Any suggestions for a GWM Hover alternative?

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DarkWhisperer

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Didn't want to hijack the thread a few posts back...

I was looking at the Hover, but practically everyone, including the people here say "Stay away, far far away!"

Now one of the attractive things of the Hover is the huge boot area, which is accessible from the rest of the vehicle, unlike a double-cab with canopy. I'm aware that its so huge because of the third row of seats which were removed. And that it is quite under-powered.

But what alternatives are out there? I need the large boot space which needs to be open and accessible for my huskies. There needs to be front and back seats, as we have kids. Off-road capabilities is not required, and I'd prefer a 4x2. Diesel is much preferred to petrol. And I have a budget of R200k. So probably something 2nd hand. The Hover 2010 4x2 diesel out the box is currently on special for R163k.

Thanks folks!
 
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Andy:

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The Hover is a very good vehicle - don't listen to all the negative comments. I have so taken to mine that I blog about it and you should read some of the comments by other GWM Hover owners to see how happy they are with the vehicle.
 
Fazda

Fazda

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I have bought a second hand Subaru Outback for half of what you are willing to pay and I have a car that is 2000% better than anything GWM has to offer.

You could also pick up a beautiful Forester for that sort of price. A Subaru has to be driven to be appreciated...do yourself a favour...

Here are a couple of Outbacks to look at

http://search.autotrader.co.za/www/...ll&county=1&county=2&county=3&county=4&county
 
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BCO

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Fazda said:
I have bought a second hand Subaru Outback for half of what you are willing to pay and I have a car that is 2000% better than anything GWM has to offer.

You could also pick up a beautiful Forester for that sort of price. A Subaru has to be driven to be appreciated...do yourself a favour...

Here are a couple of Outbacks to look at

http://search.autotrader.co.za/www/...ll&county=1&county=2&county=3&county=4&county
Click to expand...

Your link seems a little wonky, Fazda.

Also, you seem to be quite a Scooby convert. Nice!
 
Fazda

Fazda

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BCO said:
Your link seems a little wonky, Fazda.

Also, you seem to be quite a Scooby convert. Nice!
Click to expand...

TOTAL Convert!! :D...BTW I tried your link on another thread and couldn't make it work, so it looks as if links are possibly going wonky on this site???... :confused:

Anyway...watch this space on second hand Scoobies...;)

PM me if you need more info....;) ;)

LOL, just checked my link and it takes me to second hand Rolls Royces!! :eek:.......................................not quite what I was trying to show!! There are some magic Outbacks out there for WAY under 200k!
 
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shearder

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DarkWhisperer said:
Didn't want to hijack the thread a few posts back...

I was looking at the Hover, but practically everyone, including the people here say "Stay away, far far away!"

Now one of the attractive things of the Hover is the huge boot area, which is accessible from the rest of the vehicle, unlike a double-cab with canopy. I'm aware that its so huge because of the third row of seats which were removed. And that it is quite under-powered.

But what alternatives are out there? I need the large boot space which needs to be open and accessible for my huskies. There needs to be front and back seats, as we have kids. Off-road capabilities is not required, and I'd prefer a 4x2. Diesel is much preferred to petrol. And I have a budget of R200k. So probably something 2nd hand. The Hover 2010 4x2 diesel out the box is currently on special for R163k.

Thanks folks!
Click to expand...

No real alternative! I am picking my 2.4 4x4 up on saturday! I have monitored the Hover for the last 2 years and last 2 weeks did some serious homework with reviews and videos. It has a mitsubishi motor, borg warner 4x4 system (PORSCHE Cayenne), Siemens airbags, bosch brakes, EURO CNAP 4 rating!! Etc etc and for that price???

I heard the same about the Kia Cerato 5.5 years ago!! I still have it (wifes car) NO problems - not a day's trouble!

Don't listen to people who THINK they know what they are talking about - do your OWN homework - it's YOUR money not theirs! It is too young in SA to ask anyone who DOESN'T have one to give you an opinion! Soith africans have the "Toyota Syndrme" and yet Totoya was one of those brands NO one wanted to touch until the land cruiser saved it's ass!

