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New SUV recommendations - need 3rd row


Badger

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Has she driven them?  Difference between a pilot and a short wheelbase tahoe/yukon isn't really that much (not the 'burb).

What about a landcruiser or the lexus variant?  Dunno whether they meet your price/age requirements tho.

Edited by shawndoggy
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good call on the Lexus.  Gx470/460 has decent third row seats and can tow decently. 6500 lb towing on a lot of them  My dad has had one of each, should be able to find a used 470 in your price range.

Edited by oldjeep
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6 hours ago, Badger said:

Thanks for the comments.  Before working at Ford, I had only ever owned Japanese made products and am very familiar with the quality history and have seen that the 4Runner has the highest resale factor in this class.  Unfortunately, neither my wife nor I am thrilled with the design.

Meaning you just don't like the way it looks? I understand tastes are subjective, and I agree it's not nearly as sexy as a Q7 or X5, but I think the new 4Runner looks sharp in the right trim. You should at least test drive one, it may grow on you. Personally for an adventure vehicle that's main job is to get me where I'm going, often while towing on a long road trip, I will gladly trade higher reliability and better capabilities versus fancier styling and the newest interior gadgets. That's why I also tow with a 2014 Tundra now. I've been on road trips where friends vehicles have broken down, they look a lot less cool when sitting on the side of the road. ;) 

It was already mentioned but the GX470 or GX460 was going to be my next suggestion. The newer Land Cruiser would be a good option but it's probably too big for your tastes and is likely out of your price range for a clean one. 

Edited by Brett B
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You ruled out what i think is the best option of a tow vehicle with 3rd row outside of a Burb - the Durango.

I looked at a Q7 TDI before I bought our first Burb.  Not a bad vehicle, but that diesel was gutless.  

For a 1 mile trip, you are probably fine with most of those listed.  I wouldn't plan any trips with the options like the Lambda GMs, Pilots, or the like.

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So she wants fashion and you need function, in the vehicle so.....  get her a sports car and buy an old tow vehicle that meets the function part.  

We have had that debate more than once....

There are now 3 vehicles for the 2 of us....  life is good.  She has the car she wants, I have the car I want and the 10 year old Denali hauls the kid stuff to college and the boat to the fun spots.

 

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ahopkins22LSV

Tahoe, Yukon, Acadia, Traverse would be my vote. I believe in 16/17 they changed the drivetrain in the traverse/Acadia. It really helped because they were very sluggish. No idea how any of them tow. But if it's going to hardly ever tow I don't see it being a problem. 

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Might already be on the list, but a few friends have 5th gen 4runners and love them.  They come with an available 3rd row on some trim levels.  

 

One of the last couple of cars Toyota is building in Japan and are in the price range of other vehicles you mentioned.

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4 hours ago, Brett B said:

Meaning you just don't like the way it looks? I understand tastes are subjective, and I agree it's not nearly as sexy as a Q7 or X5, but I think the new 4Runner looks sharp in the right trim. You should at least test drive one, it may grow on you. Personally for an adventure vehicle that's main job is to get me where I'm going, often while towing on a long road trip, I will gladly trade higher reliability and better capabilities versus fancier styling and the newest interior gadgets. That's why I also tow with a 2014 Tundra now. I've been on road trips where friends vehicles have broken down, they look a lot less cool when sitting on the side of the road. ;) 

It was already mentioned but the GX470 or GX460 was going to be my next suggestion. The newer Land Cruiser would be a good option but it's probably too big for your tastes and is likely out of your price range for a clean one. 

Ditto on the GX460. It’s really a V8 4 Runner with a 7,000 lb tow capacity and fold down third row. Toyota discontinued the V8 option in the 4Runner after 09 and transitioned from the 4.7 to the more efficient 4.6 in the 2010 hence the change from GX 470 to 460. If you can find them, the variable suspension option makes towing a breeze. Pulls out 23 LSV no problem and averages 15 mpg under tow and 18-20 w/o. Only negative so far is cost of premium fuel :(

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I know you said she doesn’t like the look of the 4Runner but seriously go take a look at it. We looked at them all, explorer, Durango, pilot, pathfinder, x5, discovery sport. 

The 4runner by far was the most comfortable(excluding bmw and Range Rover), the interior has plenty of space and it has a very nice driving feel. Not the fastest but handles remarkably well. Most importantly the price was decent for what you are getting. 

The only reason we didn’t get the Discovery was that we don’t have a local dealer. They’re so luxurious and sporty looking. 

FhPTkdt.jpg

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17 hours ago, Badger said:

Armada is too big.

Trying to stay as small as possible while still getting a third row. I know I'll be on the hairy edge of tow capacity for the boat, no matter what I get. In reality, I tow the 4-wheelers 4-5 times per year and the boat goes about 1 mile to the launch and back.  If I'm 500 lbs overweight and I want to go 50 miles with the boat, I'm not going to worry about it.  More concerned with having 4 wheel drive to not get stuck at the launch. 

Take a look at the Pathfinder, 6,000lb tow rating. PM me if your interested in the Friends and family VPP (vehicle purchase program) I'll get you an authorization #.

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So I put together a powerpoint for my wife of her different options.  After talking about the different vehicles and costs, her response was "maybe we should just keep my car for another year."

What fun is that?  Damn practical women who don't really care about their vehicle.

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5 minutes ago, Badger said:

So I put together a powerpoint for my wife of her different options.  After talking about the different vehicles and costs, her response was "maybe we should just keep my car for another year."

What fun is that?  Damn practical women who don't really care about their vehicle.

