
Originally Posted by
a9828
here's a practical review coming from an everyday family use perspective.
we got the chance to test drive the trend AT model with a full family in tow over the weekend. natuwa actually yung agent sa amin kasi the whole family came along so full load talaga kami sa unit (and we brought our escape along haha). in display at the showroom as well was the ambiente a/t model so we were able to compare side by side in a way.
very noticeable changes between the two that we noticed are the following:
- leather seats
- 8inch head unit control panel
- 18inch wheels
- digital tachometer
- built-in stepboard for ingress/egress
- controls for cruise control
- reverse sensor
- black door handles (for ambiente)
the route was basically uphill on a mountain so na-test ko yung hatak/torque with full passenger capacity. on some steeper inclines, there were instances where i had to lower the gear pero on the easier inclines, ok naman. wala namang issues on power on plains and stepping on the pedal actually felt light (hindi slow na parang hila which is good). siguro if mabigat talaga, baka maging issue yung power but for regular use with passengers, i think enough naman na yung 2.2 (and this will help for city traffic vs bigger displacement). seldom naman for sure na puno talaga to the limit. note our seating config: 1st row: me and agent, 2nd row: 3adults and baby, 3rd row: 2adults.
we noticed easily that for a diesel, the engine was really quiet. visibility of the whole vehicle was good from driver seat even if medyo mahaba yung unit. ride was also good, hindi matagtag, parang lumulutang which is just the way we like it. kids tried seating in the third row for a while and hindi raw nahilo (which usually nangyayari sa fortuner / trailblazer). just enough legroom at 3rd row also, expected naman na hindi yan maluwag talaga. seats were comfortable though we really can't say for long drives. very good also that you can see the hood (rare nowadays). aircon has a swtich on middle row btw (good for rear passengers). i'm worried though about the 8inch screen control panel kasi touch screen na lahat; kapag masira yun, patay almost all your electronics kasi everything is there.
very satisfied with the unit though we won't be buying until we see the other two new ones (montero/fortuner). but if engine alone and space, ok yung everest (white / silver colors make it look bigger, as with most cars); if sturdiness is like the previous gen, should be a good buy.
for those considering or already got the unit, is the approx 150k difference worth the feature differences? we're partucularly looking at the following critical features: reverse sensor, leather seats, stepboard. other features are nice to have but not dealbreakers. trend model worth it or just upgrade the ambiente? thanks