My family needs a newer 3row SUV and I’d like to turn to this amazing group of savvy buyers for some help. We currently have a 2020 Toyota Highlander Platinum and it’s been a flawless rig. But with two boys and two dogs, it can be pretty cramped, especially when Grandma wants to tag along. My wife also feels very pedestrian in it. She’s always been very conservative but she wants to spice things up in the pickup loop at school—I got jokes.
That said, I’m considering paying cash for a lightly used (likely 2020 or newer) 3 row SUV that, at a minimum, has the same amenities & tech our Platinum has—which is why we aren’t considerinf Lexus GX or 4Runner. We plan to own this for 4-5 years and resell it.
We plan to drive it roughly 7500 to 9000 miles a year, 90% of which will be my wife taking the kids to school and running errands. The other 10% is the occasional road trip roughly 1200-1700 miles round trip.
We have done some research and here’s the rigs we’re considering;
BMW X7 (6cyl version)
AUDI Q7
MB GLS 450
I just wanted to hear everyone’s thoughts and experiences on these platforms and what they’d choose and why. And if there are any other SUVs we should consider. We’re super gun-shy on the Tahoe or Yukon because of reliability and frankly feel those interiors are very utilitarian and are low tech (maybe not the newest model years)
These 3 would be a marginal upgrade in size, if at all. Having driven both the X7 and GLS, I personally like the way the X7 drives but like the overall appearance/feel of the GLS. Those two are a matter of preference. If you want a true 3 row SUV that will give you the room you are looking for, you have to consider the Tahoe/Yukon. The latest generation is great imo.
I’ve had long term experiences (30 days +) with the 2020 X7 M50i, 2021 X7 40i, 2023 X7 M60i, and the 2018 GLS63. The X7 is miles ahead of the competition. It’s cheaper, faster, and more fuel efficient. The interior is slightly worse than mercedes but the idrive is much much better than MBUX. The LCI is even better than the previous gen if you can get past the front end. I get 23 MPG on the highway with a V8 that puts out 523 HP, goes 0-60 in 3.8 and can seat 7 people (m60i)
Also, repairs are so much cheaper compared to the GLS. It is an AMG but I needed new sets of tires and brakes every year for around 3k a year at an independent shop. With BMW you can add the extended warranty and maintainace to 7 years/125k miles for 6k.
It’s not that I like one more than the other. I like both for different reasons. The BMW drives far better than the MB. The MB is slightly bigger and thus more spacious. I also think it’s nicer aesthetically. But this is mostly personal preference. If you were asking about X5 vs GLE, I’d say X5 is superior in all ways.
I know but that’s what we had in our fleet at the time. And to be fair or unfair depending on your views; the GLS was 30k more expensive MSRP and they were only 2 years apart by model year. But I agree this is personal preference. That GLS experience pretty much made us a BMW family. We’re never getting a MB again unless its like 50% off lol
We’ve completely discounted the Infiniti rig since it burns like 6mpg and feels super old. I’ll admit it’s nice looking exterior but it seems like excess.
Roughly 20-40k miles. And they’re generally 2020 models so it’s a year left of warranty plus the CPO year (unlimited miles)—two years. I need to shop an extended plan.
