Gents.

I'm considering upgrading at some point this year into something a bit
larger. The current car does struggle when I am carrying large items
(often) but I still need a family car. Build quality on Land Rovers has
somewhat put me off and I am currently considering the following shortlist
of vehicles.

Nissan X Trail
Honda CRV
Honda HRV

Has anybody in this newsgroup had experience of these vehicles and any
problems? What I'm interested in is niggling faults, garage problems,
anything that has caused discomfort for the owner.

Thanks, in advance.

PDH

Paul Hubbard posted ...

Gents.

I'm considering upgrading at some point this year into something a bit
larger. The current car does struggle when I am carrying large items
(often) but I still need a family car. Build quality on Land Rovers
has somewhat put me off and I am currently considering the following
shortlist of vehicles.

Nissan X Trail
Honda CRV
Honda HRV

Has anybody in this newsgroup had experience of these vehicles and any
problems? What I'm interested in is niggling faults, garage problems,
anything that has caused discomfort for the owner.

Thanks, in advance.

PDH

We looked at the CRV a while back, but had a problem with the load space.
The wheels/suspension mounts encroach on the boot space quite drastically
for the luggage/paraphenalia we need to move around with, to the extent that
even careful packing couldn't get into the boot what we used to get into a
Ford Escort .. It was a great drive though, just not practical enough. I'd
hazard a guess that this is much the same for the HRV. I have no personal
knowledge of the X-trail.

We now use a Discovery, and have no reliability or loadspace problems ..


--
Paul

"Paul Hubbard" wrote in message
...
Gents.

I'm considering upgrading at some point this year into something a bit
larger. The current car does struggle when I am carrying large items
(often) but I still need a family car. Build quality on Land Rovers has
somewhat put me off and I am currently considering the following shortlist
of vehicles.

Nissan X Trail
Honda CRV
Honda HRV

Has anybody in this newsgroup had experience of these vehicles and any
problems? What I'm interested in is niggling faults, garage problems,
anything that has caused discomfort for the owner.

Thanks, in advance.

PDH



Take a look at the Kia Sorento, just bought one, fantastic value.

"roddytoo" wrote in message
...
Take a look at the Kia Sorento, just bought one, fantastic value.


The build quality of Kia's in general did not impress me at all. It looked
ok, but as they say, the devil is in the detail.

PDH

"Paul Hubbard" wrote in message
...
Gents.

I'm considering upgrading at some point this year into something a bit
larger. The current car does struggle when I am carrying large items
(often) but I still need a family car. Build quality on Land Rovers has
somewhat put me off and I am currently considering the following shortlist
of vehicles.

Nissan X Trail
Honda CRV
Honda HRV

Has anybody in this newsgroup had experience of these vehicles and any
problems? What I'm interested in is niggling faults, garage problems,
anything that has caused discomfort for the owner.

Thanks, in advance.

PDH


Kia Sorento - you would have to be a complete nutter to order any of the
others without at least taking a serious look at the Sorento

It is bigger and better equipped than the others at similar money (starts at
under 18k and the top of the range 3.5V6 auto with leather, etectric drivers
seat, full time 4wd, cruise and climate control on top of the self levelling
suspension, aircon, sunroof and god knows what else is just unde 22k) - not
only that but Autocar said it was better built than a Merc M class.

4x4 mag crowned it their over overall 4x4 of the year beating now models
from big names. They have also said that badge snobs have a choice - in
effect drive a "better badge" OR a better vehicle, but you cant do the two
at once.

Look at it. It is a "real" 4x4 that handles very well on road - the ride is
firmer than soft roaders that cant hack it in the rough stuff, and that
could put some off, but it is hardly a problem for most - give it a try.

The down side?? - you may still have to wait a bit for one, demand has
exceeded supply, but that may be settling down a bit now.

Take a look at it - you would be a fool not to, even if at the end of the
day you decide it is not the vehicle best suited to your needs and tastes.

I have an X-Trail 2.2D Sport-X which I bought new last October.

Massive boot, but I had to buy a boot liner, everything I put in there was
sliding about the slick surface (not carpeted - part of the whole X-Trail
design thingie) and I could do with a cargo net for the same reason. As far
as I know, the latest model (Dec 03 - haven't seen any on the road yet but
they are in the showrooms) comes with these - I suppose Nissan realised by
the volume of accessory sales that this was an issue.

Loads of space inside too, and very highly spec'ed. I have had it back once
to the dealership with two distinct dash rattles - one he fixed, the other
he will have to have another go at.

Had a look at the new model when I was at the dealer - virtually identical
outside, inside they have redesigned the dash, and it looks the better for
it. I like the look of the new CRV, but it is only available in petrol (I
think - maybe there is a diesel due out?).

The HRV is not a family car. Only two in the rear (no middle seat belt).

Check out http://www.channel4.co.uk/4car/ for detailed reviews of these sort
of cars.


"Paul Hubbard" wrote in message
...
Gents.

I'm considering upgrading at some point this year into something a bit
larger. The current car does struggle when I am carrying large items
(often) but I still need a family car. Build quality on Land Rovers has
somewhat put me off and I am currently considering the following shortlist
of vehicles.

Nissan X Trail
Honda CRV
Honda HRV

Has anybody in this newsgroup had experience of these vehicles and any
problems? What I'm interested in is niggling faults, garage problems,
anything that has caused discomfort for the owner.

Thanks, in advance.

PDH

On Sat, 17 Jan 2004 12:42:27 -0000, "Paul Hubbard"
wrote:

Nissan X Trail
Honda CRV
Honda HRV

I have looked at these with a view to upgrading my Freelander, which
is way too small for putting stuff in the back.

