Cars of 2017: Top five luxury SUVs
WhichCar guides you through five of the most notable upcoming luxury SUVs, on the way to Australian showrooms come 2017.
THERE’S slew of activity in store for luxury SUV buyers in Australia in 2017. Here’s WhichCar’s pick of the ones we’re most excited to see.
Audi’s Q range of SUVs expands in February with the smallest and most affordable model yet. The Q2 will embark from $41,100, undercutting the cheapest Q3 ($42,990) that shares the same 110kW 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine and front-wheel-drive layout at the entry point. Engine choices also include a Two.0-litre turbo petrol and Two.0-litre turbo diesel, each paired with a quattro all-wheel-drive system. Because the Q2 is aimed at junior buyers, there’s an edgier design that cracks from the more conservative treatment Audi takes to its thicker SUVs.
Italian luxury brand Maserati very first showcased an SUV in two thousand three with the Kubang concept, and a production high-rider ultimately goes on sale fourteen years later. A requisite premium interior can be taken to even higher levels of quality with optional fine leather and silk, with a panoramic sunroof and Harman Kardon audio system standard for a model that starts from $139,990. Three trim grades are all powered by a Three.0-litre twin-turbo V6 diesel with 206kW and 600Nm – about the same level of spectacle as an entry-level Porsche Cayenne. The all-wheel-drive system is biased towards the rear wheels but has the capacity to send up to half the engine’s torque to the front wheels to aid traction. Standard adjustable suspension provides five different rail height options.
The original Q5 loved a period as Australia’s most popular luxury SUV, so the follow-up model due midway through two thousand seventeen can be fairly described as significant for the German carmaker. While the general design advances little, the fresh Q5 is lighter and promises to be both quicker and more fuel-efficient. A high-quality cabin is available with Audi’s clever Virtual Cockpit configurable digital instrument display, and air suspension and adaptive dampers are on the options menu. Initial engines are a turbo petrol and turbo diesel, both Two.0 litres in size, with a Trio.0-litre V6 turbo diesel following later in the year. The V6 is the only model with permanent all-wheel drive, where the four-cylinder variants use on-demand systems.
‘Disco’ No.Five arrives in July priced from $81,590. The latest Discovery retains the trademark stepped roof and seven-seat layout of the one thousand nine hundred eighty nine original, albeit it abandons the split tailgate for a single section. An Intelligent Seat Fold system permits users to configure the 2nd and third row of seats via boot buttons or a dedicated smartphone app. Two types of all-wheel-drive systems are suggested, depending on how serious the holder is about going off-road. Either way, the Discovery five is tooled to go off the hammered track with a 90cm wading depth, 50cm of wheel articulation, and more than 28cm of ground clearance. A range of turbo petrol and turbo diesel engines also have less weight to haul: the fresh Disco has shed almost 500kg over its predecessor.
Swedish brand Volvo’s major product overhaul embarked in two thousand fifteen with the XC90 seven-seater SUV, was followed this year by the S90 and V90 large car twins, and in two thousand seventeen the second-generation XC60 grounds. Details are lean on the ground as the XC60 has yet to be even officially exposed. What we do know is that it will use a shortened version of the pliable modular architecture used by the aforementioned ’90 series’ models, and be powered by either three- or four-cylinder engines running on petrol or diesel – with hybrid technology also in the mix. The fresh five-seat XC60 will eventually sit in the middle of Volvo’s SUV range, with the XC90 above it and an upcoming XC40 placed below.
Cars of 2017: Top five luxury SUVs
Cars of 2017: Top five luxury SUVs
WhichCar guides you through five of the most notable upcoming luxury SUVs, on the way to Australian showrooms come 2017.
THERE’S slew of activity in store for luxury SUV buyers in Australia in 2017. Here’s WhichCar’s pick of the ones we’re most excited to see.
Audi’s Q range of SUVs expands in February with the smallest and most affordable model yet. The Q2 will begin from $41,100, undercutting the cheapest Q3 ($42,990) that shares the same 110kW 1.4-litre turbocharged petrol engine and front-wheel-drive layout at the entry point. Engine choices also include a Two.0-litre turbo petrol and Two.0-litre turbo diesel, each paired with a quattro all-wheel-drive system. Because the Q2 is aimed at junior buyers, there’s an edgier design that violates from the more conservative treatment Audi takes to its thicker SUVs.
Italian luxury brand Maserati very first showcased an SUV in two thousand three with the Kubang concept, and a production high-rider eventually goes on sale fourteen years later. A requisite premium interior can be taken to even higher levels of quality with optional fine leather and silk, with a panoramic sunroof and Harman Kardon audio system standard for a model that starts from $139,990. Three trim grades are all powered by a Trio.0-litre twin-turbo V6 diesel with 206kW and 600Nm – about the same level of spectacle as an entry-level Porsche Cayenne. The all-wheel-drive system is biased towards the rear wheels but has the capacity to send up to half the engine’s torque to the front wheels to aid traction. Standard adjustable suspension provides five different rail height options.
The original Q5 liked a period as Australia’s most popular luxury SUV, so the follow-up model due midway through two thousand seventeen can be fairly described as significant for the German carmaker. While the general design advances little, the fresh Q5 is lighter and promises to be both quicker and more fuel-efficient. A high-quality cabin is available with Audi’s clever Virtual Cockpit configurable digital instrument display, and air suspension and adaptive dampers are on the options menu. Initial engines are a turbo petrol and turbo diesel, both Two.0 litres in size, with a Trio.0-litre V6 turbo diesel following later in the year. The V6 is the only model with permanent all-wheel drive, where the four-cylinder variants use on-demand systems.
‘Disco’ No.Five arrives in July priced from $81,590. The latest Discovery retains the trademark stepped roof and seven-seat layout of the one thousand nine hundred eighty nine original, albeit it abandons the split tailgate for a single section. An Intelligent Seat Fold system permits users to configure the 2nd and third row of seats via boot buttons or a dedicated smartphone app. Two types of all-wheel-drive systems are suggested, depending on how serious the holder is about going off-road. Either way, the Discovery five is tooled to go off the hammered track with a 90cm wading depth, 50cm of wheel articulation, and more than 28cm of ground clearance. A range of turbo petrol and turbo diesel engines also have less weight to haul: the fresh Disco has shed almost 500kg over its predecessor.
Swedish brand Volvo’s major product overhaul embarked in two thousand fifteen with the XC90 seven-seater SUV, was followed this year by the S90 and V90 large car twins, and in two thousand seventeen the second-generation XC60 grounds. Details are lean on the ground as the XC60 has yet to be even officially exposed. What we do know is that it will use a shortened version of the nimble modular architecture used by the aforementioned ’90 series’ models, and be powered by either three- or four-cylinder engines running on petrol or diesel – with hybrid technology also in the mix. The fresh five-seat XC60 will eventually sit in the middle of Volvo’s SUV range, with the XC90 above it and an upcoming XC40 placed below.