I have been a fan of Toyota Land Cruisers for many years. I believe that the LC (Lexus) have to be at the top in terms of of reliability for an SUV. Yet, they are also near the top when it comes to the least involving vehicles to drive. I am thinking of replacing my current 2005 LC with an SUV that is both reliable AND fun to drive. Any suggestions/ideas for me to try
(Note: I am cross-posting on the 996 forum as well, just trying to get as much input as I can, but would understand if one thread has to be deleted). Thanks!

 

Cayenne all the way, the new 958 chassis is lightyears ahead of ANYTHING in the price range.

can build a GREAT v6 for 60k and pay 55k and have the best SUV in the neighborhood.. the new V6 is quick (500lbs lighter than before) and the same overall car inside as the rest... build it like you want and you'll be happy (just dont go crazy because options dont change resale value regardless of what anyone says).

if you test drive one, press the sport button however because otherwise the throttle body doesnt open all the way up and the fuel map is set for fuel conservation versus fun...

 

Cayenne. nuff said. The car handles like its on a track. Reliability is...8/10. I had few incidents where the dealer couldn't figure out what was wrong with it. Wasted couple hundred bucks here and there but hey, no regrets!

 

Audi Q7 DIESEL!!! Has stump pulling power, nicer interior than the Cayenne, cheaper and dare I say it... is more exclusive...
Oh and did I mention the torque of 406 lb-ft?

 

Cayenne Diesel has 400 ft-lb (ok, 6 ft-lb less on the paper). Maybe, OP might wanna look into that.

 

But of course.. there is a new kid on the block too!! http://www.chicagotribune.com/classi...0,401619.story

 

for the money go porsche, they have new diesel as well..

upsides of porsche are better resale and more demand on resale.. anyone can walk into audi dealer and walk out with a Q7 (btw the Q7 is still built on the old cayenne chassis, not the new yet)... porsche has a wait which makes demand higher when reselling (privately) as people are impatient to wait.

old chassis=500lbs heavier.
new chassis=light and stronger... the new diesel will haul anything you can imagine.

 

+1 for cayenne

 

We were in the same boat and I test drove most, if not every, competitor except the Audi (hate the looks). We ended up with a Cayenne S. Best driving vehicle around - bar none.

 

Audi Q7 diesel and Cayenne have the same drive train, just like the A 3 and the Jetta/ Passat who share a 4 cylinder Diesel plant too

 

can not understand how anybody would buy a hybrid SUV, just imagine going off-road with all that finicky electric stuff. Manufacturers and dealers / shops have a whale of a time to keep the gasoline cars working properly never mind anything else... Imagine the average mechanic trying to figure out what to do with all that stuff.

 

06+ Range Rovers are great... Very reliable and in my opinion, the best looking/driving/comfortable SUV on the road. Very capable off roaders as well. Although I prefer the standard Range, the Range Rover Sport also is available in these model years. All have the supercharged AJ V-8, sport suspension so plenty fun to drive. It's kind of obvious the responses you would get on a Porsche forum One of these will be my next everyday driver.

 

Predicable response, but the Cayenne is an outstanding car. The Turbo is amazing. If I could only have one car, the Cayenne Turbo would be it. Does everything, fast, sporty, good looking and bullet proof.

Other suggestions are also good, but everyone I know have had nightmares with Range Rover. They are beautiful and classy though. I'm just not willing to gamble.

 

I just traded in my 2010 X5M. Loved it. Great truck. Probably just a hair slower around a track than the Cayenne and $30k cheaper. The technology was awsome. And I think it looks better. The older Cayenne was good looking. New one, not so much. New interior is awesome.

M

 

You just have to seek out the right ones... The contemporary body style we see now are all powered by the Ford/Jaguar powertrain (been around forever) and ZF (German) drivetrain. The 03-05 were particularly pretty terrible in terms of reliability because an all BMW powertrain/drivetrain was to blame. They ditched it in model year 05 and the 06+ now rank amongst the top in reliability ratings. The technology is hard to beat as well, state of the art.

Anything older isn't worth it unless you're a hardcore Rover enthusiast like myself and at that point the Disco is a much better car. You will spend more time wrenching on the car than driving it between 60k-100k miles.