COMPARO: Mid-size 4x2 AT Diesel SUV (Mu-X, TBZ, Montero, Fortuner, Everest, Sta Fe...

[ano727]

Hi all, inviting all mid-size 4x2 Diesel AT SUV owners to pls share your experiences similar to format below. Would be useful for those planning to buy one soon. Am also planning to buy one by end of the year.

*Sir Niky, would be good if you can share you professional and personal opinion on this as well.

COMPARO: Mid-size 4x2 AT Diesel SUV (Mu-X, Trailblazer, Montero, Fortuner, Everest, Sta Fe, Sorento, etc)

Let me start, based on personal experience.

Car: Montero 4x2 AT Diesel (non-VGT pa nun)
City FC: between 7 to 8 km/liter
Highway FC: 11 to 13 km/liter
PMS: between P5k to P8k every 6months (Diamond Valle Verde C5)
Assessment: Powerful, fuel efficient, flexible (pwede sa formal, pwede sa rugged activities)
Key issues/concerns: None

No bashing pls, just share your personal experience. Thanks.

[andrewnathaniel]

Car: 2010 Toyota Fortuner 2.5 G A/T
City FC: Never been use in city driving like Metro Manila,
Highway FC : 9-10km/li
PMS: Every 10k km
Assessment:
- Parang medyo malakas yata to sa krudo more on highway driving lang ako since nasa province lang
- Okay naman para sakin yung 102 PS (correct me if I'm wrong), the given power is sufficient enough sa mga driving route ko
- Hindi ramdam yung 100+km/hr, as per kabilang thread, is because of better NVH
- Malabo yung stock na bulb sa headlight
Key issues/concerns: Wala pa, at sana wala talaga major issues. 18k+ km pa lang natatakbo

[boytsiks]

Car: Montero 4x2 GLSV AT Diesel
City FC: between 8 to 9 km/liter (moderate city traffic)
Highway FC: 10 to 12 km/liter (100 kph cruising and 120 kph when overtaking)
PMS: average of 8.5k PhP every 6 months (4k on 15 PMS and 13k on 20k PMS)
Assessment: More than enough power for my daddy driving style, FC is ok for me, steering on the heavy side, medyo na-biblind side ako sa A-pillar (could be due to rain gutters as well)
Key issues/concerns: Have an irritating "kalansing" sound when running through uneven pavement (di pa rin makita ng casa), nothing major though

HTH

[KaiserRon]

Car: 2005 4x2 Fortuner G A/T
FC: 10-11km/liter (70% hway 30% city )
PMS: 7k max during its casa maintained days
Assessment:
- Experienced the d4d choking issues twice while in EDSA, easily replaced under warranty
- Power is more than enough during its time (pre-VNT engine)
- sold last 2009 with almost 150,000kms logged without any problems for the car

Car: 2009 4x2 Everest A/T
FC: 10km/liter (50-50 city/hway driving)
PMS: 8-10k
Assessment:
- Heavy. Ramdam mo ung bigat especially sa highway pag di pa pumapasok yung turbo
- Feels like a truck, parking brake(pull and twist type) pa lang parang truck na
- 2nd and 3rd row has better legroom than competitors
- I always switch the overdrive off when driving in the city, as per my experience, mas malakas humatak sa lower gears downside is malakas din sa gas. Though for highway its best to leave overdrive on.
- Laging kinakagat ng aso yung ABS wire na exposed sa ilalim sa likod na part ng sasakyan.
- Already on 75,000kms and still no major issues

Car: 2010 4x2 Montero A/T
FC: 10km/liter (50-50 city/highway driving)
PMS: 8k per pms
Assessement:
- Comfortable and powerful at the same time
- sold early this year with no issues whatsoever

Additional comments:
- If I was the one driving, I prefer the Fortuner because it has better driving position(ergonomics) compared to the other two and has a lighter steering as well. Though sanayan lang din sa rather heavy steering ng montero and everest
- If I was the passenger, I will take the Montero all the time
- We never had fuel issues(contaminated fuel etc.) for all three vehicles
- I've never ridden the newer ones (santafe,sorento,trailblazer and MUX ) so I don't know how it compares to these vehicles

