Jeep Commander

Lexus RX350

Nissan Pathfinder

Honda Pilot

What's equally frustrating is there appears a sort of collusion amongst them. It's like, once a year, they all, the auto engineers, that is, attend some secret meeting. They fly in from Tokyo, Detroit, London, Stockholm, they all have a couple of brews, and then decide to all release cars that practically look alike. Can't you just hear the Chevy people, bragging: "this year we again decided to keep the same cluster gauges we've been releasing for generations. If we all decide to do that, then they'll have no choices, and no choices means they have to accept what they can get, and that friends means more sales for us, with less investment in research and modifications of our assembly lines". "Who's with us???" "All opposed???" This is what it feels like.

When we were asked to consider doing a general evaluation of the SUV market, now that gas prices hit the roof, we were a little bit intimidated by what seemed to be an overwhelming task. But after a couple of hours of batting the logistics around, we decided that this would be a really fun project, and much easier that anticipated at first, alas time consuming. Besides, we could go out there and test drive a bunch of trucks (in some instances, cars that masqueraded as trucks). "OK, let's do it!" Fun, fun, fun.

Oh, and by the way, don't submit your information to websites that promise you multiple quotations. Just get the information they provide, but submitting your information to get quotes is useless. We didn't try all of them, so we can't speak for all, but, the ones we did try, promised to arm us with several competitive quotes, but all, wound up providing us with only one, and it wasn't quotes, and the information provided contained no pricing nor useful data, other than directions on how to get to a specific dealership. So basically, these are lead generators for the dealer, and you wind up getting phone call after phone call, asking you to come in for a deal of a lifetime.

We decided to review a wide range of SUV's. The following made it passed our first wave, the selection criteria of which, was based on gas consumption, price, overall utility and size: Nissan Murano, Nissan Pathfinder, Honda Pilot, Acura MDX, Lexus RX 330, and RX 350, Jeep Cherokee Overland and Limited,  Jeep Commander Base and Limited, Toyota 4Runner and Toyota Highlander, Chevy Trailblazer, Chrysler Pacifica. All of the above vehicles were driven by the reviewing drivers, and following is our analysis and opinion.

Let's start with the Lexus. This is really a car pretending to be an SUV. It is a so-called cross-over vehicle built on a chassis of the ES series sedan. The 350 is the 2007 model. The one we tested came well equipped, and was definitely luxurious on the inside. The real wood trim was rich, and the leather was very nice. Both, the 330 and 350 were equipped with Pioneer audio systems. This audio system was surprisingly average for a car that aims at luxury sedan owners. The 350 drove much, much better than the 330. The "truck" definitely had a female persona in mind behind its wheel, at least, this was our opinion of this vehicle. Although it's road handling was reminiscent of the MDX and the Pilot, it was definitely more exciting than the comatose road performance of the latter two. Our suggestion to Lexus dealers is give away Gucci or Luis Vuitton purses as incentives to test drive these cars.

The Honda Pilot is a cross-over vehicle as well, sharing its chassis with the Ridgeline and the Odyssey minivan. It's a very interesting "truck". The interior was very plush for a Honda, and everything is well positioned and organized, as usual. On the inside, it kind of reminds you of the Accord down to the change and glasses compartments. The weird thing is, you cannot get the DVD player and the NAV system. For some stupid reason, you can either get one or the other. This thing is so quite and so smooth on the road, you're not quite sure if you're really driving or watching a Matrix  movie.

Now, we were told by the Honda dealer that the MDX is on the same chassis and is essentially the same car as the Pilot. Although, the two perform almost identically on the road, interiorly, they seem very different. Not only that, the MDX is larger. And, in the MDX, you can get the NAV system and the rear seat DVD option. As far as we are concerned, the more electronics in an automobile, the better.

Presumably, when you're buying one of these SUV's, it's for a particular purpose, like towing the kids around, or simply towing, or hauling. Having kids, is sort of like off-roading, all of the time. Kids have an enormous amount of stuff that kind of follows them: strollers, and umbrellas, bags, and bags, of stuff, and carriages, and tricycles, and bicycles, and skates, and balls, and bats, etc., etc., etc. Add a trip or two to a theme park, add stopping on the way home at an antique shop and picking up a night table or two, or a chair, and you got yourself a need for an SUV. So, now let's go on to the Pacifica.

The Chrysler Pacifica is an interesting vehicle that's new for 2006. It kind of reminds us of the Mercedes R series, even having Mercedes style seat adjustment controls. It has four captain chairs, and is sort of like a minivan, but not. It has three rows of seats in the following configuration, 2,2,3, like in a minivan. The problem is, it doesn't have a sliding door that retracts far enough to permit access to the last row of seats. So, the second row seats must be folded forward in order to allow entry to passengers wishing to use the third row. This is a killer. Grandpa or grandma will not be using the third row, nor will you be using it, if you are all dressed up wishing to go out somewhere fancy. The really cool thing that the Pacifica sports, is its NAV system which is right inside the instrument cluster. Very nice. This car; however, is extremely anemic. To get it to go from a dead stop requires a lot of pressure on the gas pedal.

The Nissan Murano, is more like a station wagon pretending to be an SUV. Interiorly, there is too much plastic. The instrument cluster is completely non-appealing as it sticks out and up passed the dashboard. It handles well and feels light on its feet -- tires. The Pathfinder; however, is a serious SUV. We tested one fully loaded with a NAV system and rear DVD. The ride was a little rough and felt truck-like. The vehicle pitched from front to rear, as we took it over bumps and other minor road imperfections. The ride was very similar to that of the Toyota 4Runner.

