What To Buy, Crv Or Fortuner Or Rav4

[WilliamCave]

Hello given three different vehicles Rav 4 , CRv , Jeep, Fortunner, wht would you buy in thailand..I am looking at all these and am woundering if any of you have experience with these vehicle. In the following areas, gas, comfort, reliability and anything you can put in to this, and also service on theses units in thailand. please keep it simple.

I want to buy used in any model 2005 to 2007 after christmas..

what do u think

thanks in advance

[jaideeguy]

rav4...ok

crv....good resale

jeep...expensive import

fortuna....drives [and parks] like a truck

consider chev captiva suv and has deisel

[Plus]

Fortuner can carry a lot more people and go off road, CRV on the other hand is a sedan with an extra large boot.

Jeeps and Rav4s cost too much to consider as an alternative.

Captiva is a newcomer. Theoretically it's the best of both worlds - seven seater SUV that runs on diesel and handles properly but Thai journous think it's not as good car as CRV, and not as big SUV as a Fortuner.

It's very new but is getting popular, in a few months time we'll know drivers opinions.

[coventry]

I looked at Captiva, made by Isuzu, and thought the interia was small. Went for the Fortuner based on price and size.

[Moonfruit]

I looked at Captiva, made by Isuzu, and thought the interia was small. Went for the Fortuner based on price and size.

Is it made by Isuzu? I thought it was made by Daewoo. Or is it just a Daewoo design?

[Thaiboxer]

All the vehicles you've mentioned are expensive, but definitely stay away from the Jeep. They have some of the worst consumer ratings in the USA. The Fortuner is built on the same chassis as the popular Vigo pickup and it has a bigger wheelbase than the Rav4 and CRV; perhaps it would handle better. Not sure on fuel consumption, but the Fortuner is pretty thirsty from what I hear.

[Plus]

The fuel economy is not really that important, extra hundred baht every week is not going to ruin your finances.

[Jareddiving]

I would never buy a car here in Thailand that is a few months to 2 years old.

For maybe an extra 80.000 to 150.000 Baht i drive a new one.

Anyway i have a 2.7 petrol Fortuner and it is quite thirsty. But i knew that before i bought it. also i think for a 2.7 it´s not that bad.

Also have a Vigo 4*4 3.0 D4d. This one i think is not bad at all. About 1 liter for11-12 km. So the Fortuner Diesel will be about the same probably.

Dont forget these are quite big engines.

Btw the fortuner drives not like a car, not like a truck. A bit in the middle.

And Deawoo doesn't excist any longer it's now under the name of Chevrolet.

[Jareddiving]

Btw my Fortuner has done 72.000 km so far without a single problems.

The service at most Toyota Dealers is very good.

Service is cheap and fast.

If i had the choice i would definitly buy the Fortuner again.

Maybe first i would test drive the diesel version but the Petrol version is also great. Smooth, powerful, and if you ask me reliable.

I think Toyota is the best choice in Thailand.

Chevrolet doesnt do it at all for me and it's not only the name.

[dominique355]

Fortuner seems to have some problems with the brakes and the ABS. There are some discussions in this forum about this problem.

Brakes of the CR-V are also not fantastic but it's a much more refined car. I would ( and I did) choose the CR-V.

As an alternative, Land-Rover Discovery (donno the price, though)

[coventry]

And Deawoo doesn't excist any longer it's now under the name of Chevrolet.

Chevrolet I believe is part of General Motors which I believe own Isuzu.

[Jareddiving]

Never had any problems with the brakes of my Fortuner.. If there was a problem with the brakes i´m pretty sure they solved it by now.

As you can read on this forum most people are more then happy with their Toyota´s.

[nikster]

Never had any problems with the brakes of my Fortuner.. If there was a problem with the brakes i´m pretty sure they solved it by now.

Newer ones come with the bigger master cylinder, which apparently solved the problems.

I do have problems with my auto transmission now, but that's in another post. And no idea how wide-spread that is.

