Prado V6 petrol vs JGC WK2 Laredo CRD - 1st impressions

[Jeep56]

Picked up my brand new 2013 Laredo CRD last night. Currently bog standard in every way, not even Quadra Lift. My last car was a 2007 Prado GXL 4ltr V6 auto with a 2" lift kit.

The Jeep is an Oct 2012 build, and the service manager has sworn on his first born that every available software update has been done.

First impressions after only one day;

Road noise - the Prado even at 5 yrs old and 154000 kms is quieter, but not by much. Obviously the full chassis helps there. The Jeep cerainly has more tyre noise and body thumping but certainly not enough to bother me. I have found an instant fix anyway, its the little round knob on the stereo....

Power - no comparison. The Prado is snail like in every way compared to the Jeep.

Economy - no comparison. I had a Scan Guage on the Prado and got used to seeing 6 to 7 kms per litre. Even as low as 4 or 5 offroad or towing the camper. Now I'm seeing regular 8.5 to 10 ltr / 100 kms. I think I'll end up averaging around 10 to 11 kms per litre. Huge savings there even with the higher price of diesel. Basically I'll get almost the same range from one 90 litre tank that I used to need 2 tanks for. Very happy with that.

Comfort - The Jeep seats feel a little too firm initially but I think I will soon get used to that. Certainly don't see a need to do anything about it. The Prado was very twitchy with quick but heavy steering. The Jeep is a much smoother ride, but of course the standard suspension explains that.

Interior room - I reckon I can fit in everything I used to carry in the Prado, but I will definitely need to be clever about how I do it. I will miss the full drawer and fridge slide system in the Prado, but again, it just means being clever in how the Jeep is finally set up for touring. I think with the Jeep I will go down the path of making everything modular and easily & quickly removable. And in fact that will make it a more useful every day car for the 95% of the time when we're not on camping trips.

Off road - don't know, don't want to get it dirty yet.... The Prado was seriously capable on gnarly tracks, I don't expect the Jeep to match it on standard suspension. I think I'll try a few progressively harder tracks and see how the Jeep stacks up before I worry too much about that.

Overall - Very, very happy. I was quite nervous about this change, but I reckon I did the right thing in getting over my Tojo habit. But it is only one day. I'll update this after a week, then after a month, of living with the Jeep.

[briteway]

Cool, I for the first time sat into a Jeep out of a 1998 Prado. it was the WG 2002 model and boy what a difference it was. It was like getting out of a tractor and sitting into a limo. Since then got stuck with Jeep, now I have a WH.

But when I first did the change, everyone I knew was telling me why? and bagging the sh!t out of the Jeep brand. As the time went on, and after doing a desert trip, I started feeling more confident in the brand and especially when I started proving them offroad in terms of reliability and performance .

Good luck with your new ride and hope you enjoy it to the max.

[Numb Thumbs]

Jeep56

I have a lot of friends with Prados. They all wanted me to buy one, but when I looked at the two I could not see way I would! One of my biggest problems with them is the side opening rear door. Useless when towing and very heavy all the time.

We love the Laredo - but we do have QuadraLift and QuadraDrive.

If you get your ScanGauge working on the Laredo CRD, let me know how, please! It is driving me nuts trying to get it to work properly.

You will love your new Jeep even more as time goes on.

Cheers
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[Savvas]

Hey Jeep56,

Congratulations mate. You'll love it.

But it's all about expectations. Expect that you will see niggly little things that you wouldnt have experienced with the Prado. If you accept that, you'll be cool.

The driving experience is fantastic. And as you mention about the economy, after nearly 9 months I'm still gobsmacked by how little fuel it uses. I used to use $80 of petrol a week in my 2000 Holden Jackaroo Monterey. This CRD uses about $80 of diesel a fortnight. It has literally halved our fuel bill and we no longer have anxiety attacks about taking long drives.

I had a scangauge in the jackaroo too but I broke it taking it out

BTW .. I have a friend with a 1 year old Prado VX diesel. It's very much a truck next to our Laredo. And it's obvious when the kids gravitate to the jeep on trips that it appears to be the favourite with passengers.

[rocketrod1967]

I too moved from a V6 Prado GXL to a CRD Laredo GC that was Christmas 2011 first of the 2012 without the front recovery points

I miss the longer roof rack space of the Prado and the extra rear room once seats removed but as I was shopping for a replacement vehicle my Prado had 200,000 klms on it I wanted better fuel economy and a better "office" as its my work vehicle.

There is no comparison the Jeep has great phone connectivity,better stereo awesome grunt-love the way it leaves the light! and I get amazing fuel economy given the way I drive and even towing my race car on a trailer 13.5lts per 100km at or above 100kph.

Ive done over 60,000 klms and love the car wish it didn't have the rear suspension "shock knock" that they all come standard with if you have the steel spring diesel.

Engine had a slight oil leak(found by dealer at 50,000 klms in the sump area) fixed under warranty at the same time the "sand issue" software fix applied.

I wish part were cheaper filters brake pads etc are all way to expensive here but open an online account and save $ brake pads in Oz $280 + $135 in US rears even cheaper.Not that Ive had to replace any yet just checking so I don't get caught in a must have ok fit them situation.

I still hear the Toyota salesman saying to me when I said "New model sure is ugly" - Well that isnt going to change anytime soon is it! so I thought yep your right better get the jeep