[Cesc]

Congrats! The GTI is a great car. Used to drive the regular Golf TSI through Zipcar and even that was pretty decent to drive. Came close to taking over the lease on a SE with performance package but things fell through. I am sure you will have lots of fun with it.

[chevelle]

Disclaimer : Long Post. Please bear with me.

TL; DR : Just leased a 2018 Infiniti QX60 AWD (Premium + Premium Plus) after selling 2015 Murano.

Details below:

Requirements:

- 7 Seater
- Decent 3rd seat row for adult.
- AWD
- Premium Audio, leather, power everything
- Android auto
- Moonroof (Preferably dual pane)
- Under $500/mo (lease)
- Under $35k (pre-owned)
- Ease of entry and exit to 3rd row.

SUVs Considered (All AWDs):

- New and Old Acura MDX
- New Infiniti QX60
- 2014-2016 Audi Q7
- New Audi Q7
- 2014-2016 Merc GL/GLS
- New Mercedes GLS450
- New / Used Ford Explorer Sport
- New Chevrolet Traverse
- New Nissan Pathfinder
- New Volvo XC90
- New VW Atlas

Brief experience/notes on each below:

2015-2016 MDX w/Tech package AWD

+ Performance is good. Fast, decent handler for 7 seater. SH-AWD rocks in Tahoe.
+ Reliability and resale seems to be good. Almost got a 2015 for 32k out the door with 40k miles on odo. But was concerned how much expense in 3 yr or 5 yr time frame. Chickened out.
+ New ones were about $550/mo.
- Hard plastic cover where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side). Horrible. --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
- Doesn't have dual pane moonroof in any trim.
- Interior quality doesn't befit a 52k vehicle.
- No android auto.
- 3rd row is tight.
- Poor dealership experience. Behaving as if selling a Mercedes.
- Can't lease less than $550/mo.
- Only 10% discount.

2014-2016 Audi Q7

+ Performance is good. Fast, decent handler for 7 seater.
+ Engine
+ Good interior quality.
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side) --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
- Outdated MMI (Multimedia Interface)
- Tight 3rd row
- Reliability and resale a big issue. Especially in 2020-2021.
- Light steering
- Higher priced in pre-owned market.
- FE
- Less cargo space.
- Hard to get to third row. Not possible with car seat in place.

New Q7

+ Performance is good. Fast, decent handler for 7 seater.
+ Engine
+ Quiet on road
+ Good interior quality.
+ Updated MMI is good.
+ Android auto
+ AWD
+ Big improvement over old.
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side) --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
- Less cargo space.
- Price (Simple options and it is $65k)
- Doesn't lease good.
- Hard to get to third row. Not possible with car seat in place.

2014-2016 Merc GL/GLS

+ Performance is good. Fast, decent handler for 7 seater.
+ Engine
+ Good interior quality.
+ Spacious 3rd row
+ Good cargo space.
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side) --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
- Reliability and resale a big issue. Especially in 2020-2021.
- Higher priced in pre-owned market.
- Outdated MMI (Multimedia Interface)

New Mercedes GLS450

+ Performance is good. Fast, decent handler for 7 seater.
+ Engine
+ Good interior quality.
+ Lot of space in 3rd row.
+ Base features are very less. Splurging is good if budget permits.
+ AWD
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side)
- Price (Simple options and it is $80k)
- Doesn't lease good. ($800+/mo)
- FE
- Maintenance package extra.

So badly wanted a GL/GLS450. May be next time.

New / Used Ford Explorer Sport

+ Performance from 365hp engine.
+ Tight handler
+ AWD
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Android auto
+ Price (wrt performance)
+ Looks mean in all black and grey.
+ Power reclining 3rd row.
- Interior doesn't match the 50k price tag.
+/- Average 3rd row.
- CO2 Emission was the biggest negative that made me not get this.
- Poor FE
- Resale.
- Doesn't lease well.
- A $52k Ford?
- Hard to get to third row. Not possible with car seat in place.
- Hard plastic cover where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side). Horrible. --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.

New Chevrolet Traverse (redesigned)

+ Looks great in some trims.
+ Drives very good. Amazing ride and handling balance.
+ Decent performance
+ Huge 3rd row.
+ AWD
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Android auto
+ Price (wrt performance)
+ Interior is good for the price ($52K when equipped)
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side) --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
- Price ( in demand, so bad lease and low discount price)
- Interior lay out is same as a cruze.
- Hard to find exact combination (package).
- A $52k Chevrolet?

