Personal Evaluation of New Crossovers in Taiwan Auto Market (NT$1.2 million Budget Range)
Yesterday was the beginning of the 228 long weekend and it was raining outside, which means there were limited choices of sightseeing. So I decided to tour the nearby automobile showrooms and conducted a survey, hoping that it would help my purchase decision.
What I currently look for is a new “crossover” vehicle — sometimes called compact SUVs, as defined in the U.S. market. In Taiwan this class of vehicle is simply called SUVs (Mid-sized SUVs like Nissan Murano and Toyota Highlander would be considered “big SUVs” in Taiwanese market). I am a 6–1, 180 lbs guy with long legs, so one big consideration is the leg space in the driver’s seat, and after that has been settled, the leg space in the second row (especially the seat immediately after the driver’s seat) must be at least adequate for that passenger.
It’s interesting that there are auto showrooms for six different brands within 15 minutes of walk from my home, and another few extra minutes walk for the seventh brand. Here is my preliminary thought after seeing each SUV of these brands.
- Nissan X-Trail (4WD Flagship), NT$1,180,000
X-Trail provides ample space for second-row passengers, however, I felt that when the driver’s seat was move back to the maximum, my legs were not extended to the most comfortable level. Its 2.5-litre engine also would make the car in a higher tax level. Overall the car is quite spacious, from the passenger’s perspective.
2. Luxgen U7 220 EcoHyper (4WD Flagship), NT$1,208,000
Luxgen is the new brand of Yulon Motors. Yulon Group is a long-time Taiwanese joint venture partner of Nissan. Most of Nissan’s compact vehicles are now assembled in Taiwan by the Nissan-Yulon joint venture company. Luxgen aims to provide the maximum level of electronic bells and whistles that are seen in higher-echelon imported brands for prospective owners with a budget.
The interior space of U7 220 EcoHyper is rather disappointing. Among all the vehicles that I surveyed yesterday, U7 220 has the biggest dimension (4820mm x 1935mm x 1730mm), but I felt cramped and intimated on the driver’s seat. This may be due to the car’s narrower upper-side of interior space and dimmer illumination — the vastness of all the electronic gadgets also contributed. Its sheer exterior size would make it difficult for the driver to find a parking place. So I basically struck out this one, simply based on my experience in the showroom.
3. Ford Kuga (EcoBoost 245 4WD Flagship) NT$1,190,000
The new Ford Escape with EcoBoost turbo engine is branded “Kuga” in Taiwan, for the purpose of distinguishing from previous generations of Ford Escape (2.3-litre NA engine). This one is also locally assembled.
It only take me one try to struck this one out as well. The second-row leg room is simply pathetic after I set my driver’s seat into a modestly acceptable position. In terms of power, gas efficiency, tax bracket, safety features and audiovisual enjoyment, Ford Kuga/Escape may be an excellent car, but the interior space is simply not good enough give me a second look.
4. Honda CR-V (2.4S Flagship) NT$1,039,000
CR-V is one of the only two vehicles (the other being Toyota RAV4) that creates the market segment of “crossover” or compact SUVs, and over these years Honda have accumulated vast know-hows about the maximum use of limited interior space. Therefore, despite having a rather shorter dimension (4545 x 1820 x 1685) among this class of vehicle, the interior of CR-V felt spacious — I can extend my legs comfortably on the driver’s seat while giving the passenger behind me more than ample leg rooms. CR-V can accommodate five adults, comfortably. The second row can also be made completely flat with its unique design — the seating pad can be pulled out to fill the space behind the first row, so that the back can be pushed down to make additional cargo space completely levelled with the cargo area. Not many cars in this class can do as levelled as CR-V.
The biggest issue with this version of CR-V in Taiwan is that too many safety features are removed from this supposedly top trim. It does not have side airbags for the passenger row, does not support ISOFIX baby chairs, does not have other top-notch safety features like blindspot detection, adaptive cruise control or pre-collision system. It is still a very good compact SUV for its price sticker, but probably not for a risk-averse prospective owner like me.
5. Toyota RAV4 (2.5L 4WD flagship) NT$1,250,000
The new 2017 Toyota RAV4 flagship version is fully imported from Japan and has all the top-of-line safety features available (side airbags, driver’s knee-area airbag, blindspot detection, adaptive cruise control, pre-collision system). In terms of interior space, it also offers spacious room for both drivers and passengers. The Taiwanese version, however, only comes with 225/65R17 tires — while this would increase the comfort during urban driving and provide higher gas efficiency, aesthetically this makes RAV4 look unbalanced (top-heavy with small feet).
Surprisingly this is not the most gas efficient vehicle in this class (ranked in the bottom half) and is in a higher tax bracket due to its 2.5L engine. Would have been a very good choice in most circumstances given its maintenance ease, reliability, interior space and safety features.
6. Mitsubishi Outlander (2.4L 4WD flagship) NT$1,069,000
A couple of years ago, Mitsubishi Outlander (assembled locally by China Motor Company, a Yulon Group company which is a long-time partner of Mitsubishi Japan) is the only locally-assembled compact SUV that offers: (1) many top-notch safety features only seen in imported SUVs; (2) 4WD selection mode; (3) big cargo space; (4) capability of having a third passenger row (more on that later); and (5) quite generous retail discount off the stated price. The engine technology is not new, but quite reliable, low maintenance and part costs. All these made Mitsubishi Outlander a viable choice in this class.
The interior space, however, is also rather disappointing. Despite having a longer body (4690 x 1815 x 1680) and boasting the capability to adjust the positions of the second row, when I am in the driver’s seat, the leg room for the passenger behind is only adequate when the second row is move back to the maximum. I can understand that this is for the purpose of stuffing a possible third-row seat.
In Taiwan, locally manufactured compact SUVs which only has 5 seats are taxed as passenger-cargo dual use vehicles at a lower tax rate. In order to comply with the transportation regulations, an additional iron bar must be placed behind the second row and enough clearance space (1 cubic meter) must be reserved for the cargo area. SUVs that has 7 seats will be taxed as a passenger vehicle at a higher rate. Therefore, in order to remain competitive, the Taiwanese version of Mitsubishi Outlander are mostly 5-seat version. Some car owners will buy the 5-seat version and add a foldable third row privately for pinch use (the insurance will not cover in this case). 7-seat version Outlander is subject to custom orders in Taiwan.
For a 5-seat Outlander, there should have been more default space for the second row, in light of the fact that the third row is not installed and the length of the car should give enough space for the passenger-cargo dual use compliance.
Still remains as a valid alternative on my list.
7. Subaru Forester (2.0 XT) NT$1,280,000 / 2.0 iL NT$1,080,000
Signature 4-wheel drive, excellent maneuverablity and integrity, comes with many safety features, fully imported from Japan — All these makes Subaru Forester a good choice.
The interior is quite spacious, gives a good balance of driver’s seat leg room, second row space and cargo space given the relatively smaller dimensions of the vehicle (4595 x 1795 x 1735).
Forester certainly remain on the top of my list. The only concerns are: (1) Subaru has never had a good maintenance support network in Taiwan and there were many horrendous stories of Subaru owners waiting for almost two months before the critical parts can be located (however this can be mitigated through a corporate lease program); (2) Subaru did not yet introduce its signature EyeSight safety integration to Taiwan — which would integrate adaptive cruise control, PCS, lane-keep assistance and sway warning into one coherent system.
So far I have ruled out Luxgen and Ford for interior space reasons, current generation Honda CR-V for safety features reasons. Front runners are Subaru Forester, Toyota RAV4, Nissan X-Trail and Mitsubishi Outlanders.
