Between RAV4 and CX-5, RAV4 is the rugged one. CX-5 won’t soak up impact from rumble strips and potholes better than RAV4 because of its lighter kerbweight (laws of physics). Kenyan roads demand for ruggedness and that’s why the RAV4 remains popular. That said, if you typically drive on Mombasa Road, Thika Road, Southern Bypass kinds of roads, the CX-5 would be a superior choice indeed.
You seem very particular and have narrored your choice to the three. You are looking for great off road driving and power on the highway which is hard to achieve with the above cars.
What you should be looking for is a Subaru outback. Very stable and fast on the highway, has a great ground clearance and its handling awesome.of course it comes with the legendary Subaru outback reliability. It’s the one car you can be confident haitawai kuangusha.
BTW the Outback is the best selling wagon/crossover in the US.
Outback is thirsty as hell
Nissan makes the best cars ever. This nosensical hating on Nissan has to stop. Fucking Shiites.
Mathe the Jew ako na shares? 
import a used Volvo xc60. izi toyota na subaru zimekua kama uniform ya choir
Kenyans are like sheep they follow each other like that animal. Mmoja akisema Hilux is the pickup of all pickups… every Kenyan will purchase a Hilux and hate every other pickup for some made up nonsensical reason.
Wakiona Uhuru na prado … hio inakuwa the car of prestige of the day…
Everyone with cash gets a prado. Wakiona ni Range Rover sport… vivyo hivyo…
Kama saa hii hakuna kitu mbaya Nissan imefanya. It was the car of the day in the 80s and early 90s because of the safari rally.
(It was so common in matatus that matatus were called ‘nissans’. And before the nissan matatu, the VW combi van from S.A was top dog.)
The Datsun saloons and pickup were the cars of the day back then. Then came the hilux because I guess “Toyota” Celica won a few rallies.
And yet there are so many other car brands on these earth that one can choose from.
Mkenya akiskia hivyo huwa anasema, “Spare itakuwa shida na tena hio gari nimeskia iko na shida ya…”
Toyota makes the most unstable cars on earth. We have enough proof with the prado. Lakini huwezi skiza Mkenya. Very powerful engines but not stable under high speeds.
With that kind of money there are so many avenues.
You can get a used Touareg, Mercedes ML, BMW X something eg X3 even a whole landcruiser!
With that money you can get any manner of saloon. When it comes to consumption siku hizi hazijaachana sana. But it’s your money.
A Honda spare part can be more expensive than a similar Merc’s part. But the Kenyan false rumour holds that that can never be the case.
European cars, though powerful and luxurious, are quite tricky when it comes to maintenance. Their engines are quite complex for Kenyan kawayas (mechanics) to comprehend. Ukipeleka Mercedes DT Dobie for minor repair unaletewa invoice ya Ksh500,00/- pap. I have seen that quite a few times.
You have said I can get Mercedes ML and Touareg with 2.5M? From where?
Gari ziko mingi hujatafuta. Mingi sana na hio bei.
And on this issue of maintenance kwani unanunua gari ndio uiharibu?
By the time you destroy a Mercedes engine or gear box kwani unaishi wapi huku hamna lami!!!
Kama ni limuru rd maybe…
And if you destroy a honda gear box who has lied to you that it is cheaper than a Merc’s gear box?
Tembea Honda Kenya uskie bei zao ushangae.
Ask dt dobie how much any brand new Nissan engine costs VS a Merc or VW. Hamna tofauti kubwa.
I know a guy who fried his Forresters brain. Ilioshwa ikapoteza memory or something. He went to local mechs and after spending close to 100k the windows and the radio refused to work. He went to Subaru Kenya :250k cash, gone. But problem solved.
Hio bei ya repair ni the same region na Bmw. But folks believe that the Forrester is far much cheaper to maintain.
There’s a fellow I know who was selling a very descent 2011 touareg for 1.8 negotiable.
Within Kenya you can get a 2009 to 2011 for that range. But you know maybe you want to impress friends with a 2017 model, full features ya 6m. Na hutaki ku import mwenyewe.
At that price labda upate locally used Touareg ama ML Class…hizo zinakuanga bad news. Bonobos are generally not good at taking care of cars.
Soaking impact has more to do with the suspension setup than the kerb weight
Sure. We’re assuming that all the cars come with good suspension systems so, kerb weight, in that case, would be the differentiator. (i.e. holding suspension constant even though we all know who makes the best suspension out there).
When it comes to comparisons everyone has an opinion just like an azzhole
The best are 2017 and above makes ,2.5ltr is affordable coz its good performance doesn’t give you the best km/ltr
OP from your list I’d pick the crv, fully decked out all day, with leather seats, sunroof and all that. It is a very reliable car. The rav4, while a good car, has such a boring interior. My second choice would be the cx5. I think you shouldn’t worry much about their consumption coz they are close enough to make much of a difference over an extended period of driving them
For a crossover the Subaru Forester or the outback with turbos are the best, they’ll make you a petrol head. They’re the best if rough roads are a concern. The cx5 is a beautiful car and a compelling option if you don’t wander very far off the beaten path… European cars are superb if you have the money to keep them running
Four reasons why I’d avoid the Subarus are:
(1)Heavy consumption especially for the Turbo engines
(2)Expensive to maintain e.g. to change spark plugs alone is a difficult task sine they’re hidden underneath
(3)Have a history of header gaskets blowing up over time…neglected header gaskets ultimately lead to overheating
(4)Have a history of the steering rack wearing out quite fast and yet it’s very expensive to replace
TL;DR, they aren’t very reliable in the long haul.
Lexus RX 450h or RX 270 is the best!