[sgunn65]

See my previous posts for why I chose the CRV but I did; and on wednesday I pick up a 2.4 crv. I will report back how the first month is.

[redbicycle]

See my previous posts for why I chose the CRV but I did; and on wednesday I pick up a 2.4 crv. I will report back how the first month is.

HOw about toyota harrier ?

[Plus]

Imported, overtaxed.

Cheapest version with 2.4l engine is somewhere around 3 mil. Quite a popular buy instead of Lexus RX that comes only with bigger engines and cost a lot more.

[cgjtt]

We bought the 2 liter CRV 4 months ago. I was afraid the 2.0 wouldn't have the guts to take the hills or be smooth on long drives across the country.

Pleasantly surprised. I took it from ChiangMai to Ubon and back. Good ride, gas consumption about 11 to 12 Km pr ltrs. Not the greatest but not bad. Went to Doi Sutep last week with 4 people in the car and going up the hills, a breeze. You have to be mindful of its power band though, under 2500 rpm not that great but then it kicks in and gives you passing power or climbing power as needed.On the highway , it doesn't like100 to 110 kph but at 120 kph, power picks up and the acceleration gets better. I use to own a Blazer and the CRV is a bit more rough, maybe cause of its shorter wheel base, but taking the curves at Doi Sutep felt solid with very good handling.

Ergonomics are good and lots of space available ( full load coming back from Ubon).

Yep, Range Rover would be nice but then would have to sell the house and live in the car !!

That's my review.

[Bredbury Blue]

Fortuner, best value for money - and drives nothing like a truck, doh!

[redbicycle]

Imported, overtaxed.

Cheapest version with 2.4l engine is somewhere around 3 mil. Quite a popular buy instead of Lexus RX that comes only with bigger engines and cost a lot more.

Thanks plus, WHat do you think of toyota wish ?

[sgunn65]

Got the CRV 2.4 yesterday and gave it a 200km run. Very quiet, smooth and solid german feel to the car. Put my foot down and it hit 160 in a very short time with bags more to go.

Mid range pull very good so overtaking a doddle.

Massive wing mirrors for those nasty little waves. And all the toys!!!! Put the ipodon and music was fab!!

Glad I chose it over the Fortuner even though I am sure it will cost a little more in petrol than diesil.

I have not yet tried it on some winding moutain roads but look forward to it.

[phibunmike]

... Not sure on fuel consumption, but the Fortuner is pretty thirsty from what I hear.

Very happy with my Fortuner.

For your info, full tank (diesel) costs about 1500 baht and gives about 600km. I don't know how that compares to other vehicles, but seems pretty good to me.

Cheers,

Mike

[Steve2UK]

Consider Ford Escape - solid but not oversized (e.g. Fortuner). Similar look to CRV but overall more comfortable ride and more sophisticated.

[UdonChris]

Consider Ford Escape - solid but not oversized (e.g. Fortuner). Similar look to CRV but overall more comfortable ride and more sophisticated.

How much is it?

[Plus]

Escape was quite popular before new CRV came out but now it clearly shows its age and it will soon be replaced by an equally bland looking model. You might also consider Nissan Xtrail if you don't mind retro design, it's supposed to be a good vehicle according to Thai journos.

Remember the CRV smashing incident about a year ago? The woman eventually settled on Wish.

Wish once won a car of the year award in Japan but I think it has a bigger engine there. At least now Thai model has seven seats and all the gismoz.

in than market segment, small MPVs, Honda discontinued sales of its similar Stream model because it was no match for Wish, btw.

[Steve2UK]

Consider Ford Escape - solid but not oversized (e.g. Fortuner). Similar look to CRV but overall more comfortable ride and more sophisticated.

How much is it?