[sientobente]

Car: 2010 Montero Sport GLS AT Non-VGT
City FC: 5.5kms/liter during heavy rush hour traffic
Highway FC: 12kms/liter (pure highway driving with only stops on the toll booth)
PMS cost: 7k on the average. Haven't reached 20,000kms yet. I think it will cost a bit when I get there.
Key issues: Relatively smooth ownership of my Monty for 3.5 years. Only problems I encountered were the battery on my steering wheel controls that conked out. Then during the emission testing, my monty who gets her regular PMS and runs on Euro4 diesel failed!

Sent from my GT-N7100 using Tsikot Car Forums mobile app

[victorevolution]

vehicle: s.e. suv only
2009 montero at 4x2 non vgt - 5km/l traffic, highway - 8k/l

2014 tbz lt 4x2 at traffic 10km/l highway 12km-13km/l(lighter and faster than ltz)
2014 tbz ltz 4x4 at traffic 8km/l higway 9km/l

computed manually via full tank basis
seaoil diesel

forgot the fortunner

1st gen, gas 4km/l traffic heavy - 7-8km\l highway

[ano727]

vehicle: s.e. suv only
2009 montero at 4x2 non vgt - 5km/l traffic, highway - 8k/l

2014 tbz lt 4x2 at traffic 10km/l highway 12km-13km/l(lighter and faster than ltz)
2014 tbz ltz 4x4 at traffic 8km/l higway 9km/l

computed manually via full tank basis
seaoil diesel

forgot the fortunner

1st gen, gas 4km/l traffic heavy - 7-8kml highway

You have a nice collection there.

If you're to rank them overall if you can only have one of them, how would you rank them (best to last)?

[jmpet626]

Car: 2010 Montero 4x2 AT Diesel
City FC: between 7 to 8 km/liter Unioil Diesel with 2T
Highway FC: 11 to 12 km/liter
PMS: Self Maintained. on Average 10k maintenance per year outside Casa but with Quality parts
Assessment: Ok pang harabas sa lubak at mas confident itawid sa baha
Key issues/concerns: Turbo Lag, Noisy Engine, Too much body roll, Daming turn ng manibela


Car: 09 Hyundai Santa Fe 4x2 CRDI
City FC: between 9 to 10 km/liter - My daily drive, from Project 8 QC to Alabang. Unioil Diesel with 2T
Highway FC: 11 to 12 km/liter - Estimate lang since di ko pa na manual compute highway drives.
PMS: Self Maintained. on Average 12k maintenance per year (3x change oil per year) Parts sourced sa Goodgear or sa Seiring
Assessment: Power at low RPMS, Quiet Engine, Great handling, Matipid sa Diesel, Spacious 3rd row
Key issues/concerns: Kawawa pag nalulubak, not confident i daan sa baha, mahina aircon compared sa montero and Fortuner


Car: '12 Toyota Fortuner 4x2 Gas
City FC: between 6 to 7 km/liter - Petron XCS
Highway FC: 8 to 10 km/liter - Estimate lang since di ko pa na manual compute highway drives.
PMS: Casa maintained around 2 visits per year. 6 to 7k per visit. Could be cheaper pag outside casa.
Assessment: Mas ok handling kesa Montero, Good Interior, di kawawa pag nalubak, ok aircon at naka HID na.
Key issues/concerns: Super tagtag, nakaka pagod sa long drive pag mag isa ka na driver, takaw sa gas, no manual mode sa AT

[tonitelaoag]

ganda ng thread na ito, halos nasagot na lahat ng need ko for the suv concerns. thanks ts

[leodawesome]

Car: '12 Toyota Fortuner 4x2 Gas
City FC: between 6 to 7 km/liter - Petron XCS

That's good FC for a gas fed fortuner. Kalevel ng ibang gas fed CUVs.

