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High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - Benet

Is there such a thing as a high, comfortable car, with good boot space, from a reliable maker for £10-£12,000? It doesn't need 7 seats but most cars with this body shape seem to have 7. I have not had anything non-Japanese for 20 years so I would need a bit of persuading to go back to Ford or Vauxhall. . I am considering the Mazda 5 but they are thin on the ground. I don't want an import because I am having to give up current imported Honda due to unavailability of spares. I don't want 4 wheel drive because then you lose luggage space. We do regular car boot sales and need space, but we want a car that is still easy to park and use daily. A bit larger than a Toyota Verso. Not much to ask, is it??

High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - Adampr

Not sure what you mean by 'high'. Both the Mazda and Toyota you mention are fairly straightforward MPVs. If you want a high driving position, there is an almost infinite number of SUV/Crossover models available, including lots of Japanese ones.

High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - Benet

, there is an almost infinite number of SUV/Crossover models available, including lots of Japanese ones.

Yes but many of these are 4 Wheel Drive, which I preferably don't want

High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - Adampr

, there is an almost infinite number of SUV/Crossover models available, including lots of Japanese ones.

Yes but many of these are 4 Wheel Drive, which I preferably don't want

Very few are four wheel drive; they just pretend to be.

SLO's recommendation of a Honda CRV is a good one.

A (petrol) Mazda CX5 or Toyota Rav4 would also work. If MPG isn't a big factor, a Subaru Forester might do. It's 4wd, but not at the expense of interior space.

A Dacia Logan Stepway would not have Japanese reliable, but wouldn't be bad and is a vast amount of space for very little money.

High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - SLO76
One car springs to mind, the Honda CRV. The 2.0 petrol and the 1.6 diesel can be had with 2wd, the interior is huge ditto the boot. We ran one for 4yrs and very much valued its reliability and practicality, the 1.6 diesel averaged a very impressive 55mpg too. We tried to find a good late 1.6 diesel recently however without luck, most seemed to be abused and neglected, but many of the 2.0 petrols we found had less miles and had been better cared for so if you’re not doing many miles a 2wd 2.0 petrol may be a good option as they’re mechanically bombproof, there’s really nothing to worry about. It’ll do 35mpg easy enough too so it’s not terrible on fuel and petrol is generally cheaper at the pumps too.

Perks of the petrol CRV include no turbo to fail, no DPF to clog, no timing belt to worry about and they’re very well built. They’re a fantastic big family hold-all, the only downside is they’re not exactly fun to drive. Buy a good one and keep it till the wheels fall off.
High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - Benet
The 2.0 petrol and the 1.6 diesel can be had with 2wd,

I diidn't know that. Thanks. As a Honda loyalist, the CRV has to be on my list

Edited by Benet on 15/09/2024 at 20:11

High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - Steveieb

How about a Honda FRV . Six seater , built exclusively in Japan , same mechanical s as a CRV but only available in 2 WD

High cars, not 4 wheel drive, preferably Japanese? - Falkirk Bairn

FRV - the newest will be around 15 years old!