When you have issues with the GWM the company CEO at times handles yuor problem personally!! I want to see Toyota or other company do that!!

Interestingly enough 99% of negative reviews come from people who have only seen them in magazines! How much credibility do they have?? IMHO - none.
 
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shearder

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boramk said:
http://www.4x4community.co.za/forum/showthread.php?t=15160

No, don't buy it. It's dangerous.

Alternatives:
Hyundai ix35, Kia Sportage, Nissan Qahqai
Click to expand...

Dangerous? With an EURO NCAP 4 rating? Based on proven (older) technology? And this from a thread of people who should know better - they own Toyota's - Toyota used to be the NO-NO. GWM will get there! Till someone has owned one i really couldn't be bothered to give them credit for any opinion. As i said earlier - I heard the same about the Kia 5.5 years ago. I have less hassles than i had with my Merc, Subaru and Audi! In fact the only time it went in was for a service!
 
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shearder

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Fazda said:
TOTAL Convert!! :D...BTW I tried your link on another thread and couldn't make it work, so it looks as if links are possibly going wonky on this site???... :confused:

Anyway...watch this space on second hand Scoobies...;)

PM me if you need more info....;) ;)

LOL, just checked my link and it takes me to second hand Rolls Royces!! :eek:.......................................not quite what I was trying to show!! There are some magic Outbacks out there for WAY under 200k!
Click to expand...

I will NEVER buy another Scooby! After the K@K tradein offer they gave me and that AFTER trading in a 230 coupe and being told - we will give you the BEST t/i when you want another pfffffff - they can blow it out their XXX... I then bought an Audi. Yeah scoob goes well, drinks petrol but once bitten!
 
HapticSimian

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Oooooooh, ooooooooh, oooooooh... allow me to chime in here, if you will. I ended up having to drive about in an almost-new Hover for a week and a bit last month. Here's the short version: in future, I'd rather walk... barefoot... through broken glass... in a hailstorm. It is the single most awful vehicle I have ever driven. The interior reeks of industrial adhesive and cheap plastic. The gearchange is absolutely appalling. The engine is utterly useless - I checked the specs after and its supposed 95kW notwithstanding, it doesn't feel like it musters more than about 12kW. Redlining it in 1st is an altogether frightening experience, as it feels as if either the gearbox or the engine, or perhaps both, want to break into the cabin; the noise & vibration is something to behold. Added to all that you get stellar Chinese build quality, meaning every single little thing feels as if it's about to snap off... everything.

I remember vividly pulling onto the M2 and spotting an early-80s Opel Kadett wagon smoking away in the middle lane as I was making my way up the onramp. I reckoned I would just keep on accelerating and then swoop past his front into the fast lane in order to pass the truck further up the road. He saw me, geared down and floored it. The smoke emanating from the tired little Opel increased substantially but, here's the kicker, I couldn't get past. To add insult to injury the Putco bus that was ambling up in the left-hand lane also passed me about a kilometer or so later whilst I was still trying to catch back up to the little Opel.

But the worst elements? The comical handling and wooden, completely ineffectual brakes. The rear tramlines and bounds about almost as if it isn't directly connected to the front, and that's at below-normal velocities. Go into a corner at the same speeds you've done countless times before in all manner of vehicles, and suddenly the GWM threatens to flop onto its back like a turtle... no provocation necessary. I would not want anyone in my family to drive one, ever. As for the brakes: I made a complete arse of myself in a Polo after my week tootling about in the GWM... Here I was, driving towards the little speedbump in our dealership's driveway when I figured I should probably slow down ever so slightly. My right foot went for a little prod at the brake pedal, but unfortunately the GWM's complete lack of feedback on its spongy pedal had stunted my fine motor control a bit and I came to a screeching halt with the ABS hammering away... and stalled the car.