The Honda's aren't available with a diesel lump AFAIK (unless that has
changed recently), so it ruled them out for us.

The X-Trail looked very promising because the rear seats fold down
flat to give you decent loadspace (whereas in the Freelander they
simply fold leaving a goodly portion of the seat in the available
room.

Also, the X-Trail has had very positive reviews on the web if you
search. The reviewers all seemed to like them.

I'd be interested if you make a choice and then come back some time
later to report your thoughts!

PoP

Sending email to my published email address isn't
guaranteed to reach me.

"Paul Hubbard" wrote in message
...

"roddytoo" wrote in message
...
Take a look at the Kia Sorento, just bought one, fantastic value.


The build quality of Kia's in general did not impress me at all.

Past Kia's have not been brilliant - although reliability has been generally
very good. The Sorento is in a different league to all Kias before it, and
just about every reviewer who has written about it makes a point of telling
you so.

It looked ok, but as they say, the devil is in the detail.

The attention to detail on the Sorento is generally exceptional at anything
like the prices they are asking.

You are right, the devil is in the detail, but precisely what detail is it
in the Sorento that puts you off?? - or is this just badge snobbery rearing
its head (at your expense)??

The Sorento is not for everyone, no car is, but any vehicle which receives
the kind of reviews the Sorento generally receives, prompts comments like
"Better built than a Merc" from the press and walks away with so many awards
cannot be ignored - make no mistake, this is not just another far eastern
offering at a good price, this car would in almost every respect have
received good reviews if a "more expensive" badge was stuck on it and 5 k or
more added to the proce.

Kia are the fastest growing manufacturer (in terms of sales % increases) in
many countries, including the UK - where I believe you are looking at a 72%
(approx) increase this year compared with last.

I have a Sorento 3.5V6 and a guy in our villiage was so impressed that he
swapped his Merc (40k new 3 years back) for one the same as mine. Could you
possibly imagine, in your wildest dreams him swapping it for an X-Trail
(unless his financial position or something else equally important changed
quite dramatically) - I dont think so.

PDH

"PR" wrote in message
...

You are right, the devil is in the detail, but precisely what detail is it
in the Sorento that puts you off?? - or is this just badge snobbery
rearing
its head (at your expense)??

It's not a case of badge snobbery, if that was the case I would not drive
around at the moment in a Rover (!) which is just about the most out of
style car in the uk ar the moment.

Every year, during the summer months in Worthing, we have a weekend motor
show, held on the green. Its a chance to see and play with the latest
offerings from the car manufacturers, and with the exception of Land Rover,
who could not be bothered to turn up, was well patronised by various
dealers.

After having a chance to sit in a Kia Sorento, I walked away feeling that
the build quality was not up to the level of other 4x4 manufacturers. Looks
are everything, and if you sit in a car with poor quality trim and a drivers
seat that instantly gave me a bad back, you do start wondering just what the
rest of the car you cannot see is like. I was impressed with the Nissans,
the Honda's were wel build, but at the end of the day, other peoples
experience of a particular vehicle is what counts. The xtrail was nice,
well built, but then a thousand people could tell me it handles like ****e.
You can see why I'm asking others about their expriences.

PDH

"Paul Hubbard" wrote in message
...

"PR" wrote in message
...

You are right, the devil is in the detail, but precisely what detail is
it
in the Sorento that puts you off?? - or is this just badge snobbery
rearing
its head (at your expense)??

It's not a case of badge snobbery, if that was the case I would not drive
around at the moment in a Rover (!) which is just about the most out of
style car in the uk ar the moment.

Every year, during the summer months in Worthing, we have a weekend motor
show, held on the green. Its a chance to see and play with the latest
offerings from the car manufacturers, and with the exception of Land
Rover,
who could not be bothered to turn up, was well patronised by various
dealers.

After having a chance to sit in a Kia Sorento, I walked away feeling that
the build quality was not up to the level of other 4x4 manufacturers.
Looks
are everything, and if you sit in a car with poor quality trim and a
drivers
seat that instantly gave me a bad back, you do start wondering just what
the
rest of the car you cannot see is like. I was impressed with the Nissans,
the Honda's were wel build, but at the end of the day, other peoples
experience of a particular vehicle is what counts. The xtrail was nice,
well built, but then a thousand people could tell me it handles like
****e.
You can see why I'm asking others about their expriences.

Paul, at the end of the day you are not going to buy a car that you dont
feel comfortable in, or that you dont feel is well put together.

All I can say is that poor build quality and uncomfortable seats are things
that not only have I not seen mentioned at all in dozens of tests I have
read on the Sorento from all over the world - but quite the opposite in
fact, both are frequently singled out for praise.

Some people dont like the "plastic wood" on the higher models, and there are
other bits that are down to personal taste, but having driven some very much
more expensive machinery I cant personally agree with your impressions - but
in this case its your money and you will buy something else!

Most people who have X-Trails seem to like them and have no real problems
with them - for me personally, the X-trail just isnt in the league I am
looking for - I had 2 choices, The Sorento or something 10 to 15k more
expensive like the new Volvo or VW offerings. I saved the money, bought a
Sorento 3.5v6 and dont feel that I am in a fundamentally inferior or
"cheaper" car. However good the X-Trail is it is hard to see it as a
genuine alternative to something at the 30k plus mark, The Sorento is far,
far, closer to it (as long as you dont need the Volvos 7 seats!).




PDH