[victorevolution]

You have a nice collection there.

If you're to rank them overall if you can only have one of them, how would you rank them (best to last)?

none of them why-baka may magreact at magalit eh,

eto favorite ko- traverse awd 2012... better than the explorer never gave me any head aches as light as a feather handling bigger space than lc200 and 3.6 petrol engine but only consumes 9km per liter. - di mo nga lang pwede isugod sa baha kasi mababa - walang bumili kasi mas mura explorer(meron kami nito sakit sa ulo.... warranty against hidden defect law on sales bwahahahahahahaha)

if ever they bring the 2014 traverse.... bibili ako kaso di na nila dadalhin yan.

good suspension

not really a collection, dumami lang kasi ang baba ng resale value parang bumili ka lang ng 5 laptop yung iba, we still have our very first vehicle, wrangler jeep and isuzu trooper more than a decade old

[ano727]

ganda ng thread na ito, halos nasagot na lahat ng need ko for the suv concerns. thanks ts

You're welcome tonitelaoag. I hope more owners can share their respective experiences so that a lot more like us can benefit from this collection of feedback in this thread.

To contributors, please feel free to add other related vehicle brands/models not mentioned above, like Alterra, Trooper, etc.

[GTi]

Hindi 4x2 though there's hardly any difference, so I'll share just for the sake of sharing I'd be comparing it to our 2013 Strada GLS Sport V in my assessment.
Car: 2011 Santa Fe R e-VGT 4x4 A/T
City FC: ~7-8km/L
PMS: around 4-5k every 5tkms, if I remember correctly; non casa maintained
Assessment: Very powerful, and stable at high speeds. Absolutely no black smoke even under full throttle. 18 inch rims make the ride quality rather bouncy for a crossover, though not to the point of being uncomfortable. NVH is also not quite as good as the 7th gen Accord V6 it replaced. In terms of handling, there is lesser body roll than our 2013 Strada 4x4 though it is still evident in hard cornering. Manual mode is not very responsive and does not give much shifting freedom (Strada's INVECS II is much, much better in this aspect), though the transmission itself is quite good if left alone.

In terms of interior, high ride height and a lack of a standard stepboard and pillar-mounted grab handles is a bit of a hassle. Spacious headroom and legroom in 1st and 2nd rows. 3rd row has adequate legroom for me (5"10) though headroom is slightly lacking, though not by much. A/C is freezingly cold. The stock AVT touchscreen entertainment system is rather disappointing; laggy reponse and resistive touchscreen. Strada's unit (also AVT) is much better. Interior quality is very good though, approaching midsize sedan quality. Hardly any plasticky bits.
Key issues/concerns: None so far at 54tkms.

[LancerA174A]

Car: 2015 Isuzu mu-X 4x2 LS-A

City FC: 6-7 Km/L (Provincial city, almost 0 traffic)
Highway FC: 12-14 Km/L

PMS: No info, but I read 1st PMS costs more or less 7K.

Assessment:
1. Great value car for under 1.4M complete with added safety features such as ESC and Traction Control.
2. Very stable on highways, rough roads. Doesn't feel under-powered even with "only" 136 PS.
3. Passive entry / Start/Stop system is very convenient, requires less effort for the users
4. Standard entertainment system (for LS-A) is a plus for long trips with friends/family on board.
5. Fuel efficient engine is silent for an Isuzu, you can barely hear the noise inside.

Key issues/concerns:
1. Stock HU feels somewhat cheap (also from AVT I think), even the map feels dated already. UI isn't that smooth with occasional lags. Also lacks input options like HDMI, screen mirroring, etc. They could have added more for better smartphone integration, plus the ability to use the rear monitor for viewing slideshows or hooking up game consoles aside from playing videos.
2. Reverse camera takes 3-4 seconds to turn on after putting the gear on reverse.
3. Front end is quite long, they could have made it a little bit longer for better 3rd row legroom. Space is enough for all rows though.

