Faults:

Nothing.

General Comments:

My first cross over / SUV type vehicle. Just needed something modern and reliable as a second car, never knew anything about these cars but decided to give it a go.

ASX is a typical modern car, nothing fancy, just gets you from A to B reliably.

Not a car to drive for the fun of it, but it is OK. Performance isn't spectacular, and economy isn't great as it struggles for around 39 mpg, but it's a simple engine.

Not as spacious as you might think. Rear legroom is limited, and the boot space isn't very big.

A pretty unremarkable car. Dull, but does the job. Buy one if you hate taking the bus.

Faults:

Rear parking sensors temperamental - have had a couple of parking bumps into things which they have failed to notice. There seem to be "dead zones" in the coverage in different places on each side. This is important as the rear visibility is poor.

A shock absorber has broken, and a rear light cluster had to be replaced.

General Comments:

I find it horrible to drive, plenty of understeer if you try to get a move on, huge lag on the engine from low revs (the Variable Valve Timing makes the fuel consumption better, but it leaves the car completely gutless if you need to pick up speed from low revs in a hurry), and the body rolls and wallows under sudden changes of direction. The handling is noticeably better when the permanent 4wd setting is engaged, but this is still not a car to "chuck".

The fuel consumption, while not as far removed from the manufacturer figures as is stated on many other sites, is still something you are better off working out for yourself rather than relying on the handbook or the trip computer for.

On the motorway it's a good cruiser with some ability to pick up speed quickly in 6th gear if needed, but the seats aren't in the top bracket for support and comfort, and at 1m89 tall I have to have the seat as far back as it will slide, as well as leaning it back further than I would ideally like, which makes the comfort issue worse.

The window tinting is particularly effective, and I often find myself driving without sunglasses in conditions where they would be essential for me in other cars. However the panoramic roof is a question of personal taste - for me it lets far too much light into the car, so I hardly ever use it.

Off-road ability is surprisingly good. It will never be a proper off-roader, but it copes well with rutted tracks, mud and grassy inclines, especially when on the narrowest tyres available. In the Winter it has no problems running on compacted snow (with the correct tyres), and the car always feels calm and stable if you take things easy. I can't fault it as a Winter car thus far.

A financial consideration to bear in mind is the "traditional" service interval of 15000km or 12 months, none of your long-life service intervals here. It's certainly better for the car for it to be serviced so regularly, but it does add the cost of ownership, especially if you are likely to get rid of the car before any big-ticket non-warranty items need replacing.