Kind of a spin off of Hoggin’s thread.
Looking for an SUV that’s comfortable and somewhat fuel efficient.

Currently have a 2008 Lexus RX350 we bought used about 6 years ago. We’ve never been happy with the ride after taking a number of trips in it. Just didn’t ride like we thought it should. And the fuel economy sux.
Prior to that had a 2003 Tahoe and loved its ride but fuel economy was about the same as the Lexus. Plus it towed the boat back then. Don’t need anything to tow as I have a crew cab truck for that.
Not a fan of Toyotas as I can’t stand their high floorboards in their vehicles.
Any suggestions?

PS, prefer something 2-3 years old

i`d stay away from nissans too. typically, comfort and fuel economy don`t come in the same package. sucks but it`s true

Lexus has a poor ride and not a fan of Toyotas…well that’s a take I’ve never seen before

Extreme, yea that’s a thought combo to ask for.
The Lexus only gets about 18 mpg so anything in the mid 20’s mpg would be a huge upgrade

My wife has a Honda Passport and loves it. She's never done the math on it but she claims it gets excellent fuel mileage. I'm getting a brand new Pilot today so I can let you know sometime next week how it does on fuel. It has the same engine in it as the Passport and there is very little difference between the two.

I’m perplexed as well AU7 on the Lexus ride. New tires and all new struts made no difference. I can’t figure it out. All the Toyotas I’ve sat in, the high floorboards were just uncomfortable to me. I’m only 6’2” but even with the steering wheel adjusted up, my knees still were uncomfortable

Thanks BC👍

My wife has a’19 Honda pilot, it rides great and the fuel economy is close to 30mpg. My only complaint is the road noise, we’ve always had full size suvs which didn’t have the road noise.

The ford edge is a nice vehicle if you’re not hauling grown adults in the back seats. No room and uncomfortable on a 15+ minute ride. The driver and passenger seats in the front are fine. Fuel is ok and ride is smooth. If it’s just two people riding, I would go with that size. If you’re hauling more passengers, I would go with a full size suv.

Yea, road noise in the Hondas is what always turned us off as well. Granted these were 6 years ago before we got the deal on the Lexus

Honda passport or pilot
Toyota Highlander

not sure what mpg the lincoln aviator gets but they are damn comfy. my wife has a mkx and i think she gets around 20 or so. nice little suv but too small for my liking.

I have a 2022 Hyundai Palisade w/3rd row seating:

Positives:
22-24+ MPG in economy mode
Very smooth ride and very comfortable.
Plenty of power for acceleration and towing (I pull a 12' utility trailer pretty frequently) - with trailer connected, MPG drops significantly.
Lots of room for "things" when 3rd row seats are down.
8-speed transmission.

Negatives:
It can be cramped in the 3rd row seating for adults.
Didn't come from factory with 2" receiver - had to have one installed by local company.
Oil changes are a pain in the ass (I've yet to change it and not make a mess) - cartridge type vs. spin on.

We love our Armada (2019) and it's plenty comfortable....great travelling vehicle. But it's thirsty....I think we're averaging around 15ish mpg.

I wouldn't have the smaller Nissan SUV's though...the ones with a CVT transmission

How you getting the kind of milage out of the pilot? We have a 2013 that gets around 18 and a 2024 that gets 21-22.

heres an unpopular opinion.

how much will the new suv get driven? is fuel econmy really that big of an issue? it always baffles me when people that drive 10k-15k a year are so obsessed with fuel econmy. there`s no way in hell i`m going to get a toyota, honda, hyundai, kia etc.etc. instead of a full size suv that is truly a joy to ride in when the real money difference in mpg is $1,500 a year.

Reminds me of one of my family members several years ago....older guy. His wife had an Excursion as her daily driver. They lived about 30 minutes outside of town and he decided gas (or may have been diesel) cost too much, so he bought her a Honda Civic as her "getting around vehicle".........but she kept the Excursion and still used it roughly 50% of the time. In his mind, he was saving money because she was spending less on fuel.....completely disregarding the $20k(ish) he spent on the Civic.

For what it's worth, this guy had "F- You Money", so it didn't really even matter.....but the mental gymnastics was entertaining

That is bizarre…we have a 2016 and 2019 rx350 and they both get 24-25 mpg with a heavy foot, and the ride seems pretty good to me.

Toyota highlander or the kia sorento. they might ge called crossover vehicles not SUVs but both ride nice. My mom has the highlander and I have the Kia. Both get around 25-27 mph.

Additionally my KIA is all wheel drive and it has a locking differential. Drove in the snow etc 4 weeks ago in florence and it handled very good.