Cars!

That's a good looking motorhome @Charlie996. Can you give me the details on it please, make/model, berth etc.

Yes, when I eventually sell my house here NG. I'm going to Scotland.

No, the Vitara hadn't been mentioned but it's to big for us, thanks.

It's funny, everyone has a comment to make about the Juke, even myself, but both other half and I like it because it has different lines to all the others. It stands out against the almost shapelessness of the other SUV's.

A problem I won't have Armandii.

Tomorrow we're looking at the Juke, Qashqai (or I'll have FC to answer too ) and the Stepway if we have time.

 

It depends which model you go for @Sheal. For instance...the 1.6 vvt vitara 3dr is 4005mm long, compared to the 5dr (do they do a 3 dr?) juke, which is 4135mm.
I don't think there is much difference width wise either, again....model dependant. The Suzuki 1.6 vvt 3 dr is 1810mm wide. Some Jukes are wider, some narrower. I thought they would all be pretty much the same width.

 

Blimey, my Astra J SRi VX-line is bigger than a vitara!!
Astra is 4419mm long by 2013mm wide !

 

Thanks for the info NG, there are so many to think on but we'll work our way through the smaller ones and see where we end up. It's going to take time here as the dealers are scattered all over the island. Having said that a new multi-dealership has just been given the go ahead here.......

http://www.edenpark.im/coming-soon.html

 

That is an interesting concept

I quite fancy the vitara myself http://www.parkers.co.uk/cars/reviews/suzuki/grand-vitara/estate/ and in this review, it mentions the Jimny, if you want small
Poor reviews, but a cute lil thing .

Anyway, good luck with your search .
Time for bed said Zebedee ....... Boinggggg.

 

Thanks NG but I think we might be by-passing both of these. The Jimny is a basic run about without the comforts of the other SUV's. There will be occasions when I have to do long haul drives and it won't be suitable. Having read the Grand Vitara write up, that seems to tell a similar story. The Suzuki range seems to have a very firm and uncomfortable ride and on a long journey that will cripple me.

 

Of course, driving conditions here are a lot different to the UK, and car wise tends to sort out the wheat from the chaff. In the range of SUV's sold here, Suzukis have developed a reputation as being one of the most unreliable. So its one I personally would avoid.

Of the vehicles used in the Sandy Ground household, two are SUV's. The difference between them is like chalk and cheese! One is a "true" one, and head and shoulders above the other in most respects. I could go on about its attributes for ever...but very few people in the UK would even consider buying one.

 

Not sure if it's been menion, Skoda Yeti
Pic from net

 

Our motor home is a 2013 Autosleeper Kemerton. It is two berth but has ample room. You can get a 3 or even 4 berth in this type of vehicle but I think two berth is about it.

It has ,,

Thule electric step
Underslung gas tank
Full sized fridge
3 ring hob
Full Oven and grill
Microwave oven
Extractor fan over the hob
Outside BBQ point
Interior lights are plenty and mostly LED
TV.
Full blown central heating and air conditioning
Satellite hook up point outside.
Fiamma 2 bike rack
Air suspension
Thule Omnistor wind out awning
Full length Alloy roof rails
TV aerial
3 belted seats.

These modern vehicles are extremely well equipped. The list of kit is endless ! We could have bought a huge vehicle but these type are so easy to drive and suit us as we dont stay in any one place for too long !

It may be we have to sell soon though as we are on the move house wise. But if we can find a property in our price range we will keep it. It would one very regretful sale !

I see you are looking for an SUV ? We have a Toyota Rav4 which is brilliant ! Our one is the top of the range Invincible with all the toys like full colour Navigation and leather and so on.. Might be a bit big but an excellent vehicle !

 

@Charlie996 Is there standing room in your camper? We dont see that type much over here.

 

I'm 6.4 and have no problems whatsoever. This type of camper is extremely popular now and have been for about 4 years or more. MPG is very good and they are so easy to drive and manoeuvre around.

Problem is is with popularity and the high demand for them prices are high..

 

I'm surprised, which was the reason I asked. The nearest thing to that we have over here are the ones made by a german company called Pössel (I think!). A typical one here would be this...



...for a couple of reasons. First, to go south to either Denmark or Germany means using bridges and ferries. Vehicles under 6 meters long can use these a lot cheaper than longer ones. Secondly, for some reason swedes like to get into their beds quickly, without having to fold tables and chairs to make them...

 

Thanks for the information on the motorhome Charlie. Other half and I had been seriously considering one but we've had to put that on hold for the time being until we sell our house. Meanwhile, we haven't checked out the Rav4 yet and it actually comes within our size limit, it's only slightly longer than the Nissan Juke.

We had a brief look at one of these in a car park today Jiffy. I've got nothing against a Skoda but I didn't like the look of it, it's very similar to a Jeep, sorry!

We didn't test drive any cars today, the idea was to see what we liked and didn't like regarding the specifications and comfort side. Our first port of call was the Renault dealer where we went through the Dacia Stepway, Duster and Renault Captur. The Dacia's really are a good buy if you want brand new and can't run to the more expensive Renault cousins. However, having crawled all over these three cars we decided that we'd rather go for the Captur, the finish of the interior and comfort levels really are worth the extra cost. Funnily, we said we wouldn't buy another Renault as we're currently on our fourth. The downside with them 'til now has been interior rattles that have driven us to distraction. So.....hoping these issues have been improved in the six years we've had our Clio, the new Captur is tempting.

The interior comfort is a must for both my other half and I as we both have arthritis and I also have a partially functioning right ankle. So seating, pedal placement and steering wheel adjustment is most important.

We left Renault and headed for the Nissan dealer. As you are aware I have a soft spot for the Juke, I love it's lines even though many see it as a frog.

Surprisingly the only Juke available to us there was in the showroom. I'd taken into account all the comments from you good people and set too, in fact I crawled all over it......twice! The dealer was very patient. There is no telescopic steering column which I would have liked but I had no issues finding a decent seat position to get my dodgy ankle in to a comfortable place for the throttle pedal. That has really been a problem with most cars that we have owned. I also sat in the back, this being mentioned as claustrophobic and uncomfortable. Perhaps it's the difference between male and female sizes.....I didn't have a problem but the the small rear tinted windows do give it a cosy feel. Again not a problem, the rear seats will rarely be used. Boot space is good with a split level floor pan shelf for storage above and below. No spare wheel as it has a tyre inflatable repair kit, there's an option to have a spare wheel. Another downside is there is no 4x4 crossover unless top of the range is invested in and then the car makes that choice.

For FC we then went on to the Qashqai ( I never spell that right first time!) It's a good 18 inches longer than the Juke which we really don't want or need. My other half felt more comfortable with the pedal reach in this (he's 6ft tall), I couldn't make judgement as the car was an automatic and I needed clutch distance to compare with the adjustments I have to make for the throttle. The interior was comfortable and not a lot different to the Juke apart from the back seat space which is ideal for a family. I walked round the outside of the car a few times and walked away, it didn't have buy me written on it, for me or my husband. Don't get me wrong, it's a good car but not one either of us could fall in love with.

Where do we stand? We're going back in a few weeks when there will be a Juke available for us to test for up to four days. A real bonus not having to make a decision on the normal half hour test drive. It will give us both a chance to settle in and get the feel of the car. Assuming that goes well then we'll be buying in the summer. There is no point in looking at anything else right now, this car is what we want.

Thanks everyone for your input, it's been valuable.