[rGT]

Let me begin by stating an example:
When I was going through the official TBHP review of the 2020 Mahindra Thar, the way it's ride quality was described gave me an impression that it has perhaps the worst ride quality of all cars that exist in the Indian market.

A few months later, my father's colleague had left his Thar diesel AT under our care for a week. Needless to say, we went for a drive in it, with dad at the wheel, mom riding shotgun, and I, at the back. Given my impression of the Thar's ride, I was literally grasping the seats to prevent any spine-breaking movement. But surprisingly, it was not at all how I had envisioned. It was poor, yes, but pretty manageable, and IMHO far from its description in the review.

This made me realise that it really depends on the individual on how comfortable he/she is with the ride quality of any car. For me, the ride quality of the Thar was more than liveable, but for my parents, not so much.

So I'd suggest, take your family on elaborate test drives in all the cars that you have shortlisted, and hear it from their own mouths how they feel about them. Someone suggested renting cars, which is quite possibly the best way to judge a car's demeanor. I mean, that's what all auto journalists do, don't they?

The Fortuner is not the most comfortable vehicle out there, but that doesn't mean it won't suit your family. Some people prefer stiffer suspensions in their cars, while others opt for soft and floaty ones. To each, his own.

That's my 2 cents, hope it helps. Would be looking forward to an ownership review of your garage-mate

[sampadroy]

Have been following the discussion on this thread very keenly, and would like to share our experience.
When we first took the test ride of the Toyota Fortuner it was with a 4x4 variant and we found the ride quality to be very harsh and could feel all that was below the tires. Decided to rule it out from our list which had almost every model between 40-50 lakh ex-showroom price. We test-rode the Audi A4, Jeep Meridian, Mercedes A class, the C Class, Volovo XC 40, BMW X1, BMW 330i, and many more.....each car had its own set of pros and cons but we kept on going back to the Fortuner and test drove it for 4 times before finalizing it.

We bought the 4x2 Diesel AT and we took the decision with a concession that ride quality will be harsh and jerky. We have had the BEAST for almost 5 months now and surprisingly we have found the ride quality to be quite good and comfortable. We have had a Mahindra Scorpio in the past therefore we had a fair idea about the ride quality compromise on a BOF. The low-speed ride of the Fortuner could definitely be improved as it gives more feedback from the road surface than necessary.
Our variant rides on 17-inch rims and we keep a tire pressure level of 31-32 psi. We have covered nearly 2700kms so far in the city and highways, on all types of roads. This vehicle is meant to be driven and we are happy with the comfort level.
The ride quality of a BOF can never be compared to say an Audi A4 which by the way had the best ride quality as per our observation out of all the models we test-drove. Toyota Fortuner 4x2 variant does not give the harsh feedback like its 4x4 variant and you can have a reasonably comfortable journey but getting into the vehicle i.e ingress and egress is definitely a problem for elderly people more so for people with ortho issues.

[busydrive]

If one is ok with manual transmission then the Crysta will be a better option than Fortuner. However Hycross is better than Crysta if it comes to comfort. Crysta's positives are diesel engine and rear wheel drive which can handle tricky situation better than Front wheel drive vehicles.

[smasher]

I guess new Fortuners are not that bad. My friend owns one and found it very comfortable (quiet & peaceful on highways)

New Highcross should be an equally good option for you-also the automatic Crystas are high on comfort level (I own one)

With any of these, you gain some and loose some-Perfect car is yet to to be born.

[Abhi_Automobile]

I personally think Fortuner is one of the most over-rated vehicles out there. It does what it does well (‘big feel’, robust, strong engine, reliability), but is absolutely terrible at most other aspects (comfort, luxury, VFM)

I’d say look at either ‘ better value’ Toyotas such as Innova Hycross, or more sophisticated SUVs such as Jeep Meridian, Skoda Kodiaq, or Hyundai Tucson.

PS: bhpins can now throw brickbats at me!

