Want to upgrade from a Toyota Fortuner? Here are your choices

The Toyota Fortuner is about 6 years old in India. An SUV that combined ruggedly reliable mechanicals with a modicum of luxury, the butch looking Fortuner has a large fan following. As it ages, many owners of this rugged steed are in the market for upgrades. Today, we give you a four upgrade paths, each with its own charm. Take your pick.

Get the new Toyota Fortuner.

The all-new Fortuner, the one that’s based on the second generation IMV platform, has already been unveiled in Thailand, where the SUV is on sale currently. The new Fortuner, which looks sharper than before and adds more features, is India bound.

Early next year, Toyota is expected to launch the new Fortuner, which gets downsized turbo diesel engines but that adds power, torque and fuel efficiency. The new iteration of this best seller will be more expensive but given the Fortuner’s terrific resale value, not too many owners would have any reason to complain.

Stay within the segment.

Staying within the segment makes sense more than even before. You get high quality, ladder frame equipped rugged SUVs to choose from, one that are a generation ahead. For starters, you have the Chevrolet Trailblazer launching this Diwali. The Trailblazer is larger than the Fortuner and is mainly aimed at those who want a comfortable cruiser for the city and the highway. This explains the 7 speed automatic gearbox mated to a 2.8 liter Duramax diesel with 200 Bhp-500 Nm.

On a similar note, the Mitsubishi Pajero Sport has moved a generation ahead. While not everyone would be able to digest the looks of the new Pajero Sport, under the skin it still is a true blue Japanese SUV. The interiors get a once over, while the downsized engine makes more power and torque. The transmission options are new and so is the four wheel drive system. Here’s more.

The 2016 Ford Endeavour will soon be showcased in India, followed by an official launch early next year. The new Endeavour is a big upgrade over the outgoing model. Here’s all you need to know.

Go luxury, German style.

There are bunch of people who bought the Fortuner for its 7 seat capacity, and found that the extra seats weren’t really necessary. The bumpy ride quality of the Fortuner didn’t help either, and so didn’t the Innova-like interiors. So, a lot of Fortuner buyers don’t really need a ladder frame SUV.

 

Instead, they can do with five seat crossovers, which ride and handle well, and that come with the added prestige of a German luxury badge. Enter the world of the luxury crossovers such as the Audi Q3, the BMW X1 and the Mercedes Benz GLA. Here’s more.

Go a segment higher.

For the Fortuner buyers who actually made good use of the 7 seats, at least sparingly, and who want off road ability that only a ladder frame equipped SUV can offer, they have a new vehicle to look at, the Land Rover Discovery Sport, an SUV that has replaced the best selling Freelander2.

 

The Discovery Sport can accommodate 7 adults when push comes to shove and has some lineage. With powerful Ingenium turbo diesel engines, a 9 automatic gearbox, a terrain sensing four wheel drive system and sorted on-off road dynamics, the luxurious Discovery Sport’s 46.1 lakh rupee starting price tag suddenly begins to look very attractive for those who want a serious upgrade, but one that takes them a segment higher.