And a 4-star EuroNCAP rating? Phuuuleeeeze... My Chinese is a little shoddy, but from the C-NCAP (that's "C" for Chinese) website it seems it only scored 3 stars in China's own New Car Assessment Programme. Knowing how much more stringent the EuroNCAP tests are than the North American equivalent let alone the Chinese tests, that would probably equate to a 0-star rating should they ever bother to test it, which they haven't.

The Hover is shockingly bad in every respect apart from load space, and anyone who disagrees might want to see a medical professional - there can be no rational explanation to buy one.
 
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boramk

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shearder said:
Dangerous? With an EURO NCAP 4 rating? Based on proven (older) technology? And this from a thread of people who should know better - they own Toyota's - Toyota used to be the NO-NO. GWM will get there! Till someone has owned one i really couldn't be bothered to give them credit for any opinion. As i said earlier - I heard the same about the Kia 5.5 years ago. I have less hassles than i had with my Merc, Subaru and Audi! In fact the only time it went in was for a service!
Click to expand...

Every single car that comes from well known manufactures have 5 stars, you know, they big guys who make quality cars and yet people still get killed?

Yeah, I ain't touching anything 4 star and Chinese.

<joke>I don't like cars that can get holes in their bonnet when I push my finger through it.</joke> But not really.
 
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shearder

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enigma243 said:
Oooooooh, ooooooooh, oooooooh... allow me to chime in here, if you will. I ended up having to drive about in an almost-new Hover for a week and a bit last month. Here's the short version: in future, I'd rather walk... barefoot... through broken glass... in a hailstorm. It is the single most awful vehicle I have ever driven. The interior reeks of industrial adhesive and cheap plastic. The gearchange is absolutely appalling. The engine is utterly useless - I checked the specs after and its supposed 95kW notwithstanding, it doesn't feel like it musters more than about 12kW.
Click to expand...

Ah ok so that was a "shot" older version i take it! The new one is much better and has 100KW - 2 different engines. I test drove it and there is NO way a putco will pass it like that. It isn't a racing car but it does run better. So you don't like it - well there are far more professional reviews that one can read. This is emotional reviewing or you can't drive?

Likewise I could drive a Bently and give the worst review because I didn't really approach it with a neutral attitude. I have driven it (Hover), it was NOT a racing car but also is NOT as bad as you made this sound.

I would like to see you in a NEW Hover, feel free to post pics, and have the same to say. If you did it would definately not be your HONEST opinion! Come on, be serious - just once?
 
ToxicBunny

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shearder said:
Dangerous? With an EURO NCAP 4 rating? Based on proven (older) technology? And this from a thread of people who should know better - they own Toyota's - Toyota used to be the NO-NO. GWM will get there! Till someone has owned one i really couldn't be bothered to give them credit for any opinion. As i said earlier - I heard the same about the Kia 5.5 years ago. I have less hassles than i had with my Merc, Subaru and Audi! In fact the only time it went in was for a service!
Click to expand...

How many times do we have to tell you this, it does NOT have a Euro NCAP 4 rating.. and the ANCAP rating of 4 stars is nowhere NEAR as valid as a Euro NCAP 4 star rating...
 
HapticSimian

HapticSimian

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shearder said:
Ah ok so that was a "shot" older version i take it! The new one is much better and has 100KW - 2 different engines. I test drove it and there is NO way a putco will pass it like that. It isn't a racing car but it does run better. So you don't like it - well there are far more professional reviews that one can read. This is emotional reviewing or you can't drive?

Likewise I could drive a Bently and give the worst review because I didn't really approach it with a neutral attitude. I have driven it (Hover), it was NOT a racing car but also is NOT as bad as you made this sound.

I would like to see you in a NEW Hover, feel free to post pics, and have the same to say. If you did it would definately not be your HONEST opinion! Come on, be serious - just once?
Click to expand...

Yeah... "old" and "shot"... completely. It's a 2010 model with 8,000km on, but then I suppose for a Chinese piece of shyte that'll qualify as both "old" and "shot". And yes, it is as bad as I make it sound - it is an impossibility to use any language known to man & convey it as worse than it is. It is pathetically horrible.

My better-than-average driving skill has nothing to do with the judgment. :rolleyes:
 
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