[ano727]

Car: 2015 Isuzu mu-X 4x2 LS-A

City FC: 6-7 Km/L (Provincial city, almost 0 traffic)
Highway FC: 12-14 Km/L

PMS: No info, but I read 1st PMS costs more or less 7K.

Assessment:
1. Great value car for under 1.4M complete with added safety features such as ESC and Traction Control.
2. Very stable on highways, rough roads. Doesn't feel under-powered even with "only" 136 PS.
3. Passive entry / Start/Stop system is very convenient, requires less effort for the users
4. Standard entertainment system (for LS-A) is a plus for long trips with friends/family on board.
5. Fuel efficient engine is silent for an Isuzu, you can barely hear the noise inside.

Key issues/concerns:
1. Stock HU feels somewhat cheap (also from AVT I think), even the map feels dated already. UI isn't that smooth with occasional lags. Also lacks input options like HDMI, screen mirroring, etc. They could have added more for better smartphone integration, plus the ability to use the rear monitor for viewing slideshows or hooking up game consoles aside from playing videos.
2. Reverse camera takes 3-4 seconds to turn on after putting the gear on reverse.
3. Front end is quite long, they could have made it a little bit longer for better 3rd row legroom. Space is enough for all rows though.

Wow! Congrats with your new Mu-X as the newest player in this segment. Good to hear that 136PS feels sufficient for its weight.

For contributors, please feel free to include your experience for the gas variants for the above-mentioned models. Thanks.

[igiwtf]

Car: 2014 Toyota Fortuner 2.5v 4x2
City FC: between 7 to 8 km/liter
Highway FC: 9 to 14 km/liter
PMS: between P3k to P8k twice a year ( 10k kms per year)
Assessment: Soft steering, gwapo yung interior/exterior, pwede isabak sa baha, light offroad, ok pang long drive
Key issues/concerns: Matagtag,


Car: 2010 Mitsubishi Montero gls se 3.2 4m41 4x4
City FC: between 6.5 to 8 km/liter
Highway FC: 8 to 11 km/liter
PMS: between P2k to P8k twice a year ( 10k kms per year)
Assessment: comfortable sumakay, power is ok, engine oil every pms is 8liters, parts are expensive compare to toyota fortuner,
Key issues/concerns: tigas ng steering, replaced steering column, sudden acceleration , cheap interior, body roll pag mabilis


kung ako papapiliin kung ano gagamitin - fortuner gagamitin ko
kung ako sasakay at mag lolong drive - montero mas comfortable
ano mas pogi? - fortuner

[LancerA174A]

Wow! Congrats with your new Mu-X as the newest player in this segment. Good to hear that 136PS feels sufficient for its weight.

For contributors, please feel free to include your experience for the gas variants for the above-mentioned models. Thanks.

Thanks sir! I was also looking for threads like this before, I thought I might help those who are probably in the market for a new car.

[LancerA174A]

Oops double post, internet connection is acting up again. Sorry

[glenn manikis]

Trailblazer Ltz 2.8 4x4 nga lang AT
FC city 8.5-9.5 km per li

Highway 11km per li. 120-150kph

200hp - more than enough can reach speed of 150kph.. W. Ease.. Effortless... Pag floor mo pa you can still feel the push... Sabi nila mas magaang pa daw manakbo ang 4x2?

Engine noise got a vroom vroom sounds... Nut at normal driving not so quiet..

[ano727]

Trailblazer Ltz 2.8 4x4 nga lang AT
FC city 8.5-9.5 km per li

Highway 11km per li. 120-150kph

200hp - more than enough can reach speed of 150kph.. W. Ease.. Effortless... Pag floor mo pa you can still feel the push... Sabi nila mas magaang pa daw manakbo ang 4x2?

Engine noise got a vroom vroom sounds... Nut at normal driving not so quiet..

How much is typical PMS cost and how often? Thanks for sharing bro.