The 4Runner, on the outside, is a one nice looking truck. And it is a true SUV, based on a truck, not car or minivan. Not so with the Toyota Highlander, which we found completely mediocre. If you like the Highlander, drive the Pilot. Overall, the Pilot feels a lot stiffer and a lot more solid with a much better interior. Surprisingly, the 4Runner has very little room on the inside. The plastic feels thin and cheap, and the highlight of the interior feature-set, was a shelf, in the back, to stack groceries? 2006 is the last year of this truck's body. So, although you may be able to pick this truck up for a discount, you may wish to look elsewhere. Incidentally, the MDX is changing body styles as well. And the Lexus RX has maintained it's body for the last three years with one more projected.

Although we really like this years Chevy Tahoe, it did not make the cut, because of its size and, oh boy, gas consumption. Not so with the Trailblazer. Based on a car chassis, it is a cross-over vehicle and is just simply there. It offers nothing over the Pilot and the MDX, and its ride is sloppy as it yaws and pitches going through bumps and minor road imperfections. It just doesn't feel solid and stable.

This, and last year's, Jeep Cherokee, appears to have had a booster shot of masculinity injected into its veins. Gone, are the rounded, boat-like features -- in, with the stylish squared chin, new look and bravado. The Overland and Limited Jeeps are very nice. With two tone leather and their legendary hauling, towing and off-roading capabilities, they truly aim at the high-end luxury buyer. Interestingly enough the Jeeps are now under German control, which may be a bit of good news as far as mechanical reliability is concerned. These cars have somewhat of a following, as there are Jeep clubs, Internet communities and owners, even among our own staff, that just keep buying Jeep, after Jeep, after Jeep. The Jeeps, and this goes for the new Commander, all drive, somewhere in between what an MDX would feel like and the 4Runner. Jeeps, for some reason, do not have that characteristic truck feel. The pitching and yawing, is not there. But, they don't feel as nimble and light on their feet like the Lexus RX or the Murano.

The Jeep Commander is very, very interesting. It reminds us of the Discovery, the Mercedes, and of course, it's biggest rival, the Hummer. Obviously, the people at Jeep were asleep at the wheel when they allowed GM to take a huge bite out of their niche with the H2 and H3 which even share the same Jeep front grill look. The Commander is very fast. Although, we were told by multiple Jeep representatives that the Cherokee and the Commander are essentially the same truck, these drive completely differently. The engine or drive-train and/or gear ratios of the Commander must have been repartitioned to be a heck of a lot more responsive at lower speeds. Both, the 4.7 Liter and the Hemi are very responsive. There are fast cars, and there are quick cars. The Commander is very quick, not only for it's size, but in general. It also is capable of producing maneuvering completely uncharacteristic for its size, which is therefore, completely unexpected, but very welcomed and takes some time to get used to. Being completely new and just engineered, the Commander comes loaded with tons of electronics not available in the Cherokee, nor any other SUV we've examined. For example, there is UConnect, which is a Bluetooth interface to your Bluetooth enabled phone which is integrated into the VES (Vehicle Entertainment System). The VES has a NAV system built-in, which is one of the best we've seen. The 6 Disc CD changer is also completely integrated and a part of the VES, which is mounted above the gear selector. This system is capable of playing MP3 CD's and for some reason can be controller from the rear console which sports a DVD player wired to the rear LCD screen. Like in the Pilot and the MDX, you get wireless headphones so you can listen to your stuff, while the kids watch and listen to Cinderella. The Germans obviously are very proud of getting control of an American icon like Jeep. They are branding the name very well as the word "Jeep" appears all over the interior of the truck. This truck has three rows of seats, but like the Pilot, and the MDX, these seats are marginally useful for seating passengers. The Commander barely made the cut in terms of its gas mileage. At 15/20 which turned out to be slightly worse than stated on the sticker, the Commander is a very respectable contender worth serious consideration for the price, features, abilities and utility. And isn't after all sport and utility is what an SUV is all about? Let's not forget the meaning of "Sport-Utility" which defines this class of vehicles. The Commander comes as close to the definitions as you can get.

So here's our composite opinion and synopsis. If you have lots of kids and need a kid wagon look at the Honda Odyssey (yum) mini-van in lieu of the Pacifica. Daimler Chrysler has to solve the third row accessibility issue on the Pacifica because presumably they are aiming at the mini-van market as much as they are the SUV market.

If off-roading does not mean accident to you, forget about cross-over vehicles. If you haul, but not a lot, and stay on the pavement, consider the Pilot. The MDX is changing body styles, and that is the only reason we do not recommend it over the Pilot. Load up the Pilot and you should be happy, but know this, you wont be able to get an integrated factory DVD player if you opt for the NAV system. This decision by Honda makes no sense, but it is what it is. The 4Runner has lots of issues, including that it's due for a body change as well. It's exterior good looks, in our opinion, do not make up for its shortcomings. The Nissan, Pathfinder is the overall top pick of the bunch, as it is well rounded in its capabilities in hauling, towing, off-roading, and shuttling the fam and groceries. The top pick of the "real" SUV, and this truck is not for everyone, is the Jeep Commander. It has awesome amenities on the inside, awesome power, and all other characteristics associated with this class of vehicles. If plush luxury, getting your nails done and cappuccino is on your mind, get the Lexus RX350 or the RX400h. This car gets our top pick for handling and overall maneuverability. Try to get it with an upgraded audio system though.

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