Reliable Diesel SUV with good road manners

Member6471

I'd like to purchase a vehicle that has good road handling capabilities, AWD and in a pinch offroad. It should be able to go through 6-8 inches of snow in AWD. I'd like to get at a minimum of 22mpg combined wiht the vehicle. I have a 2013 JGC, (Gasser), I like the features NAPA Leather and cooled and heated seats but the road manners are poor, acceleration is poor too many recalls and the seats are a little too hard for me. So far I looked at the Porsche Cayanne but I think it's expensive for the fearures and warranty.

Priorities: Safety & braking / Front seat support & comfort / Warranty, maintenance cost / Powertrain performance / Brand reputation & image

Preferred Bodystyle(s): SUV

Car Needs: Daily commuter / Errands about town / Towing or hauling / Off-roader

Primary Driver(s): Short driver

Need minimum of 5 seats

Will consider both new and used cars
Maximum mileage: 20000
Maximum age: 1 years

Maximum price: US $ 51000

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Suburu AWD diesel would fit you perfectly. A Forester or Passat.

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Response from Member6471

6:06 pm June 14, 2015

Thanks I'll swing by the local dealer and schedule a test drive.

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Subaru doesn't offer its AWD engines in North America.

Aside from the Jeep, the only options are German: Audi, BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, and VW. Of these the Porsche will handle the best. We don't have reliability information on the Cayenne, but if it's like the other Germans it's not likely to be much more reliable than the Jeep.

If you don't need a largish vehicle, the Mercedes GLK might be your best bet for overall ownership costs. The diesel is only a four-cylinder, but it's quite torquey. I enjoyed one the week I had it to review (link). The four-cylinder diesel in the competing BMW X3 is significantly rougher and weaker. The V6 in the Audi Q5 is even stronger, but reliability reports haven't been good for it lately.

In general, the larger the German vehicle, the less reliable it tends to be. So I'd take a close look at the GLK and see if it has enough interior volume for your needs.

Fuel economy was usually in the low 30s for me.

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