Best Near-Premium SUV Shootout: Luxurious SUVs from Mainstream Brands

Опубликовано 19 декабря 2025, 19:17

The larger-two-row SUV scene was pretty small (or dated) at the turn of the decade, but there's been a steady stream of new talent over the last few years. So much so that it has essentially split into two schools of thought: the road-biased, luxo crowd and the rugged, rough-and-tumble set. For this challenge, we wanted to focus on the former, the sub-set arguably kicked off by the Nissan Murano almost a quarter century ago.

We would've brought the current Murano too, but accidents happen. Same goes for another competitor—and another we had our eye on simply wasn't available. That's how we ended up with only a quartet: the new Mazda CX-70 and Toyota Crown Signia, the recently reborn Hyundai Santa Fe, and the venerable Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport. We spent a week living with and driving these vehicles to see which mainstream offering gives the swankiest, family-friendly experience—and which one would end up facing off against the Murano in the new year.

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