Your questions answered: Which spacious luxury SUV should I buy?

We’re tackling all corners of the new-car market with our reader letters this week. It starts with one growing – and adventurous – family looking at an SUV with more space and plenty of style.

Another reader is going tyre shopping and is getting bamboozled by the plethora of brands and options. There’s also more restrained used car purchases and someone wondering if they can make an EV work on single-phase power.

And for the big and bold, there’s at least one person shocked about the price of the Toyota Tundra.

Answer: Much of the large SUV energy is focussed around the $70-90K bracket. Above that there’s a real mix, including proper off-roaders such as the Toyota LandCruiser, Nissan Patrol and Ineos Grenadier.

It sounds as though that more serious off-road capability isn’t high on your agenda, although there are some cars that provide above-average off-roading with sensible on-road manners. Land Rover has some great options, including the Discovery and Defender.

The Disco is arguably better suited to your predominantly on-road driving, although the Defender does a decent job. Whichever flavour you choose be ready for a barrage of options that can easily ramp the already steep prices up further.

One point, though: You wouldn’t be buying into a great reputation for reliability.

If that’s important to you then the Lexus GX could be a good alternative. It’s got great off-road ability, is a sensible size and has hard-core Toyota 4WD genes underneath (it shares its architecture with the Toyota Prado). Plus it comes well kitted out with gear.

The negative is its engine. It’s a lusty unit that suits the car nicely, but it has a wallet-draining thirst for premium unleaded.

The BMW X5 is also worth a look and is one of the better options in the luxury segment. If you can live without seven seats then the Volkswagen Amarok is a terrific luxury option, albeit without the luxury badge. It’s smooth, quiet and comfortable and comes packed with features that make it something of a bargain … if you can overlook the badge (I know, it’s hard!).

If you’re prepared to go electric the upcoming Volvo EX90 is a great option. We don’t know the price yet, but expect it to start at around $130K.

Here in rural Tasmania I travel mainly on country roads or the highway. There's not much stop-start driving on urban roads. I have received quotes for Michelin Energy 91V and Primacy 91W, Goodyear 94W and Yokohama Blu-Earth-GT 94V tyres, but the local mechanic recommends a Maxxis HP5 94W or Rovelo 94V.

These are brands I have never heard of and they are cheaper than the other quotes. I understand that the higher the number (94 versus 91) and the later the letter in the alphabet (W vs V) has something to do with the tyre's speed and loading capacity; the higher the number/letter the better.

Have you had any experience with Maxxis or Rovelo and can you offer any advice? - Jane

Answer: Tyres have maximum load and speed ratings. It’s always fine to get a tyre with a higher rating but can be dangerous and/or illegal to get one that doesn’t match what the car maker has stipulated.

That said, there’s not really an advantage in going to a higher rating because you’re essentially getting a tyre that may be over-engineered for the car you’re using it on.?

Your car originally came with tyres with a 91 load index, which indicates each tyre can take up to 615kg. Stepping up to a load rating of 94 would increase that to 670kg. Again, there’s nothing wrong with that, but you don’t need it for your Corolla.

The V speed rating stipulates the tyres are rated at up to 240km/h. You can increase that to a W rating, which will have a speed rating of 270km/h. I’d suggest your trusty little Corolla will struggle to get anywhere near those speeds. And I’m guessing that’s not a priority for most Corolla drivers.

So don’t worry too much about getting a higher rating than the original 91V. That said, if the right tyre comes along and happens to have a higher rating then there’s nothing wrong with that.

As for Maxxis, I’ve run plenty of them on my mountain bike (they dominate the market in Australia) and have also tested them on four-wheel drives when tyre testing. They’ve performed very well, so my experience is positive on those.

I have no experience with Rovelo tyres. It looks like one of the many brands selling more on price as they try to boost their market share. Often with tyres I find it’s a bit of a case of you get what you pay for. Big name brands such as Michelin, Pirelli and Continental can sometimes cost more, but they’re usually very good tyres.

Answer: Yep, the Tundra ain’t cheap.

Like all those big American pick-ups it arrives in the country with the steering wheel on the left and gets stripped back to bare metal and converted to right-hand drive. It’s an involved process that from best estimates costs something north of $20K.

And the model we get comes with the hybrid system, which is more about hauling heavy loads and providing V8 power from a V6 than saving fuel. But even so, it’s a hugely expensive machine given Fords, Rams and Chevrolets are thousands of dollars cheaper.

