Top 5 most exclusive SUVs in Malaysia

SUVs have come a long way from what they used to be. There have been major technological advancements that led to the evolution of these large vehicles. As they grew and developed, their demand in the market also increased accordingly. Today, SUVs share a big percentage of the total automobile market of the world. Malaysia, too, has seen a plethora of high-end premium SUVs from various renowned car manufacturers. These SUVs are fully loaded with utmost luxury and latest features. Here are the top 5 most exclusive SUVs in our regional market.

1- Land Rover Range Rover

This is an SUV that is so feature-laden that if you have an amenity in mind, it would already be available in the Land Rover Range Rover. It’s an all-rounder. From stunning looks to an opulent interior with innovative features, to a performance-packed engine, you name it.

If we talk about the looks, the Land Rover Range Rover is a clear winner. A lot of research and development has been done to make sure each and every element of its exterior serve a purpose. Anything that’s useless has been eliminated. That’s the reason why the Land Rover Range Rover is a handsome-looking SUV. It’s elegant, calm, mature, and well dressed.

Land Rover Range Rover gets all-around exterior LED lighting. So whether it is the headlights, turn indicators, or the tail lights, everything here is LED. Talking about the headlights, which is one of the many exterior features of the SUV that makes it stand out of the usual crowd, the Land Rover Range Rover comes with iconic pixel-laser lights with signature DRLs. These headlights deliver five times higher illuminance than regular ones.

The interior of the Land Rover Range Rover is nothing less than you’d find in a luxurious suite of a top-rated 5-star hotel. There is leather all around. The attention to detail here is unbelievable. The seats are large and nicely contoured so that you can fit in comfortably. They cocoon so well that you don’t move around while the SUV tackles the undulations of the path seamlessly. There are a number of large displays - in the centre of the dash, behind the steering wheel, one behind each front seat to be used by the rear passengers - that perform many sorts of function. You can select from ten different colors to set the ambient lighting of your choice. The cabin space is enormous, and you wouldn’t need to worry about your luggage, too, as the Land Rover Range Rover comes with a massive 900+ litres of boot space, which, of course, can be increased by folding one or both of the rear seats electronically.

The Land Rover Range Rover comes in 3 engine options - 3.0L V6 supercharged petrol (335 bhp and 340 Nm), 4.4L diesel V8 (335 bhp and 700 Nm), and 5.0L supercharged petrol (510 hp and 625 Nm) - which gives a fuel economy of 8.7 kmpl, 11.5 kmpl, and 7.8 kmpl respectively. There are 11 color options - Yulong White, Loire Blue, Santorini Black, Montalcino Red, Scotia Grey, Firenze Red, Corris Grey, Indus Silver, Aintree Green, Kaikora Stone and Fuzi White - and the price of the Land Rover Range Rover starts at RM 990,000.

2- Lexus LX

This is the full-size luxury SUV by Lexus that promises to offer a phenomenal driving experience, irrespective of the road conditions, in a deluxe interior that can accommodate eight people. Lexus LX is an SUV that you can use for an urban lifestyle, long-distance touring, and even for your those off-road plans that never saw the light of day.

The Lexus LX is humongous in size. It is meant to be a multi-personality. It could easily intimidate you, especially from the way it looks from the front. The signature Triple-L-shaped LED headlights along with the DRLs, and the massive front grille will make sure that you don’t get this vehicle mistaken with any other one out there. This will clearly tell you that it’s a Lexus.

The intimidating nature of the Lexus LX continues as you move from the front to the rear. The big 21-inch wheels with large arches depict off-road readiness of the SUV. The rear end has got this wide Triple-L shaped and beautifully crafted LED tail lights.

The interior of the Lexus LX is very welcoming. Not only they are super luxurious, but they also provide a whole lot of space to move around. Lexus has properly utilized the generous wheelbase of the LX. The interior has got a plethora of interesting features to offer. There’s a cooler box storage that can easily hold 6 small water bottles which would come in handy during those desert safaris you have been planning to do. The Lexus climate control system will keep your comfortable in varying weather conditions. The steering wheel is wrapped in leather and has got various mounted controls.

To provide a classic touch to the interior of the Lexus LX, there is an elegant analog clock with a piano black dial. Just above this sits a large touchscreen which allows altering various functions of this feature-packed SUV. Other features include a heads-up display, touchscreen displays behind each front seat for rear passengers, and a 19-speaker Mark Levinson Reference Surround Sound System that delivers home-theatre quality in-car entertainment.

The Lexus LX is a large SUV and to keep this mammoth running it should be fed a litre of petrol after every 6.5 km. There is a ginormous 5.7L V8 engine under that long hood that produces 362 horses at 5,600 revs and 530 Nm of torque at 3,200 revs. This engine is so powerful that it pulls this 3.35 ton (gross weight) SUV from 0 to 100 kmph in just 7.7 seconds, and it can do that until it reaches its top speed of 210 km/h.

With a choice of 6 different colors - White Pearl Crystal Shine, Sonic Titanium, Deep Blue Mica, Mercury Gray Mica, Sleek Ecru Metallic and Starlight Black Glass Flake - the Lexus LX will set you back by RM 802, 241.

3- Porsche Cayenne

The Porsche Cayenne is one of the most expensive premium SUVs that you can buy in Malaysia today. It starts at a price of RM 790,000 and goes all the way up to RM 940,000, depending on the variant you pick. It is also one of the gorgeous-looking SUVs that’s available.