In 2006, I paid B770,000 for a 2004 Escape with 59,000km on the clock. This was through our esteemed forum sponsor. Checking on the well known Thai dealers' website site (I think I'm not supposed to post the link? - but I am sure you can track it down), most comparable examples were about the same - probably averaging B750,000; my take was that I didn't begrudge Expatmotors making a small premium (assuming they did) in return for my peace of mind that I could trust the dealer not to sell me a turkey. He didn't - over a year later I have only had to deal with a replacement headlight bulb, an oil seal and an air-intake gizmo - all very minor. Oh - and replace the insane 60% windscreen/shield tint that the previous owner had applied (got me thinking that the roads in Pattaya must be very brightly lit 24 hours a day or he never drove it after sunset! )

When I was researching which SUV to buy in mid-2006, I came down to a shortlist of the Ford Escape and Kia Sportage (sorry - I dismissed the CRV as a bit of a hairdresser's car......... maybe unfair, but personal view). Both the Ford & Kia came out very well in test reviews of compact SUV's; from memory, the Kia came out ahead in terms of spec, warranty etc for the price - but, at the time, I couldn't locate the kind of dealer I wanted and I did keep hearing anti-Korean comments from various Thai friends. Given that the test review site I consulted is US-based and seemingly a consumer guide rather than purely commercial site, I hope I'm OK to post the link here:

http://consumerguideauto.howstuffworks.com...ompact-suvs.htm

FWIW, here in the north (Chiang Mai), I seem to see a lot more Thai driving Escapes than CRV's - which nearly always seem to contain farangs. Make of that what you will..................

As to the Escape looking bland? All in the eye of the beholder I guess............. Neat, functional and fit-for-purpose (many purposes) - definitely. If I were remotely bothered about the need to make a personal style statement, I guess I could always go and spend a few thousand baht on buying the add-on LED's, chrome pieces and go-faster stripes that seem to get some hearts racing......... Not for me.

[redbicycle]

Escape was quite popular before new CRV came out but now it clearly shows its age and it will soon be replaced by an equally bland looking model. You might also consider Nissan Xtrail if you don't mind retro design, it's supposed to be a good vehicle according to Thai journos.

Remember the CRV smashing incident about a year ago? The woman eventually settled on Wish.

Wish once won a car of the year award in Japan but I think it has a bigger engine there. At least now Thai model has seven seats and all the gismoz.

in than market segment, small MPVs, Honda discontinued sales of its similar Stream model because it was no match for Wish, btw.

Thanks plus , your informations is really useful i am settling on wish .

[sgunn65]

I have now had my CRV for 7 months and it is still a pleasure to drive after 12500kms. It is so quiet that at idle I have turned the engine on thinking it was off!! Road holding is excellent and in the wet it feels solid and safe. It likes a drop of gasahol 91 though so I am sure that if economy is high on your list of priorities the 2.4 may not be your first choice.

The automatic lights and windscreen wipers are a bonus as is the rear parking sensors. In fact we have just bought a new Triton plus and the first thing that went in were parking sensors.

Buy new as the second hand price of the new CRV is not much less.

[quiksilva]

I looked at all of these , but none of them did it for me, still think I'm going to go for the Mitsu spacewagon.

[Uros]

Escape was quite popular before new CRV came out but now it clearly shows its age and it will soon be replaced by an equally bland looking model. You might also consider Nissan Xtrail if you don't mind retro design, it's supposed to be a good vehicle according to Thai journos.

Remember the CRV smashing incident about a year ago? The woman eventually settled on Wish.

Wish once won a car of the year award in Japan but I think it has a bigger engine there. At least now Thai model has seven seats and all the gismoz.

in than market segment, small MPVs, Honda discontinued sales of its similar Stream model because it was no match for Wish, btw.

Thanks plus , your informations is really useful i am settling on wish .

Way to go, the Wish is a great station wagon, but go for the six seater rather than the seven. Business class vs. coach.

[Nordlys]

Wish once won a car of the year award in Japan but I think it has a bigger engine there. At least now Thai model has seven seats and all the gismoz.

Only 2.0 and 1.8L engines for Japanese domestic model. But 4WD and CVT (Continuously Variable Transmission) are available depending on the grade, with price starting from 550,000 and top grade approximately 750,000 Baht. Also more colors to choose from but no leather seat like Thai Wish.