Top SUVs 2004
$20,000-$25,000
According to Consumer Reports, the Toyota Highlander is one of the four most reliable SUVs. The others are the Mitsubishi Endeavor, the Toyota RAV4 and the Toyota Land Cruiser, one that also appears in this slide show. With a base price that is just $4,000 more than that of Honda's excellent CR-V, another five-seat sport-Ute, the Highlander is more flexible for families, as it has tiny, optional sixth and seventh seats. While both SUVs have 160-hp four-cylinder engines, the Toyota adds extra power with an optional, 230-hp, 3.3-liter V-6.
Base Price: $24,645
* Base prices are expressed as manufacturers' suggested retail prices plus destination charges, except where indicated otherwise.
$25,000-$30,000
The Honda Pilot looks bland from the outside, but houses an interior that is more comfortable, convenient and sophisticated than those of some SUVs costing $10,000 to $20,000 more. The Pilot has eight seats, some of the most abundant and ingenious storage spaces out there and high-tech equipment like a bumper-mounted camera that displays what's behind you when you're in reverse--not to mention a great ride and a great 3.5-liter, 255-hp V-6 engine.
Base Price: $27,865
If you plan to go off-roading, Toyota's more powerful 4Runner SUV is the better choice--and the runner-up in this price bracket. But the Pilot has better crash-test results and is more reliable.
$30,000-$35,000
BMW's X3 (Tie) is more fun than pretty much any other SUV. It has other nice qualities--it's about as cheap as a BMW gets and retains about as much of its value as a car can--but you're really paying for a sporty automobile derived from BMW's 3 Series passenger cars. The X3 is extraordinarily impractical for an SUV, feels naked on the inside compared to well-appointed Lexus SUVs and has a stiff-as-a-board ride. It's not for big families, but the BMW delights younger or more passionate drivers with its combination of standard all-wheel drive, six-cylinder engines and a package that is smaller and lighter than most SUVs. The X3 is often considered a baby sibling to BMW's larger X5 sport utility.
Base Price: $30,300
Toyota's Sequoia (Tie) trades X3-like performance for practicality, value and reliability. The Sequoia seats eight, has a towing capacity of 6,500 lbs. and uses a 282-hp V-8. That power plant has fewer horsepower than the engines of the Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Yukon and Nissan Armada--some of the Toyota's main competitors. But all three of those cars are less reliable than the Sequoia; the Armada and the Ford Expedition, another competitor, are among the least reliable SUVs. The Sequoia also offers an interior that is more modern and sophisticated than those of its competitors, with the possible exception of the Ford. The 282-hp engine in 2005 model Sequoias is an improvement over the 240-hp power plant which the SUV had been using until recently.
Base Price: $33,035
$35,000-$40,000
Some of the most exciting, stylish and luxurious SUVs patrol this price bracket. Consider six of the best: the Acura MDX, Cadillac SRX, Volvo XC90, Lexus RX 330, Infiniti FX and Volkswagen Touareg. Eliminate the two least reliable models in that group (the Touareg and XC90), the one that was recalled three times in the '04 model year (SRX) and the one that has the lowest horsepower and is expected to retain the lowest percentage of its original price (RX 330), and you have the Acura and the Infiniti. The MDX has a higher residual value than the FX--and of those six great SUVs, it is the most reliable. Of the six SUVs mentioned in the previous slide, three had no recalls in model year 2004: the MDX, the RX 330 and the FX.
Base Price: $37,270
$40,000-$45,000
How awesome is Porsche's first SUV, the Cayenne? While we eliminated the Cadillac SRX from consideration in the last price bracket because it has been recalled three times this year, we ignored the Porsche's five 2004 model year recalls because the vehicle has such a beautiful interior and is such a rollicking good time to drive (also, one of those Cayenne recalls was for incomplete certification labels--hardly a deal-breaker for potential buyers). An entry-level Cayenne is a comparatively affordable Porsche; a high-end Cayenne Turbo has 450 hp and will smoke 90% of the muscle cars on the street. What a gas.The Cayenne has become Porsche's best-selling vehicle in the United States.