The front is very Porsche-ish, and that it should be, with a set of LED headlights with integrated DRLs. Its large bonnet has got a couple of streak lines and is curved towards the front. This must be to reduce the drag and make the SUV more aerodynamic. The grille is divided into three sections which also act as the air intakes. Moving towards the rear end of the Porsche Cayenne you would be greeted by a roof-mounted spoiler and wide and narrow LED tail lights which beautifully merges into the Porsche logo at the centre of the tailgate.

As soon as you enter the Porsche Cayenne you’d instantly feel the sportiness of the cabin. Porsche has kept the overall ambience and design of the interior of the Cayenne very sporty and comfortable. The interior is practically built around the driver. The seats are very sporty without compromising on the comfort. The centre console with Direct Touch Control features an interface in glass look with touch-sensitive buttons for direct access to the various functions. Above the centre console is Porsche Communication Management (PCM) with a full-HD 12-inch touchscreen display with latest connectivity options like Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

Some of the other interesting features of the Porsche Cayenne include heated and ventilated seats, four-zone automatic climate control, ambient lighting with different color options, two options for the interior, etc.

Powering the Porsche Cayenne is a 3.0L 6-cylinder engine that produces 440 bhp of max power and 550 Nm of peak torque. It comes mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission. Being an all-wheel-drive SUV, the Porsche Cayenne is capable to handle enthusiastic driving with ease. In fact, it enjoys that. It is a sporty SUV meant for five.

4- BMW X6

BMW has been making SUVs for quite some time now. It has slowly expanded its range of SUVs over the years. They fall under the ‘X’ badge. Price at RM 628,800, the BMW X6 is something that you can buy if you’re a pure BMW fan but have requirements of an SUV.

Being a BMW, the X6 looks similar to most of the BMWs - a two-piece kidney grille at the front, flanked by BMW signature headlamps and DRLs. BMW keeps on altering these elements on its cars depending on the type of car it is. The X6 demands a bit of aggressive stance without compromising the sportiness and BMW-ish look. So that’s what it gets. And the front bumper compliments the overall appearance. The highlighting feature of the BMW X6 is its sloping roofline. BMW has given the X6 a coupe-like look, which is something that not everyone is a fan of. You will either love it or hate it. It does look pretty cool, though.

The interior of the BMW X6 is pretty simple and driver-oriented. But that doesn’t mean they’re any less luxurious than that of its rivals. A good amount of leather has been used to up the overall quality of the cabin, which is already top-notch. There are a number of color options that you can pick for the dashboard, and you can also choose the wooden panel. The cabin of the BMW X6 is quite comfortable. The seats are nicely done and provide a good amount of thigh support. There’s also ample amount of space for the front passengers. However, the rear passengers might feel a bit cramped because of the less headroom as a result of the sloping coupe-like roofline.

BMW has blessed the X6 with a 3.0L straight 6 TwinPower Turbo petrol engine that has been tuned to produce 306 bhp of max power and 400 Nm of peak torque. With the help of this powerful engine, the X6 is capable to do a 0-100 kmph sprint in just 6.7 seconds. And it has a top speed of 240 kmph.

The X6 should be fun to drive but its larger dimensions could be a bit problematic for city driving. Also, its sloping roofline restricts the view of what’s behind, so parking could be a challenge. Another downside of being this fat is poor fuel efficiency - 10 kmpl.

Priced at RM 628,800, the BMW X6 is available in 6 colors - Alpine White, Glacier Silver, Carbon Black, Space Grey, Flamenco Red and Sophisto Grey Xirallic.

5- Audi Q7

Audi Q7 is the top-of-the-line SUV from the German car maker. This big boy has been around for years and has proved its worth. The latest model of the Q7 received welcoming changes which not only enhanced the way it looks, but also the way it performs.

The Audi Q7 is a stunner. It looks fantastic from every angle. The front end has got this gorgeous-looking pair of LED headlamps that are accompanied by Audi’s signature LED DRLs. The massive grille has got horizontal slots with chrome treatment, and also carries the Audi logo. Overall, the front fascia of the Q7 does complete justice to the overall large dimensions of the SUV. There are subtle lines that run on the sides of the Q7 along its entire length. These really eliminate the otherwise boring side view of this gigantic SUV. The rear end of the Q7 features a roof-mounted spoiler, LED tail lights, and a big bumper. To be honest, the front looks much more brilliantly done than the rear.

Being an Audi, the interior of the Q7 is no less than amazing. The space is well managed with more than sufficient legroom and headroom for each of the passengers. The two front seats are electronically adjustable. All the seats provide extreme comfort and cushioning. The use of highest quality materials inside the cabin is something that will make you will become a fan of. Everything you touch reflects premiumness. There are many clever storage areas that Audi has thought of providing in its Q7 - like storage net on the front seat backrest, net in the luggage compartment panel, coat hooks in the rear roof area, a 1.5-litre bottle holder in the front and rear door trims.

The Q7 is available in 5-seater and 7-seater variants with two engine options in the Malaysian market. There’s a 2.0L TFSI Quattro engine that has been tuned to produce 252 hp of max power and 370 Nm of peak torque. The other engine option is a 3.0L TFSI Quattro units with 272 bhp of power and 400 Nm of peak torque. The Q7 is available in only a single color (blue) and its price starts from RM 495,233 and ends at RM 556,621.

So, if you are a fan of luxury SUVs than look no further than these five options.