[jayanttalwar]

I was in the same boat as you, was looking for a comfortable reliable SUV. The fortuner ticked the boxes on paper but it was not comfortable for sure- it feels built to last for sure but spending so much money just for that was not something I wanted.

I personally find the innova a bit bland as I drive with a heavy foot, the jeep meridian with its lovely interior and ride quality won it for me, the club variant is good value for money too but we got the limited option as we wanted the panaromic sunroof

[prasanna_indaje]

'Comfort' factor will grow on once you do multiple test drives.
Would suggest you to take multiple test drives and then decide.

My Fortuner is 5 months old and has ~14.5K on the odo. Got this after owning Hexa for ~100k kms !

PS : Almost rejected Fortuner after first test drive, dragged myself and family for second test drive and liked it. Asked for third drive and booked one after !

[4x4addict]

The general feed back that I have got from different generations of Fortuner owners is that the faster you drive over bad surfaces the better the ride is. The slower you ride over bad surfaces the worse the ride is. So, I guess the dampers are tuned in this manner.

Also the latest iteration i,e post 2021 seems to have a better ride quality than it's predecessors. Not that I have used a fortuner extensively but this is just from talking to friends who have owned more than one generation of Fortuners, right from the 2009 model year.

One thing to keep in mind when doing test drives at the dealer is to always check the air pressure first. I find many times the test driver vehicles are over/under inflated.

[iTNerd]

Having bought the latest 2023 fortuner 4x4 MT and driven around 1500 kms, and also own and currently driving a 2010 Fortuner 4x4 MT as well in my native place, I can tell you the latest avatar has much improved drive and comfort compared to the last generation. The mantra in having improved and tolerable confort is to reduce the tyre pressure to 29/30 psi, to maintain speed in undualated roads, speedbreakers and even drive in sport mode over eco or normal ones. Having said that, drivers coming from sedans especially the Germans will find wanting for more on any BoF SUVs, more so in the fortuners.

[nissar]

Just want to add here to provide further context as I own an accord and a Hilux (whose rear is a leaf spring so should be worse than the fortuner).

The accord excels at containing body movements over uneven surfaces. Best example is an uneven tar road you can absolutely fly over it like a magic carpet. The Hilux would throw you all over the place on such a surface.

On a smooth highway you will not find any difference in comfort levels. On curves obviously you can hold higher speeds more comfortably in the Accord.

On broken highway roads the Hilux excels. You simply maintain momentum through the rough patches. Also due to the height you can judge better on what to avoid also. On the accord such roads are pure mental stress. It is not that the vehicle can't take a few potholes but it's constant anxiety to watch out for them and slow down.

On broken city roads Hilux will throw you all over the place again. May more comfortable in the accord.

In summary it depends on how you drive. If you don't mind being slow and careful and its associated anxiety buy a sedan nothing can beat that. If you want to be carefree and are ok with discomfort in certain circumstances by a BOF SUV.

There are several other factors to consider like depreciation and maintenance too that is mostly associated with the brand make you buy. Good news is there are really comfortable sedans in the second hand market at ridiculous comfort to price ratios. Hope this helps.

[VW2010]

One-word answer is not allowed in tbhp or else I would just type “nonexistent” and hit send for your question.

"Fortuner may feel comfortable for the driver and the front passenger(at best)" is the best answer I can think when it comes to comfort. I am not even sure the car is sold as a machine for comfort.

It is horrible for old people to get inside, sit in that bouncy lorry or get out at the end of the drive.

It is not a big car nor a 7 seater. It is a cramped 3 seater in the center row and the last row is meant for noisy kids so the driver is isolated from the noise.

For your needs please look elsewhere or the Innova which appears to be a better fit for your needs.

[tictactoe]

This is a very interesting thread. I own a 2010 XUV500 and from a comfort point of view, a tractor might be as comfortable on broken city roads. On highways its a different ball game all together. The car just eats up all potholes and roughness. Body roll is quite manageable. I also bought a bmw 5 in 2020. However now I was thinking of doing away with both and getting a fortuner. However, this thread makes me rethink. My requirements are comfort, engagement, suitable gc for bad roads, and a looker.

