Hi Scotty, I will be purchasing a used SUV in the next few months and I'm a sales rep. The company decided they will be giving me car allowance now instead of them supplying the vehicle. I carry around sample boards in the trunk area where i can have 400 to 600 pounds of weight in the back. Its not all the time but when I'm heading out on a road trip. But on an average day I can have 200-300 pounds in the back. I currently have a 2019 Ford Explorer and find that its not bad overall. The back end goes down a bit when its a full load but it handles well. I am thinking of purchasing a Lexus RX350 so i don't have to put too much money into repairs. So my question is do you think the Lexus RX350 can handle the weight or should I be looking at your other recommendations such as a used Toyota 4 Runner SR5 or Toyota Highlander as it might handle more load weight. Thank you for your time.
It will be fine. Worst case scenario you wear out the struts a little faster. Not too bad of a fix though. You would expect the same from any car carrying that much weight daily. With that said the lexus will definitely save you money on future repairs.
The old 4 runners (early 2000) are practically bulletproof and I would run one of those to the end of the earth. The new ones not so much.
Thanks for the information. What you consider for the 4 Runner as early 2000. Would you say between 2000-2015? Or up to what year would you purchase a 4 Runner.
I would recommend the Toyota 4 runner or highlander or Tacoma for your purposes as the weight would be easily handled with those trucks. A RX350 really is not in the same league by any stretch of the imagination but it would still work. I suppose those 600 lbs of samples would fit in the back with the rear seats upright or not - not that it makes any difference. Of course those samples would be covered in the Lexus but would require a camper shell on the truck or not ?
Hi Dion, I have an Explorer right now which is a 7 seater. I put down the back seats to create the extra room i need to put my samples in there while still having a 5 seater. I'm thinking the RX350 may not have the same trunk space and not the same weight max. Probably leaning toward a Toyota 4 Runner or Highlander. I'm looking at a good used one so in between what years would you recommend i look at for maximum bang for your buck and the least amount of repairs. Thanks again for your time.
Check out this site for the numbers...
https://www.carproblemzoo.com/toyota/
The Highlander sees to be LESS troublefree according to that sight...Check out the 4 runner and tacoma as well...The older tacoma had a frame rust problem years ago so you want to avoid those. I have a 1996 Tacoma but luckily it is a CA vehicle with no rust...LOL!
that's three adults. No biggy. Just get something with a little more power.
