Which Is The Best Medium SUV Under $40,000? | 11 Car Entry Level Mega Test | Drive.com.au

Eleven popular Medium SUVs go under the microscope to find out which one is the best for Australian new car buyers.

This is a comparison of Australia's best-selling sub-$40,000 Medium SUVs: Ford Escape, Haval H6, Honda CR-V, Hyundai Tucson, Kia Sportage, Mazda CX-5, MG HS, Mitsubishi Outlander, Nissan X-Trail, Subaru Forester and Toyota RAV4.

Why are we searching for Australia's Best Medium SUV for 2022?

There are 20 different types of new vehicles in Australia, from small cars to large SUVs, sports cars to heavy trucks. And yet, one in five new vehicles bought by Australians is a mid-size SUV.

Medium SUVs have nailed the Goldilocks formula when it comes to what Aussies want. They’re a good size, well-equipped, affordable, economical and pack decent on-road performance.

But with 36 different models on offer, how do you know which one is your Goldilocks If you trust the sales charts, then the most popular vehicle with Australian buyers is the Toyota RAV4, followed by the Mazda CX-5, Mitsubishi Outlander, Kia Sportage and the Hyundai Tucson rounding out the top five.

Other popular models include the Subaru Forester, Nissan X-Trail, Honda CR-V, Ford Escape, Volkswagen Tiguan and MG HS. We were unable to include the VW Tiguan in this test because it is priced over $40,000 before on-road costs.

00:00 Introduction
02:12 Ownership costs
06:32 Interiors & Infotainment
21:54 Rear Seats
28:56 Boot Space
32:09 Boot Summary
32:23 Safety
34:07 On-Road Testing
40:45 Results
43:16 Final Four

#BestSUV #Megatest #SUV
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[Drivecomau]

Hi all
There are two things here I feel I need to address.

First of all, the team has put a huge amount of time and detail into assessing these 11 cars across criteria we know are important to the majority of buyers. For family-oriented medium-sized SUVs the focus is on daily use practicality and core value offering at purchase. The reason we have split out all the assessment points in such detail on the story is to show you where each of the cars performs in these specific sections, with the Haval H6 a deserved winner across the board.

Is it the best at everything? No. But it is a tremendously well-rounded proposition at this place in the market. Do you have to like that? No. But it's our job to provide you with the detail and assessment to allow you to make an informed decision to choose the car that is best for you.

There are 11 good cars here, offering buyers nuanced strengths in different areas. We hope you can use the micro-detail the team has created to better understand which one shines in the areas most important to you.

We've got some more breakout content coming over the next few weeks that takes a closer look at some of these areas where - shock - not all the results are the same.



- James Ward

[dekkerlundquist]

The problem with these reviews is that they don't take account of reliability, customer support and parts prices/availability. These things are absolutely critical to whether your ownership experience is a good or bad one.

[megachristy]

By far the best comparison I've seen. It's like I outsourced it to a research firm! Man...

[theanysim]

Thank you. This is such a comprehensive assessment covering such a broad range of models.

[anthonypagano]

Next video you should do is a large 7 seater SUV mega test with the Nissan Pathfinder and Toyota Kluger and Skoda Kodiaq and ldv d90 and Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and ford Everest and Kia Sorento and Mazda cx8 and Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace and Toyota Fortuner and Mazda CX-9 and Hyundai Santa Fe and Jeep Grand Cherokee L and Toyota Prado and Isuzu mux and Hyundai palisade and Peugeot 5008 and ssangyong Rexton

[obcnu]

CX5 9th
CRV 8th
RAV4 4th are you serious.

[whatever_]

can you include the price after the first 5 services, or round up the price for service on a 100k basic.. It's was one of the most informative vid on suv i seen

[Mububban]

This review came out mid August 2022, so it can't have influenced buyers before this date. And I have seen loads of Havals on the roads, because they're cheap, loaded with gear, and while wages are going backwards in Australia, people still want new shiny stuff but have less dollars to buy things with. I bet many drivers don't like the idea of buying a Chinese car, given the current Australia vs China trade frictions, but they needed something new and their budget dictated their choice. And a test drive impressed them enough to swallow their concerns.
And realistically most of these modern SUVs are "mum's taxi" and how many wives give a (bleep) about driving dynamics??? They want something big, modern, safe and comfortable. It doesn't need to corner like a Lotus Elise, or ride like one either.
And many buyers do not do research into 5 year resale values unless they're serious car nuts, or extremely financially conscious in all things.
I'm one of the borderline povo modern middle class whose wages are falling rapidly behind inflation. MG and Haval are my max budget if I were to buy brand new, but I'd rather a Korean or Japanese car personally. As it is, I'll stick with my 20 year old Magna as long as I can!

