This has given me quite a wide frame of reference and the ability to compare apples with apples, fortunately. I am more convinced than ever that there is hardly such a thing as a "bad car" anymore. The problem is, some are just mediocre, some good and others, excellent, while the occasional failure does come through.
The medium-sized SUV segment is literally flooded with models from almost every manufacturer that’s worth having a look at. This makes it exceptionally difficult to pick which car to buy and also makes it difficult to see the exceptional past all of the good that we’ve noted within this segment.
I recently drove the updated Chevrolet Captiva 2.4 LT for a week, to see if this SUV has what it takes to compete within this tough segment. Just this week we conducted a small shootout between two of this car’s rivals, the Nissan Qashqai and the Renault Kadjar. There are still rivals such as the Ford Kuga and Mazda CX-5 to name just two.
Updated exterior
The updated Captiva does bring some improved armoury to the fight with an updated exterior that includes a new grille and the addition of chrome accents, skid plates and dual exhaust pipes, which improve upon what I always thought was a good SUV design.
Updated interior
Inside is perhaps where the more important changes were made. There is the MyLink infotainment system with a seven-inch touchscreen, smartphone compatibility, which includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Bluetooth/USB and AUX connectivity as standard. The infotainment system really brings the whole interior up a notch. You’ll find some materials lacking and, like me, probably find the leather-trimmed seats a bit too hard. Where the Captiva comes back up is that it can seat seven.
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On a day-to-day basis, the Captiva was decent to pilot. I didn’t spot any segment-leading attributes in the Chevy but I wasn’t horribly offended by anything; there’s also a lot of space for rear occupants. Look, I wouldn’t want to be in the third row for an extended period however, for short trips, it’s fine. The ride quality is good as I took the car down many different road surfaces, including dirt and gravel during my test route drives. There is quite a bit of engine noise penetrating the cabin though.
When viewing the powertrain options the Captiva appears to give some bang for your buck. My test unit was priced at R396 600 for a 2.4-litre manual, which sounds good on paper however the competition has moved to turbo power which provides the same performance and uses less fuel. You’ll have 123kW/230Nm but I found that the naturally aspirated lump made me pay at the pumps with a figure of 10.3 litres/100km. I feel the 2.2-litre diesel is the pick of the range if you’ve decided on the Chevrolet.
Verdict
Overall, the updates made to the Captiva have made it a better product. However, with the relatively old and thirsty engine up front, slightly bland interior (despite the superb infotainment system as well as the fact that there are all-new rivals that have just been released) makes the Chevrolet blend in more than stand out.
