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(Enlarge photo)
There isn't a bad vehicle in this bunch. But we tested them to tell you which one is best.
(Photo by Scott Jacobs)
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Road Test: Comparison Test
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2001 Mini SUV Comparison Test
Six Complete Strangers
By
Neil Dunlop
Date posted: 10-09-2001
What a great time to be in the market for a mini SUV. In the past several years,
offerings in the segment have improved dramatically, to the point that, for many
consumers, a larger vehicle is pointless. We took six of the current crop (the
Ford Escape, Hyundai Santa Fe, Jeep Liberty, Nissan Xterra, Suzuki XL-7 and the
Toyota RAV4) and put them through their paces for a week. We found each of them
to be complete vehicles — each with definite virtues and each with shortcomings.
And each is different from the rest, like strangers.
To evaluate them, we drove them on city streets; pounded them down a sandy, rutted,
rock-strewn and hilly off-road trail; and sped them along twisty blacktop through
a meandering canyon. Just for good measure, we also took them to our test track
and conducted instrumented testing on each one.
We then poked and prodded the interiors, jostled and knocked on the exterior panels
and examined their design with the eyes of art critics. We were thorough. Heck,
one of our editors was even seen kicking a tire until, derided by the rest of
our staff, he slunk sheepishly away.
In case you were wondering, we define a mini or small SUV as any sport-utility
vehicle with less than 75 cubic feet of maximum cargo capacity, that is, with
the backseats folded down or removed. However, for this test, we also decided
to include the new Hyundai Santa Fe, with its 78 cubes of maximum space, on the
basis of price competitiveness.
Two years ago, we ran this test and the Nissan Xterra won. The winner of the last
comparison test is always invited back to defend its title. When selecting its
opposition for this comparison, our criteria were that each vehicle had to be
either new (Jeep Liberty, Ford Escape, Suzuki XL-7, Hyundai Santa Fe) or have
undergone a redesign or significant change since the last test (Toyota RAV4).
Incidentally, the Nissan Xterra has had an exterior facelift and also is now available
with a supercharged V6. Because we tested it in June, and it did not go on sale
in this guise until August, we were loaned a pre-production model for our test.
And what about the all-new Mazda Tribute? Well, because it's the twin of the Ford
Escape (save some interior and exterior design elements), we considered it redundant
to include it. And where's the popular Honda CR-V? Despite its popularity, it
was in our last test and didn't finish first (it was second). And, although a
redesigned 2002 model goes on sale this November, we couldn't get a sample from
Honda in time for our comparison test. Since then, however, we
have driven one. If you'd like to see how the CR-V compares to the competition,
you'll have to wait until our next test.
So, which car won? It was close. So close that you'll want to read this whole
test because you may decide that your list of vehicle pros and cons doesn't match
ours. We guarantee this much: At the end of it, you'll be a mini SUV expert.
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