New Buick Enclave (redesigned)

+ Looks great in some trims.
+ Huge 3rd row.
+ AWD
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Android auto
+ Interior is good for the price ($50K when equipped)
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side) --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
- Price (new and in demand, so bad lease and low discount price)

< Didn't drive as didn't get good lease offer>

New Volvo XC90 T6 Momentum/Inscription AWD

+ Performance is good. Fast, decent handler for 7 seater.
+ Great interior quality.
+ Bowers and Wilkins audio (worth the extra $3200).
+ Lot of space in 3rd row.
+ Base features are very less. Splurging is good if budget permits.
+ AWD
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Discounts
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side) --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
+/- Good lease if bought at right time. When i got it, lease values weren't good.
- Engine (loud, coarse, power not readily available).
- Volvo dealership experience strictly ok. Behaving as if selling a 100k car.
- Reliability and resale a concern.
- Price (Adds up real fast)

New VW Atlas

+ 6 yrs bumper to bumper warranty
+ 3rd row space
+ AWD
+ Dual Pane moonroof.
+ Understated looks
+ Transmission
+ Ride
+ Decent handler for size.
+ Discounts are available already in excess of 12-15%
- Poor performance (horrible highway merging capacity)
- Poor engine (loud, strained)
- Horrible interior quality for $50k when equipped.
- Reliability
- Doesn't lease well.
- Hard to get to third row. Not possible with car seat in place.
- Hard plastic cover where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side). Horrible. --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.

2018 QX60 AWD (includes my first impressions)

+ Looks good in some angles.
+ Drives very good. Amazing ride and handling balance even with Toyo tires.
+ Decent performance. With sport mode its better. No scorcher.
+ Good 3rd row space.
+ 2nd row seat can move forward and drop down even with car seat in place. (Only one to do this from the list).
+ AWD
+ Dual Pane moonroof. (Mine doesn't have it)
+ Price (easy $10k-$12k off)
+ Interior is good for the price ($52K when equipped)
+ Starts at $45k and for $51k you can get very nicely equipped 7 seater).
+ Strong mid range.
+ Good interior quality.
+ Leather covered where our thighs usually rest (door pads and center console pad on the side) --> Yes, murano spoiled it for me. A must have.
+ Amazing lease value
+ Great to purchase as well.
+ Bose audio sounds good. (Infiniti g35 had good sound too)
+ Equipment is good (Blind spot monitoring makes you spend additional $5k which is bad). Else pretty loaded.
+ Awesome dealership experience. In and out in 1.5 hrs, deal done over email. Something no other was willing to do.
+ SXM provides 4 years of traffic for navigation.
+ Wife says ride is better at back, doesn't roll much. She gets motion sickness easily.
+ Touch for center display is useless as it is hard to reach. But buttons help a lot and are logically laid out and easy to reach. I like this compared to XC90 which had everything in the display.
- Pricey if going all out including safety features.
- Not a great handler. But very decent. Yet to make the tires squeal taking fast turns. AWD Helps
- Road noise (may be the tire).
- CVT not for everyone. I had it in Murano and was happy. Think it matches the v6 engines very good.
- Frequent service intervals (5k/6 months).
- Could have provided digital speedo in the center. Currently, it sits empty. Not the best utilization of the mid display (behind steering wheel). In photos you can see it only has car showing. Other display options are bad too.
- Bluetooth audio has couple sec of delay once it starts playing on phone.
- No android auto.

Overall, for 39 months, i will be a happy camper with QX60 AWD especially for price paid.

Questions and comments welcome. (All observations for all SUVs is entirely my opinion. No intention to hurt anyone's feeling regarding any particular SUV)

Photos attached.

[hema4saran]

Originally Posted by chevelle

Disclaimer : Long Post. Please bear with me.

TL; DR : Just leased a 2018 Infiniti QX60 AWD (Premium + Premium Plus) after selling 2015 Murano.

Congrats Chevelle on the QX60. Infiniti is worth to go for lease as the resale is taking a big hit due to the huge fleet sales.

Why didn't you consider the Lexus 2018 RX350L. I was recently offered RX350L with 0 down and $580 monthly lease for 39 months in a launch offer here in Dallas. It was a fully loaded car with navigation, blindspot monitor and full list of active safety features but FWD. All these happened in email itself as I was thinking about adding a second car to my garage. I backed out due to my project change which made my work place commute less than 1 mile distance from home and also partly due to the impending issues with the work visas happening all around.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by hema4saran

Congrats Chevelle on the QX60. Infiniti is worth to go for lease as the resale is taking a big hit due to the huge fleet sales.