Base Price: $41,100
$45,000-$50,000
Infiniti's new QX56 (Tie) SUV is a derivative of Nissan's Armada (Infiniti is Nissan's premium subsidiary). While some cut-rate Nissan components are visible in places on the QX56, the Infiniti is a compelling and one-of-a-kind vehicle: a foreign-built answer to the Cadillac Escalade. Compared to the Cadillac, the QX56 is a bargain--and fierce competition, offering customers another full-size, premium SUV with over 300 hp available. An Infiniti official said in an interview last year that while the QX56 is designed to take on the Escalade and Lincoln Navigator, the company does not consider the $73,000 Land Rover Range Rover to be competition. The Range Rover, said the official, is an entity unto itself.
Base Price: $48,430
While the Infiniti QX56 is a premium, full-size SUV, the similarly-priced Lexus GX 470 (Tie) is a fancy midsize. Both are well-built, but the Lexus is a better deal and will retain a higher percentage of its original value. The Infiniti is more powerful, but the Lexus seats just as many passengers (eight). The Infiniti's interior is an order of magnitude below that of the Lexus, due to the fact that it is new and is still having some growing pains (for example, the dashboard clock is too low to be easily readable)--and because Lexus interiors are among the best in the auto business.
The GX 470 is a derivative of the Toyota 4Runner.
Base Price: $46,025
$50,000-$55,000
Cadillac's Escalade is one of the few American-built cars left that are as revered and desirable as the best premium automobiles. Like a Ferrari, the Escalade has fans who buy every model that comes out, every year. Brimming with sinister, Detroit-bred attitude, the Escalade has stopped being trendy and has become instead a hip icon (and a hip-hop icon). It's a cornerstone of the trendy, affluent, young urban set that likes to tint windows and put chrome everywhere. The Escalade is a classic, and no SUV commands more respect. Well, there's the Hummer H1--but one must admit that driving a civilian derivative of a Gulf War vehicle on-road is a bit much. The Escalade is also available as a pickup, the Escalade EXT.
Base Price: $54,005
$55,000-$60,000
Talk about icons: Toyota's venerable Land Cruiser was one of the first SUVs. It has grown up to the point at which it has modern, upscale amenities such as a rear-view backup camera (see Honda Pilot slide), but is still rugged enough to be considered one of the world's foremost off-roading vehicles. In the remote reaches of the Australian Outback, Americans might be shocked to see an abundance of fancy Land Cruisers--but the locals will tell you the Toyotas are the only trucks that last out there. For a company that has five SUVs on this list (including those from its premium Lexus brand), Toyota reserves a place of honor for the Land Cruiser: it is the flagship model of the Toyota brand's outstanding SUV lineup.
Base Price: $55,590
$60,000-$70,000
Probably the best example of a car that earned a place on this list due to a lack of competitors in its price bracket, the Lexus LX 470 isn't a common idea of a dream car--but it is still the flagship Lexus SUV, and Lexus' SUVs are fantastic. Essentially a fancy Land Cruiser, the LX 470 is also old but makes up for its age with a swank interior that is rife with leather, wood and premium amenities. The LX 470 can change its shock absorbers' settings to suit the road, and the car features adjustable height control.
Base Price: $65,425
$70,000 and Above
When an editorial staff sits down to write a list of standout SUVs based on price, everybody knows which car will be the king of the hill. Land Rover's classic Range Rover flagship is the third most expensive SUV on the market--but the top two, the Hummer H1 and Mercedes-Benz G-Class, are ultra-low-volume adaptations of military vehicles, and as such attract small audiences. The Range Rover, on the other hand, can go just about anywhere on earth--like the Hummer--but is also gorgeous inside and out, with an interior that rivals the fanciest ones in any cars. A personal favorite of the Queen of England.
The Range Rover was engineered by former owner BMW. Expect Land Rover to make an announcement at January's North American International Auto Show in Detroit regarding when it will replace the Range Rover's 282-hp V-8 with a version of the 300-hp, 4.4-liter V-8 from the company's new, $45,000 LR3 SUV. The engine is built by Jaguar, another Ford brand. Its displacement is increased to 4.4 liters from 4.2 for the LR3. Land Rover will keep the 4.4-liter displacement for the Range Rover, and will increase the power. It will also offer a supercharged variant of the engine on the Range Rover.
Base Price: $73,750