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I'll say it again, check out a CPO'd Lexus LX. Ticks pretty much all of your boxes. Built like a tank in Japan, same basic vehicle as the land cruiser (not land rover, two different things) but, with a cushier suspension. Comfy seats, 4wd, durable and reliable. Poor gas mileage and high cost of entry (hence the certified pre-owned) are the main downsides I can think of.
What kind of seat configuration do you need for your dogs? That seems to be eliminating some options. Interesting how much the people at the dealer come into the buy or no buy decision. I don't disagree with that as I have walked off lots based on the sales people I have encountered.
There are many aftermarket options I have seen online that might work for you.
You might also pose your question to dog breeders and those who show at dog shows to see what works best for them in transporting their canines. Good luck.
What kind of seat configuration do you need for your dogs? That seems to be eliminating some options. Interesting how much the people at the dealer come into the buy or no buy decision. I don't disagree with that as I have walked off lots based on the sales people I have encountered.
I was curious about that as well. I have two dogs myself and had no issue with the Edge that I had several years ago. My uncle has a 2019 Edge and takes his two dogs everywhere, too. I don't get it...
We have old dogs. Very old dogs. We only ever have old dogs as we do not adopt young dogs. Therefore a lower load floor is the only place they can jump up to. They can't jump to the top of the fold down seat. They can't jump in the back through the tail gate. They are most secure when riding in a crate in the back or between two bucket seats in the second row, like a taco. For the crate we can have one bucket seat up, the other folded down and there is enough room to jump in and then climb on top of the folded one into the crate.
Now for today's test drive results.
Cadillac XT6 has a head rest too far forward for comfort. Above average softness but not good enough.
The Kia Telluride is the best SUV we have looked at and not test driven. I did convince the guy to let me sit in it while he drove it in the parking lot. It seemed to drive really well but will have to wait to test drive a top trim line when it is available. They won't let you test drive one unless you plan to buy it.
Re test drove the GMC Arcadia Denali. Not as soft of a drive as last time. Don't know why. Just above average. So not good enough.
We also looked at all three Lexus SUVs. Couldn't get a good driving position in the RX and the GX and LX were to high to get into without a bit of a hoist. So no Lexus for us.
Another day of test driving and refinement to the list.
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Previous results:
Toyota Sienna AWD Limited - average ride. Nothing special and not good enough.
Chevy Traverse - average ride. Nothing special and not good enough.
Hyundai - All removed from list due to not being comfortable with the forward positioned head rest.
Chevy Tahoe - too hard to get into
Will probably take Yukon off for same reason (All the GMC Yukon people said they had a great drive - as you can see below we loved the slightly smaller GMC Denali. Thanks for mentioning the Yukon!)
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Ford Edge had the MOST comfortable front seat I have ever sat in. But there was no way to configure the back seats for our dogs so we didn't end up test driving it. Ford was the last dealer of the day and the most old school (make you wait and waste your time) so we didn't drive anything there.
Ford Expedition Platinum - too big. Didn't drive. I'd rather chew nails than go back to the Ford dealer. The place just oozed sleaze.
Kia Telluride was sold last night so we have to see if there is one at another dealer. Sat in a Sorento seat and it was very comfortable.
Buick Enclave was a disappointment. I don't know if we got to see the Avenir trim line. The first one that we asked for came out with a broken side view mirror that moved around on it's own so I didn't want to test drive it as it would re-position over bumps making it unsafe to drive. Plus it is hard to be enthused when they bring out a car with a manufacturing defect. They brought out a second one and I didn't check the trim line. It had just an average drive.
Jeep Grand Cherokee had a great seating position vs steering wheel. Very ergonomic for me. No way to configure the seats for the dogs. Ride comfort was pretty good but not as good as the GMC Acadia Denali. Don't know if we got the one with the air ride. The dealer didn't seem to know anything about the different models. Thought maybe Dodge Durango drove better but we did not test drive. Had some sort of weird cup holder in the middle of the rear seats that couldn't be removed.
We did have a great drive in an GMC Acadia Denali. It was the most comfortable we've driven hands down. And it had a way to configure for the seats for the dogs. We are going to do more research on this one as we work through our list of other candidates.
Next up:
Nissan Armada SL and Platinum - Around view monitor
Kia Telluride SX - Surround view.
Hyundai Pallisade - new Hyundai that we didn't sit in.
We have old dogs. Very old dogs. We only ever have old dogs as we do not adopt young dogs. Therefore a lower load floor is the only place they can jump up to. They can't jump to the top of the fold down seat. They can't jump in the back through the tail gate. They are most secure when riding in a crate in the back or between two bucket seats in the second row, like a taco. For the crate we can have one bucket seat up, the other folded down and there is enough room to jump in and then climb on top of the folded one into the crate.
The following are Best Sellers in Dog Car Ramps at Amazon:
The Kia Telluride is the best SUV we have looked at and not test driven. I did convince the guy to let me sit in it while he drove it in the parking lot. It seemed to drive really well but will have to wait to test drive a top trim line when it is available. They won't let you test drive one unless you plan to buy it.
That dealer would be told to pound sand. It's a freakin' KIA, not a Rolls-Royce.
I test drive vehicles all the time and if I were told this I would be done with them.
Might be running out of options...
Wanting an SUV leaves out the softest, floatiest car you can buy today.
That would be the KIA K900, which is the closest thing to a modern day Lincoln Town Car.
The trick is finding one.
I haven't driven a Lincoln Continental, but that might be worth a try as well. It has some cushy looking seats.
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Wow!! That’s quite the list.
