One more turnoff about the Audi dealership in town (as I've said, there is only one in the city): no loaners. You either take their shuttle or pay for a rental.

Yeah. Pay for a rental. Are you fawking joking?

 

is it fair to ask what the wifey wants/prefers?

 

That's nuts...VW gives me free loaners

 

wagons

 

Please see the 3 choices.

 

No kidding.

I never got into the servicing thing with the BMW dealership in town, so, that's TBA when we go back and have another look at the X5...

BUT, the Volvo dealership's service offering is really neat. They have 8 Volvos on fleet that are designated for loaners. If those are out, they will lend us their test vehicles...and if THOSE are out...paid rental.

 

BMW will provide a loaner....never heard of one that didn't.

 

well played.

 

Lexus GX 470 is a nice suv, the invoice price for base model starts at $42,376, 09 model. You might get a better deal for 09 also...

you can also change the suspension setting from comfort to sport.. Sport mode if the babies at home... lol

 

^ But that, like the MDX, is a snooze to drive.

I think yummy wants something thats still enjoyable.

 

You know me well.


Gotta be able to somewhat hooligan-it on a larger vehicle.

 

has anyone mentioned zdx?

 

FX: Great combination of luxury, performance and utility.

 

love the FX

 

Get that abomination out of this thread!

 

 

So did ya buy the X5 yet? :wink:

 

There's some turbo lag, but what you're describing is definitely not kosher... The tranny thing, you could be starting from a dead stop (in 1st), and then maybe the tranny wants to shift into 2nd but then gets confused by the increasing throttle or something. What I noticed on my A4 is that if I accelerate a certain way it sometimes changes from 1 to 2 right in the middle of the intersection and it's a pretty long gear change. That went away recently, I think I started applying a bit less gas off the line to make it shift to 2 right away before I get to the middle of the intersection.

There's no way normal turbo lag on an RDX would manifest itself as an almost complete loss of power for 3 seconds, that's just weird... But anyway, you drove it, not me, I just think there must be something wrong with THAT car.

 

I see the courtesy van from my BMW dealership all the time, so clearly the dudes inside aren't getting loaners...

I'm still not sure about my Audi dealer, I asked them about but they seemed evasive. I asked "do you have loaners" and they said "we have a special deal with Enterprise, we get loaners through them". I said "if I bring my car in for service, do I need to pay for a rental" and he says "we'll help you out". I say "do I have to pay for it or not?" He says "don't worry, we'll work it out".

WTF.

 

We're still at least a couple of weeks away...Gonna have to work out some bank financing and move the CL. I'm inclined to trade it in if I still get no serious offers...

 

+1 for the FX50s!!

I brought my car in for warranty service and the dealership let me take out and FX50S for a few hours. My oh my!! That thing is a blast to drive. Other than the ride height, it's hard to believe you're in a SUV!

Acceleration, braking, and handling were all great considering its size and weight. I had no problem getting used to the visibility (as with any other vehicle, it just takes time to get used to it). The one thing that felt a little "funny" was the 4 wheel steering. You can really notice it at freeway speeds while you change lanes.

I don't find it a big deal to bring the car in for routine maintenance. I actually like checking out the new cars on the lot while I'm at the dealership. If you are concerned with long term ownership, maybe you should consider an extended warranty?

Since the 09's have only been out for a year, it'll be pretty tough to find a pre-owned one, but if you did, I think that would be a great way to go to save thousands of $$$.

I like the X5 as well but for the money, I think the FX50S is more exciting a ride.

 

^ Thanks for the write-up, cmark!

 

Ridiculous.

My Audi dealership always gives out loaners, and the one time they were all out, they paid for my rental.

 

Cheap Canadians.

Must be a thing No loaners FTL.

 

Just got off the phone with the Audi dealership here...Sure, I can schedule a test drive of the Q5. Too bad that I'll have to wait until February/March for it if I do purchase.

 

...man buying a car in Canda seems tough.

 

They pulled this stunt when the A5 came out too...saying that the wait would be a few months.

I'm sure given the reviews online and recommendation by the peeps in here to try out the Q5 points to a good CUV...but, honestly, I'm sure it is not that godly that I'm willing to wait 5 months for esp. when my timeframe is within a month or so...






I guess I'm glad I didn't consider the ML since no one has chimed in how I'm missing out with not trying it out.

 

Its a NY thing too. Down here, if you don't buy a car from a dealer, they wont give you a loaner, and this is with all the dealers in Brooklyn - Honda, Acura, Nissan, Infiniti, Mercedes, BMW, etc.

 

Just cross the river and go to Jersey. They give loaners, and better service, too.

 

^ NJ is a bit far for me.

 

Did you check out the Mazda CX-9?

After all, you arent into buying a badge.

 

We considered it...and don't get me wrong, the wife loves her Mazda3...but, we're trying to get something made by a manufacturer we haven't driven before.

Aw, shucks...is the Volvo that badge-whorish?

 

Some dealerships provide a courtesy shuttle as a service to people who have brought their car in for free scheduled maintenance (oil change, brake/rotors, etc.). Pretty sure most won't provide a rental unless the car will be there overnight for warranty work. I know mine won't.

 

At the Volvo, BMW, Infiniti and Acura dealerships I've taken my vehicles to, none offer a loaner for an oil change or other minor service. They'll shuttle me somewhere close but unless it's a big ticket repair or warranty service, I won't get a loaner.

 

No...Unless you live in the NE US and shuttle kids to soccer practice, then drive to the local Star-Sucks a suck down a mocha-lotte-frappa-bitcha-chino fu-fu drink.

Seriously, they do make a good car, and I have heard the T6 is a bit fun (not FX50 fun) to drive. And best of all, you get all the Volvo safety technology.

 

I heard there was an AM for sale in AZ for in your price range

 

My dad has a V8 X5 he bought used in 2004ish. It was a nice truck for a while but the past 2 years or so little (and not so little) issues have been creeping up. Im having a brain fart at the moment but the last repair had to replace something with the AWD system $2500, gone. Before that he ran over some flooded waters (maybe 5-6 inches) and it burned up some electronics. $600, gone. Because he takes it to the specialists its cheaper than BMW, but its still at least $500 a visit.

I wouldnt bother.

 

that sucks...

I've never had any problems getting a loaner with Infiniti OR Acura down here

 

i love the idea of a diesel. I think the new x5's look very butch + plus if your are really buying this because of kids the x5 has way more room than an fx. the fx is nasty in a good way.

BTW, why does everyone who is planning on having kids all of a sudden feel the need to buy an SUV?

 

Yumchah,

Make sure you read this, Edmunds long term test:

http://blogs.insideline.com/roadtest...niti-fx50-awd/

Their FX50 has been almost perfect.