Go have her demo your favourite one for a few days and she won’t go back. 

Dont ask me how I know this works:whistle:

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21 minutes ago, Badger said:

So I put together a powerpoint for my wife of her different options.  After talking about the different vehicles and costs, her response was "maybe we should just keep my car for another year."

What fun is that?  Damn practical women who don't really care about their vehicle.

So, just to be clear.  The guy that puts together a POWER POINT presentation of cars, is complaining about his wife being practical?!?  :0  

 

Got it!  :rofl:

  • Like 3
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I've been driving a '14 Ford explorer for the last few days.  Pretty nice car.  

 

Has third row seats.  Absolutely screams with the ecoboost - I see why the cops are driving them now.  Feels like it could easily tow my boat and has a lot of creature comforts.  Fit and finish is pretty good.  

 

Easy to park, handles well, and it makes 75 mph cruising feel like 50.

Edited by Pra4sno
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Yukon 3rd row is kind of an afterthought like the 4 runners... Tight and very low to floor. (Non XL) 

Interesting the Lincoln navigator 3rd row is much taller and more room than the above.. haven't checked specs might be a few inches longer or bigger. But for a non XL it seems to be better for 3rd row

With 3rd row up all these have hardly any storage in back. But u can do the 60/40 split if u just need one person in rear and more storage or 2ppl and little storage.. 

Many women think these are big until they drive them for a week then they can't go back to smaller Jeep's and 4 runners etc.. 

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^ This.  Our Expedition EL does have space behind the 3rd row, 3rd row is comfortable for adults, and the overall vehicle length is still a foot shorter than my 5.5’ bed F-150, and again that is the EL Expedition version.  The Expy feels waaaay more car like than the truck and has a much sharper turn radius(it is actually easy to park).  It is my wife’s daily driver and she loves it. 

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We have ‘16 Exp non EL. Wife’s daily driver. Turning radius is really good. She loves it and it’s as easy to park as the ‘08 4-Runner we had prior due to turning radius. Third row is better than Tahoe/Yukon because of the independent rear suspension. Allows for more room than the solid axle in the Tahoe/Yukon. 

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15 hours ago, Cole2001 said:

Go have her demo your favourite one for a few days and she won’t go back. 

Dont ask me how I know this works:whistle:

I've used this tactic many times in the past and have thought about it here as well.  Just haven't had my own time to get to a dealership and make it happen. 

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14 hours ago, oldjeep said:

out of curiosity badger, what are you driving?  Trying to imagine my wife caring if her vehicle can tow since that would mean I would have to be driving her car.

I'm 1 year into a 2 year lease on a Ford Escape.  I've offered her my car and I'd get the replacement, which is something to consider.  She doesn't really care about the towing aspect, but does occasionally need the 3rd row for car pool duty. 

I love driving different cars and would get something different every 6 months if I could flip them and not lose my shirt. 

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Not surprised no one has mentioned it, but a good 3 row option is the Ford Flex w' EcoBoost and tow package.  Yea, yea, its a love it or hate it issue with the design.  I didn't care for it at first but after driving an Explorer there was no comparison, I just don't get the attraction of the Explorer.

We've had ours 7 years now, 100k+ miles and no issues.  355hp/355trq the thing is fun to drive.  Previously had a Tahoe and this is a much better all around option; more room in all rows (I'm 6'1" and can easily cross my legs in the second row withn 4 inches to spare between my knee and the front seat) and have NO issues riding in the 3rd row, which I could not do in the Tahoe.  Can handle 4x8 sheets of plywood/drywall or 6 lacrosse/hockey/baseball/etc players and all their gear.    And it pulls the boat (RTXi/tandem trailer) with no issues.  No, I would not pull it cross country, but the few times we do trailer it each year is no problem at all, dare I say better than the Tahoe.  Brought the boat home last month, crusing at 70mph, engine was barely turning 1500 rpms.

Every few months I start thinking about a new F150, but then think...   why?

 

Edited by LakeOneSkier
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12 minutes ago, LakeOneSkier said:

Not surprised no one has mentioned it, but a good 3 row option is the Ford Flex w' EcoBoost and tow package.  Yea, yea, its a love it or hate it issue with the design.  I didn't care for it at first but after driving an Explorer there was no comparison, I just don't get the attraction of the Explorer.

We've had ours 7 years now, 100k+ miles and no issues.  355hp/355trq the thing is fun to drive.  Previously had a Tahoe and this is a much better all around option; more room in all rows (I'm 6'1" and can easily cross my legs in the second row withn 4 inches to spare between my knee and the front seat) and have NO issues riding in the 3rd row, which I could not do in the Tahoe.  Can handle 4x8 sheets of plywood/drywall or 6 lacrosse/hockey/baseball/etc players and all their gear.    And it pulls the boat (RTXi/tandem trailer) with no issues.  No, I would not pull it cross country, but the few times we do trailer it each year is no problem at all, dare I say better than the Tahoe.  Brought the boat home last month, crusing at 70mph, engine was barely turning 1500 rpms.

Every few months I start thinking about a new F150, but then think...   why?

 

Max towing on one of those is 4500lbs according to the ford site - way undersized for towing a VTX and having anyone inside the vehicle while doing it.

Edited by oldjeep
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The search is back on!  My wife got stuck twice in our subdivision yesterday while wearing her pajamas and is now is onboard for 4WD.  Our roads are typically not plowed for 4-5 days after a heavy snow and that's only if we don't get more snow in between.  

 

Still not sure what direction we will go yet. 

  • Like 3
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