[richlawrence]

Nice comprehensive review but would like to see more detail on the features and how well they work. A lot of safety features are over rated, eg current car has lane assist (tick box) But it is terrible goes off on joins in the road surface, painted lines of a bus stop and the water filled wheel rut/marks on wet roads. Also climate control (tick box) but needs constant adjustment because it adds sudden bursts of hot or cold air rather than an inverter type operation. Cruise control (tick box) is another eara of conern, how well does it hold the speed on undulations? Current car is about plus or minus 5 to 10 k before it starts to adjust speed, very annoying and costly speed fines.

[joepowell]

The Mazda would be on top of my list for reliability and resale and driving enjoyment. Insurance cost is not as expensive if you shop around and the fuel is not so bad overall it would be a few dollars difference to the others and nothing to panic about. I bought mine in April 2021 brand new and it has surpassed my expectations, i will definitely buy another Mazda product again and in fact I bought a Mazda CX3 for my wife who loves it.

[leoesposito]

very surprising winner great stuff guys ..

[nicholasmatthews]

Just out off interest, regarding 25:58 the reviewer does not mention that Mitsubishi Outlander LS (7 seater) second row has a slide adjustment. If there is no-one seating in the third row then the second row can be moved back as far as possible. Just wondering, did the reviewer know that it has slide adjustment, and was the seat as far back as possible? Last night I sat in the second row of a Outlander ES (7 seater) with the second row seat slid as far back as possible and it appears to provide lots of room in the second row. I have also sat in an Outlander ES 5 seater. The second row does not have slide adjustment, but it appears to be set back as far as possible, which provides great room in the second row.

[richlawrence]

Dont understand why vinyl seats are a benifit over cloth. Being a child of the 1950s on hot days, those seats were very sticky. In the 70s, cloth became a more desirable option and was used in premium models. Also do not understand space saver tyre, as if if needed, where does the puntured full size tyre go? and with limited travel distance, cant get to next town on some country highways.

[annroscarel]

I love the RAV 4 sadly though it’s like a 2 year wait which is a huge negative so I’m looking for a new equivalent

[bho]

It's interesting watching this from a North American perspective. Why is the X-Trail (Nissan Rogue) still the last generation? Is the Mazda missing updates. It's known here for incredible reliability, ride, steering and beautiful interior. Subaru Forester is lacking in some ways but scores at the top of the Consumer Reports list of compact CUV's (all of these vehicles would be deemed compact in North America. Also, I always wonder how Australians afford vehicles. The prices always seem so high. Anyway, this was interesting and fun to watch how the evaluations were done. Lots of hard work was clearly done. Thank you for this interesting review/comparison video.

[ewankobakc]

Someone is very busy moderating the comment in this post :D

[inodesnet]

38:48 CX-5 infotainment difficult to use while on the move? Understandable comment for a tester getting into car and not spending time with it.
As far as interfaces go, the knob system in the CX-5 is among the best to while-on-the-move. The great thing about it is that it was designed with minimal interference in mind.

A study by the University of Utah showed that vehicles that use touch screens or capacitive touch buttons, require the driver divert attention from the road for periods of up to 30 seconds, which is considered more distracting and potentially lethal that driving intoxicated.

Command knobs on the other hands are designed to be used in conjunction with eye level screens, to perform functions in a number of moves that can be achieved with muscle memory, and minimal vision off the road.

With a long term test, users of the command knob in the Mazda would choose it over a touchscreen.

[ndragon]

Do any of these cars allow a medium size adult inbetween 2 car seats in the back? Probably not but thought I'd ask

[ivoivanov]

Hello from Europe. Always a pleasure to watch such an interesting reviews and comparison. Me personally won’t go with Haval, however I’m more curious to know the Sportage and Tucson if they are represented by the European short version or the longer base from Us. The trunk space seems too odd to be the EU versions which is 10 sm shorter than all the rest.

[kmuinde]

Every time I get to use a car with a rotary gear shifter I never like them. Hate those shifters