The slightly frightening thing is that it’ll only head north from there. Toyota has already said it will offer at least one other variant, which is due in 2025.

The Limited we get now is the base model, priced from about US$58,000. The Platinum and 1794 Edition – one of which is slated for Australia – adds about 16 per cent to the price in America.

So you could be paying closer to $190K in Australia. As for why they’re so much more than the rivals, we’re not quite sure. Toyota obviously has an unmatched service network, which may be appealing to those in the bush and remote areas.

And it already pops a premium on other four-wheel drives and has people queuing to own them.?That said, the Tundra is unlikely to be a big volume vehicle; the company is estimating 3000-4000 sales annually Down Under.

Answer: The earlier Jukes were basic motoring, especially in the engine department. The 1.6-litre engine was no fireball, although mated to a continuously variable transmission helped eke the most out of it.

As a compact SUV it wasn’t overly spacious in the back, but for singles and couples it worked fine. And, obviously, the Juke looks the business with a sassy design that stands out.

As with any car of that age do your checks to ensure it has been looked after. And don’t lock yourself into one example. Remember there are a lot of people trying to sell Jukes elsewhere, so keep your options open. And at the very least use other options as a bargaining point.

My first thought was an EV until I realised I only have single phase electricity in my garage of the retirement village in which I live. I’m happy to go with a hybrid and would prefer to purchase now while the current models are being sold for a good price before the 2025 models of which there are many.

I currently drive a Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross 2018 which I have certainly enjoyed. I love driving and have no anxiety at all having recently driven through the city with all the road changes happening.

I am 78 years old and I believe I will be enjoying this new experience of driving the latest technology for however long I can. My driving patterns these days are much less than previously, not driving very long distances, a lot more locally and distances to ACT and Taree a couple of times a year. Interstate rarely - train and hire car for holidays.

So here are my questions for you:

1: How much do you think I could sell my six-year-old Eclipse for? It is in excellent condition with regular servicing and has only done 40,000km.

3: What other new hybrids (from 2023, 2024) from the Asian markets are currently selling in Australia? The makes of cars I have looked at so far include GWM Ora, BYD Atto 3 and MG HS.

4: Then there’s the other direction - how about a used hybrid? Where’s the best place to look? And how do I know if they will be reliable? - Wendy

Answer: Let’s tackle the single phase/three phase charging issue first. With single phase power you can draw up to 7.4kW of power, which will easily charge an average EV overnight.

The only reason you’d need three-phase is if you were driving 400-500km a day and needed to top up within four or five hours to then drive another few hundred kilometres.

In other words, in your instance (and most people’s) single phase power would be more than enough to keep an EV charged.

As for how much you could sell your Eclipse Cross for, there are so many variables, including the condition, model, etc. Check out the expected values at Redbook and look what people are advertising similar models for on carsales. Just remember that dealers usually ask a higher price, so you may have to go slightly lower. And there are always people being optimistic about what their car’s worth. In short, asking prices don’t always match what the car sold for.

So, if you can live with an EV then the MG4 is a great budget-priced option. It’s smaller than the SUVs you’ve been looking at but may still suit your needs.

And the BYD Atto 3 you’ve already looked at is a great option. They’ve just put better tyres on it and tweaked some other details. It’s great value if you can stretch the budget.

Otherwise look at a Honda HR-V hybrid or a Toyota Corolla Cross (the latter may have a wait time due to high demand). As for used hybrids, reliability is generally related to age, mileage and how the car has been treated (including servicing). And some brands tend to go the distance better than others; stick Toyota at the top of that list.

For used hybrids, it’ll more than likely be a Toyota because they’ve dominated the market. Look at a Corolla or Corolla Cross or you could even step down in size to the Yaris Cross.

Answer: There’s no shortage of globe swap kits for vehicle headlights, especially with utes and four-wheel drives. Be aware of the legalities, though.

Some of those new globes aren’t designed to be used on the road. They’re too bright and can glare and flare for other drivers.

It’s usually stipulated on the box that they’re only designed for off-road use. So, yes, you can potentially get better vision for you but it may adversely affect other road users, which has serious safety implications.

You could also consider some driving lights or a light bar. They’ll only operate when you flick the lights to high beam, but they can seriously improve on the standard illumination.

That wasn’t hard on the previous generation Ranger. Its headlights were pretty average, something that has thankfully been addressed with the latest model.?

Got a question but don’t know where to find the information you need? Email us at?editor@carsales.com.au

Join the conversation at our Facebook page
Or email us at editor@carsales.com.au