Everyone I know other than one person who tows large yachts uses large cars such as Holden Commodore or Peugeot. Really though you don't need to justify yourself to the TM message board. Buy what you please, it is a free country. You did ask for opinions, so this is what you'll get.
tamarillo,
Nov 20, 8:24am
such honesty? Wonderful. Commodore wagon SV6!
totalimp,
Nov 20, 8:41am
Totally happy with opinions, it's assumptions/judgements i can't stand. I'm not a feminist but i'm not a fan when people assume my life entails going to and from the supermarket and school and nothing inbetween. My issue though. Free country indeed, arent we lucky :)
totalimp,
Nov 20, 8:54am
How many kms would you get out of a sv6? is 250kms too high? under budget but has had the timing chain done
meow_mix,
Nov 20, 10:34am
250,000kms is not too high for a Commodore, these are durable cars designed to travel long distances in Australia in harsh conditions.
vtecintegra,
Nov 20, 10:40am
I don't think that applies to newer models. Personally I wouldn't touch one with that sort of mileage.
socram,
Nov 20, 11:49am
I think you need to do a bit of research on fuel consumption.
Our 4WD diesel SUVs (3 of them) were way, way more economical than the early Toyota MR2 and the 1.5 Honda Civic. Not all SUV's are stonking great V8's. We have only switched back to petrol as I suspect selling a 5 year old second hand diesel in 3 years time, when ours may be due, will not be easy, as the tide is turning against diesels of all sizes, not just SUVs.
cjohnw,
Nov 20, 12:02pm
+1 I wouldn’t buy any vehicle with that sort of mileage, probably not even half that to be honest.
totalimp,
Nov 20, 1:37pm
You wouldn’t buy any car with 125000kms? Can I ask why?
likit,
Nov 20, 1:43pm
They are an excellent guide for comparison sake & in this case there is nothing between the two cars.
cjohnw,
Nov 20, 1:44pm
I spose I have been very fortunate over the years to have brand new or near new cars and I developed the mentality (maybe wrongly) that it is preferable to dispose of a vehicle prior to 100,000km. Still holds true with me today. Current vehicle purchased new late 2018 has 15,000km after two years and will sell in a couple more years. Guess it is my OCD.
totalimp,
Nov 20, 2:18pm
Fair enough! I’m sure you’ve worked hard to get there in life hey. One day I’ll get there!
jesus2000,
Nov 20, 2:20pm
Then you haven't driven both cars in the real world. Some manufacturers' are very conservative with their performance specifications. Others are very optimistic.
jesus2000,
Nov 20, 2:31pm
I would have no problem purchasing a car with 125k on it. The right car though like a Commodore or Toyota Lexus.
I wouldn't want to own a European car out of its warranty period though.
s_nz,
Nov 20, 4:34pm
Rural living and 3 hours of travel a day. If you average 70km/h and do that 5 days a week, 48 weeks a year, that works out to 50,400km a year (plus whatever you do in the weekends). This is way higher than typical 14,000km per year.
With spending that amount of time in the car, I can understand how you consider comfort very important, and am willing to pay for it.
That said, I think you should give some consideration to running costs. I'll quickly work out some annual fuel costs; - 2006 Prado V6 @13l/100km of 91 @ $2/L = $13,104 - 2008 Commodore SV6 @10.6L/100km of 91 @$2/L = $10,684.8 - 2010 Subaru outback 3.6R @10.3L/100km of 91 @ $2/L = $10,382 - 2010 Lexus GS350 @9.7L/100km of 95 @$2.20/L = $9,777 - 2007 Lexus RX400h @8.1L/100km of 95 @$2.20/L = $8,981 - 2009 Lexus RX450h @6.4L/100km of 95 @$2.20 = $7096
All of the above are powerfull with 175kW+. The lexus GS is especially quick with 225kW. All are fairly comfortable, although I would rate the Lexus models as the best, and the old prado as the worst. All come in under your budget except the lexus RX450h, which starts at $4k overbudget (note the $6k a year in fuel savings vs the prado).
Ultimate question comes down to what you want from the car. You budget gets you good options.
Given your partner has a diesel MU-X it would make sense for this to be the primary tow vehicle. It is a well regarded tow vehicle, and being a diesel it will be cheaper to run in this duty. The question is if you are getting a caravan and a boat, will you ever be using them at the same time (i.e. taking both the boat and caravan away on holiday). If so your car will need to be able to tow whichever is the lighter of the two. As an example the outback is rated to tow 1,800kg so would not be ideal for a 2400kg boat.
Next question is how much cargo space you want. The Lexus GS is a sedan, but by sedan standards the boot is quite large at 520L. This is quite a lot more than the 380L of a golf hatch, but way less than the 895L of a VF wagon (measured to the roof).
The GS is faster, more economical, and avoids the timing chain issue of the commodore wagon, but does mean giving up that sweet cargo space.
Last question is if you can cope with just one proper off road vehicle in the household. Given your current car is a golf I would guess yes, but if not, the outback wagon could strike a good middle ground of being reasonably quick and good handling, but still being adequate for easy off roading and the odd beach run.
Commodore has a lot going for it, it is just a pity about the Timing chain issue.
bitsnpieces2020,
Nov 20, 4:46pm
I'd go a toyota highlander
likit,
Nov 20, 5:27pm
Both independent evaluations, these were not manufacturer’s claims
jesus2000,
Nov 21, 2:03am
What does the same site say for the 2nd gen Lexus IS350 (2006 to 2012). ?
annie17111,
Nov 21, 3:00am
It's not just fuel costs you need to take into account, it's maintenance and any repairs that might be needed.
likit,
Nov 21, 3:05am
Is 350 13.8 1/4 mile
socram,
Nov 21, 3:08am
But you were only asking about replacing the Golf?
I'm with cjohnw on this. Since we managed to get to the almost new, then brand new stage, we trade them in or sell well before they reach 100,000. highest mileage on recent disposals has been 78,000kms.
Cost nothing for repairs, just regular servicing and most have been sold well before they even needed new tyres. In 20 years I think I have bought four tyres - and two of them, it was only a week before we decided to trade it in, so I needn't have bothered!
Three Freelanders and a Range Rover Evoque over 18 years. Happy with all of them, especially when towing. First was petrol, the others diesel automatics and all were economical.
totalimp,
Nov 21, 3:09am
Yes, I was justifying myself to the person who went on about gas guzzling diesels that mums use to go to the supermarket. Justifying why I was looking at a prado/suv
jesus2000,
Nov 21, 3:55am
Right that sounds more realistic. Same engine and the IS350 is 120kg lighter. ( 1600 kg vs 1720 kg )
Here's a guy doing consistent 13.7s in a IS350 with air box and exhaust modifications.
So is the extra 120kg of the GS350 going to turn it into a 14.7 second car? I know the GS can do 13.7s too as I did a few of them just the other week.
And going back over the club records from previous meetings I went looking for any VE or VF Commodore V6s. Here's what I found.
Holden VE SV6 15.735 (mine from a couple of years ago)
2008 Holden Commodore V6 16.333
06 Holden ute 15.213 (not sure if this was a V6 or V8)
2010 VE Commodore 15.425
Holden Commodore SV6 2007 3.6 V6 Auto 14.928
These times were the car's fastest time of the day out of around four runs.
sw20,
Nov 21, 4:17am
You need to preface that by advising you had the worst MR2 ever made being the AW10. Half the horsepower of the 4AGE fitted to the AW11 but uses far more fuel.
likit,
Nov 21, 5:54am
No VF’s there
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