In terms of space and comfort you won't beat it, it will do at least 28mpg and the performance is on a different level to any diesel 4x4 remotely in budget.

[ZX10R NIN]

Overland WK2's with similar mileage start at around 14k.