Why didn't you consider the Lexus 2018 RX350L. I was recently offered RX350L with 0 down and $580 monthly lease for 39 months in a launch offer here in Dallas. It was a fully loaded car with navigation, blindspot monitor and full list of active safety features but FWD. All these happened in email itself as I was thinking about adding a second car to my garage. I backed out due to my project change which made my work place commute less than 1 mile distance from home and also partly due to the impending issues with the work visas happening all around.

Thanks!

The 3rd row of RX350L is super cramped. Also I have driven the regular RX350 and its a big snooze fest. Also the MMI is bad. I would rather keep Murano. I found Murano's interior to be as good as Lexus interior.

Also, $580 for lease is very high. For that amount, I could have got a XC90 momentum.

QX60 is loaded except BSM which is not a deal breaker as it is not very effective after using for 2.5 years.

[Cesc]

Congrats Chevelle. I think you made the right choice given your requirements and constraints. I had the QX60 for 3 weeks as a rental and liked it. It is spacious and drives well for its size. Agree the handling leaves something to be desired but overall it is a good package.

[amitoj]

Congratulations, Chevelle! That's a very nice, exhaustive analysis of all the major SUVs out there!
You missed out listing your observations about the Pathfinder.
Also, did you include ALL AWD 7 seater SUVs or did you eliminate some from test driving itself?

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by Cesc

Congrats Chevelle. I think you made the right choice given your requirements and constraints. I had the QX60 for 3 weeks as a rental and liked it. It is spacious and drives well for its size. Agree the handling leaves something to be desired but overall it is a good package.

Thanks! I think its one of the very good vfm 7-seater. I know the JX35 was bad but they have made lot of changes since then.

Originally Posted by amitoj

Congratulations, Chevelle! That's a very nice, exhaustive analysis of all the major SUVs out there!
You missed out listing your observations about the Pathfinder.
Also, did you include ALL AWD 7 seater SUVs or did you eliminate some from test driving itself?

Thanks!

Thank you for pointing out about Pathfinder. Its very similar to QX60. I considered the platinum version which is very loaded at $46k but didn't get any good lease deals on it. Drive wise, its a bit more boring than QX60 and CVT calibration is little bit compromised than QX60. If buying, may as well go for Pathfinder platinum than a QX60 as underpinnings are the same and is pretty loaded too. Just didn't see much deals on it.

I didn't include ALL AWD 7-seaters. Some i eliminated based on FE, 3rd row space, interior quality, price and drive. I didn't drive many simply because they didn't fit some criteria or other.

I eliminated many traditional SUVs like Tahoe, Yukon, Expedition too based because of FE, 3rd row space (oh ya, Tahoe is cramped compared to Traverse based on architecture) and price.

A local auto show helped me with finalizing the list of 7-seater SUVs. I know the QX60 also doesn't fit all of my requirement (no dual pane roof/Android auto) but i compromised since i got it for the price of a low end highlander/explorer making it a no-brainer.

Funny thing is, till end of Feb, QX60 was not even on radar. I was more inclined towards XC90/MDX/GL450. But things changed fast because of pre-owned market and leasing specials that made me get QX60.

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by chevelle

I eliminated many traditional SUVs like Tahoe, Yukon, Expedition too based because of FE, 3rd row space (oh ya, Tahoe is cramped compared to Traverse based on architecture) and price.

That is surprising about Tahoe! And I guess the Yukon and Expedition lost out purely on FE.

Yeah I remember test driving the Traverse long ago and its third row was indeed surprisingly roomy, even when compared to its GMC counterpart, Acadia.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by amitoj

That is surprising about Tahoe! And I guess the Yukon and Expedition lost out purely on FE.

Yeah I remember test driving the Traverse long ago and its third row was indeed surprisingly roomy, even when compared to its GMC counterpart, Acadia.

Yup, most v8 are like 15 mpg. Don't really need that not to mention prices are very high for those. Also, to get the level of equipment i wanted, price skyrocketed very fast.

