Faults:

Nothing at all which was part of the manufacturers responsibility. The dealer fitted electrics for the tow bar gave problems, but as I am an Electrical Engineer I sorted this myself.

General Comments:

The car is a model of reliability and tows my Caravan well. The fuel consumption is very good solo, but drops dramatically when towing.

The choice of gear ratios is good for both solo and towing.

The selection of gears however is marred by a crunch if hurried.

The handling is reasonable considering the high centre of gravity, but is does roll quite a lot.

Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

My wife wanted a small SUV with great fuel economy and in Canada, that comes down to a Honda CRV, Toyota RAV-4 or the Nissan X-Trail. The Ford Escape and Mazda Tribute have a less powerful 2.3 litre 4 cylinder and all the rest of the competitors have V-6's.

The X-Trail is more powerful than the CRV or RAV-4 and gets the same or better economy. It has a much bigger sunroof, a better AWD system and has more standard features for the money.

Since delivery two months ago, the car has been great and even surpassed our high expectations. Great comfort, fun to drive and good economy. Our 10 year old daughter loves all of the back seat features and the great visibility - she won't drive in my Jetta TDI anymore.

Faults:

None. Sill brand new, just done over 1,000 km.

General Comments:

The 2.5l engine with 180hp is powerful and able to do 110kph up a fairly long and straight steep incline, without shutting off its overdrive. (The shift is 4-speed auto with overdrive.) And I did not really floor the pedal since I am overly cautious as the engine is still not 'break in' yet.

Doing almost as good as my previous car which is a Ford Ranger 2.5 intercooler diesel up this particular stretch of road. Most other cars would gradually drops down to 60-80kph with the pedal to the floor.

I found the car a bit bouncy and rolls a bit on rough, uneven road, while others who tested it found it okay and acceptable. Maybe I'm used to the manner the heavier Ford Ranger with stiffer suspensions behaves...

But with a full car load of driver and 4 passengers, the car drives better with less obvious bounce and rolls. And the drive is superb with the powerful 2.5l engine; with no comments of discomfort from the passengers.

Faults:

Nothing has gone wrong with the car.

General Comments:

The car is the best compromise between the larger serious four wheel drives and the suburban runabout.

It can actually go off road, though there is no low range selection.

The true test is to get it on some gravel, it's stable, and serious compared to the others I have owned.

Its built solidly and is with all extras, cruise control etc.