[Chennai14]

I have done 18500 KMs in my 1.5 yrs old Fortuner which includes lot of family trips involving 4 senior citizens. While its not plush, ride is not bad either. But it all depends on the way you drive as well.
While Innova has the better ride, its Fortuner if you want to enjoy driving it.

[cool_dube]

Originally Posted by sampadroy

Our variant rides on 17-inch rims and we keep a tire pressure level of 31-32 psi

17-inch rims/taller sidewalls of the tires that come with 4x2 Fortuner certainly take the ride quality a notch above, compared to that on the 4x4 Fortuner. On the tire pressure - keep it at 30 PSI and see the difference

Originally Posted by Abhi_Automobile

bhpins can now throw brickbats at me!

The good part about a mature forum like TBHP is that we respect each other's opinion, as long as it is put forth in an amicable manner. Everyone is entitled to their respective opinion, so no sweat

Originally Posted by 4x4addict

One thing to keep in mind when doing test drives at the dealer is to always check the air pressure first. I find many times the test driver vehicles are over/under inflated.

Absolutely! A very important factor - usually all TD cars are over-inflated.

Originally Posted by iTNerd

The mantra in having improved and tolerable confort is to reduce the tyre pressure to 29/30 psi

Completely agree.

Originally Posted by tictactoe

My requirements are comfort, engagement, suitable gc for bad roads, and a looker.

As someone said, there is no such thing as a "perfect car" and so is the case with the Fortuner. Is it the most comfortable SUV out there, heck no! If comfort is your top priority then look elsewhere. However, if you can compromise on the comfort front (don't worry, you wont be sitting on a bouncy castle), then there are very few cars that hold a candle to the Fortuner on other aspects. Of course, as most other Japs, Toyota's forte is (over) engineering of their vehicles as opposed to 24-inch screens, panoramic sunroofs, 24-speaker surround sound systems, etc. If longevity, reliability, and durability are not your primary criteria, and you would want to keep a jazzy car with all the fancy stuff in there for about 5-ish years and move on, look elsewhere. Hope this helps.

[Mystic]

There is a lot of bashing on comfort of Fortuner. Let me take this up in another perspective.

I have an experience of owning the top end Scorpio for a decade and upgrading / downgrading to top end Crysta Z for about 1.5 years. Most of the miles on both cars is between travelling from Bangalore and Chennai (325 kms one way). As my parents and my in laws are all above 80 but much fit and look younger than me at 60, We never really faced any issues of ingress and egress or comfort . The only person who really faced a minor issue as a driver with moving from SUV to MUV is me because I only know the dynamics of these 2 types of automobiles based on the CG. Both are excellent vehicles and need to be driven accordingly with respect to CG and laws of physics. One should be careful and follow speed limits set for curves. Comfort for senior citizens may come into play only if the travel is more than 500 km per day irrespective of the type of vehicle.

I travelled extensively on a daily basis for many years to my place of work from my home (Saudi) in Land Cruiser and Fortuner as a passenger. On a scale of 10 with 10 as most comfortable, I would give 6 for Land Cruiser and 4 for Fortuner. On a lighter side, Fortuner just passed the exam with bare minimum marks and Land Cruiser just scraped and got a first class marks.

SUV and Comfort don’t go together and being a SUV fan myself, I hate to use a harsh word like a mechanised bullock cart for BOF as it may hurt SUV fans out there.

Sedans and Comfort go hand in hand.

MUVs are mid way between SUV and Sedan wrt Comfort.

If we stick to the speed limits on our Indian highways, all cars look same for senior citizens and young wrt comfort. The issue comes when people stopped following the speed limits and sometimes going double the limits, we see issues with comfort. For e.g when speed limit is reduced to 60 on a 100 kmph speed limit highway suddenly , one needs to respect the civil engineers like me who designed the road with camber and curve etc. If one goes 100 kmph on a SUV costing 2 crores on a curve which needs to be negotiated at 60 kmph, the chances are that one would be thrown out of the road and comfort level tangentially.