Do check out the new Traverse. The way it drove (ride + handling) took me by surprise. Even Atlas couldn't match its poise and way it drove from which i had the most hope and possibility of owning. And very livable 3rd row. If i fit, i am sure others would be way more comfortable. But its pretty new (same with Enclave) so less discounts. I only got about $5k discount. Those are 15-20% discount cars easy. Apparently, not much in stock in most dealerships so they are not willing to haggle much.

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by chevelle

Do check out the new Traverse. The way it drove (ride + handling) took me by surprise.

Will definitely insist that my friends check it out next time any of them is in the market for an SUV.

As for me, I have a minivan to fulfill all the family needs

[Aditya_P]

Hello folks,

I moved to Denver from Cali a year back, and planning to upgrade from my 2010 Mazda 6 to a AWD SUV.

Test drove Nissan Murano, and quite like it in terms of space, interior features and price point. Only worry remains the CVT engine problems, that am seeing lot of people have encountered. Has anyone on this forum yet faced any issues with Nissan CVT engines, and if so how was their experience?

Also would appreciate any suggestions for SUV's fitting my requirements,

Budget - around 20-22K
Transmission - AWD

Thanks,
Adi

[amitoj]

Originally Posted by Aditya_P

Also would appreciate any suggestions for SUV's fitting my requirements,

Budget - around 20-22K
Transmission - AWD

Thanks,
Adi

Refer Chevelle's post two or three posts ago
He was quite happy with Murano and it seems to have spoilt him for comfort.
Also, check out Chevy Traverse, based on his test drive experience.

[hema4saran]

Originally Posted by Aditya_P

Hello folks,

Has anyone on this forum yet faced any issues with Nissan CVT engines, and if so how was their experience?

Also would appreciate any suggestions for SUV's fitting my requirements,

Budget - around 20-22K
Transmission - AWD

I am driving a Nissan Altima 2.5 for almost 3 years now. It is running fine and I never faced any issues with its CVT or engine till date. I easily average around 40Mpg on my interstate drives if I cruise at 70MPH. My car is standing at 40k miles now. One of my friend bought a Murano around the same time and he is also very happy with the car. For 20-22k you can get 2 to 3 year old Murano S or SV variant in the pre-owned market.

But I would suggest you to look at Mazda CX-5 if you are looking for something as fun as your Mazda-6. Other options to consider are CRV and Rogue. Both of these are cars favorites among desi population. You can get a new Rogue for less than 25k if you are good at negotiation.

[vineeth47]

Originally Posted by Aditya_P

Hello folks,

I moved to Denver from Cali a year back, and planning to upgrade from my 2010 Mazda 6 to a AWD SUV.

Test drove Nissan Murano, and quite like it in terms of space, interior features and price point. Only worry remains the CVT engine problems, that am seeing lot of people have encountered. Has anyone on this forum yet faced any issues with Nissan CVT engines, and if so how was their experience?

Also would appreciate any suggestions for SUV's fitting my requirements,

Budget - around 20-22K
Transmission - AWD

Thanks,
Adi

Why don't you give Subaru Forester a chance ? IMO it is the best AWD SUV under 30k. I own a 2014 model which I bought in mid-2013. It is reliable, fun to drive, good to carry kids/family with luggage around and an absolute blast to drive in snow/mountainous roads. It has good resale value too. You may have to stretch a little bit to get a decent trim, but trust me it is worth it.

[chevelle]

Originally Posted by Aditya_P

Hello folks,

I moved to Denver from Cali a year back, and planning to upgrade from my 2010 Mazda 6 to a AWD SUV.

Test drove Nissan Murano, and quite like it in terms of space, interior features and price point. Only worry remains the CVT engine problems, that am seeing lot of people have encountered. Has anyone on this forum yet faced any issues with Nissan CVT engines, and if so how was their experience?

Also would appreciate any suggestions for SUV's fitting my requirements,

Budget - around 20-22K
Transmission - AWD

Thanks,
Adi

No issues with CVT in Nissan. I had 2015 murano that I drove for 40k miles in 2.5 years and np issues with engine or transmission. This was first year model which was completely redesigned.

My friend has 2014 Altima and murano and both are 60k+ and still no issues with transmission or engine. Another one has 2017 rogue and no issues.

You can get 5k-6k discount easily on most Nissan cars and they hold pretty decent resale based on my experience.

You didn't mention 5 seater or 7 seater but you can't go wrong with well known SUVs now a days like CX5 or CRV. If pre owned you can get one segment higher like edge or murano. It's matter of preference. I have driven outback too but wasn't really impressed with it in every which way.