Is the Macan a Yeti competitor?

[Sporky McGuffin]

Dunno, but it's awfully good. On a whim yesterday I popped into the local Porsche garage (next to the sorting office where I had a parcel to collect) to have a look at the Macan's boot. It's pretty big, but not as useful a shape as the Yeti's if you carry big boxy stuff. The seats drop to flat very simply. A very pleasant salesy chap popped up on request and without provocation offered a test drive; I made it clear I wasn't likely to buy one in the near future but he wasn't put off (nor pushy) so I thought it'd be rude to decline. I will be comparing my experience to the Yeti throughout.

 

So; impressions from a 1-hourish test drive. The seats are fantastic; the demonstrator had the full-fat 18-way comfort plus seats. Nice deep adjustable bolsters so you felt nicely nestled but not encased. The one in the showroom had the 14-way ones which were perfectly decent too. Not a huge amount of space for rear passengers (about the same as the Yeti but smaller doors, I think. That said, I rarely have passengers so that doesn't bother me.

 

Interior looks a bit of a button-fest at first but they're sensibly grouped. Nice steering wheel with a similar layout to the Yeti's (not surprising as it's Q5 based). Every control feels solid and reassuringly expensive, every non-control surface is covered in something soft. Much better wing mirrors than the Yeti with really good rear 3/4 view. Tiny central rear view mirror though - like the Evoque's in that respect.

 

I tried the Diesel S, and it confirmed my suspicion that 6ish to 60 and 240bhp is more than adequate for me. It was incredibly quiet when cruising, made a lovely growly noise when pushed. Quite a lag from flooring the pedal to it doing anything, which seems to be a combination of the auto box and the engine mapping; with the sport and sport plus modes it was close to instant.

 

Ride was similar to the Yeti in that it doesn't just waft over everything but isn't irritatingly jiggly or uncomfortable. Very flat in corners. I don't drive like a lunatic in general but it felt very planted and grippy, even more so than the Yeti does. I'm not sure I could really explain how, but the Macan does not feel like a Q5 to drive. Much more interesting, more communicative steering and felt more connected to the road somehow - and the ride is better too. I think the "it's a Q5 in a frock" brigade are way off the mark. It actually felt a lot like the XF I tried a couple of years ago.

 

Overall I really liked it - it's a bit pricey to consider for the moment, but there's a 12-month waiting list and my mortgage should be done in 18 months. The leasing prices are surprisingly keen. The dealer was great - I turned up in jeans, t-shirt and scruffy shoes as I was off to the workshop later and they didn't bat an eyelid - even said to come back at any point for another test drive. It's nicer inside than the Evoque and has vastly more go for about the same fuel consumption (assuming both trip computers are similarly accurate/inaccurate). I can see why there's a waiting list.

[Pouclee]

Not a competitor on price or size, oh and options list.......very nice but I will stick with the Yeti unless I win the lottery. 

[Ryeman]

Thanks for that interesting assessment.

I like RR interiors and could lust after an Evoque but nothing bigger for sure.

[manxskoda]

Auto Express are giving the Macan rave reviews on their You Tube channel. They cannot fault it.

Tony

The video is on their Carbuyer channel, sorry my mistake.

Edited 6 June, 2014 by manxskoda

[Brijo]

Thanks for a very interesting review, Sporky.  :clap:

 

Nice motor, no doubt, but - a Yeti competitor?  Starting at £40K or thereabouts and offering a very different image, the Macan is surely not aimed at the same market.  It's an 'SV', perhaps, but like several (most?) other models suggested as Yeti alternatives it seems to miss the essential 'U' features to make it a valid 'SUV'.  I can't imagine a Macan dressed in mud like the Yeti in Graham's classic shot (other than, perhaps, for publicity purposes). Looking at pics of the Macan, too, suggests that it's going to blend in with those others that are visually near look-alikes.  A Yeti is a Yeti, even if it's an FL. 

[Kenny R]

Not really a Yeti competitor, at almost twice the price for basic spec before you hit the options and ad cruise control xenons etc. But added Turo S to the lottery win car list though.

[MajorTom]

I don't see the Porsche Macan as a competitor to the Skoda Yeti: although they're both small 4x4s from the same group, it's a very different brand. If I could afford a Macan, I'd either keep the Yeti and find a second hand Lotus, or I'd be in a Cayman.

[ddyer79]

http://www.bramleyweb.co.uk/carsales/details/Porsche/Macan-S-Diesel/9734.htm

 

I can buy at least 2 Yeti for the price of this one .........................

[BossFox]

No, it's not a Yeti competitor because it's in a completely different price bracket.

 

Very few people that are buying one or the other, will consider the other.

[prodata]

Most on the Macan forum who talk about price paid seem to quote a price beginning with a 5 once 'necessary' options are included, and with such demand no discounts are likely. There's some rumour that the 12-month waiting list is rather artificial and marketing-led, caused by running the line at less than full capacity until everyone at Porsche is 100% happy with quality.  At which point, quoted waiting times will abruptly start to shrink. But whatever, £50K is too rich for my blood. Also, it's going to be a size bigger than the Yeti. Now, a Lesser Macan based on the Q3 rather than Q5 might be more of a temptation, but I doubt that Porsche will venture there.

Edited 6 June, 2014 by prodata

[Sporky McGuffin]

Tomorrow the GLA250, in advance of the GLA45. I will report back.

[BossFox]

The realisation of getting blinded by shiny metal comes into it too.

 

For what it's worth and how good it is, I wouldn't even sell my Yeti (fully optioned other than the sunroof) for a new FL one.

 

That's like throwing £10,000 away to buy the same, but a bit newer and with a corporate face.

So I certainly wouldn't throw £40,000 away to just get something that does the same job but is a bit better.

Even though I have to say everyting I've read about the Macan makes it sound good.

 

I can think of much better things to spend it on.

[mikep]

http://www.bramleyweb.co.uk/carsales/details/Porsche/Macan-S-Diesel/9734.htm

 

I can buy at least 2 Yeti for the price of this one .........................

Bradley's are notorious for selling cars way over list price, I'm constantly amazed that people are that stupid, or they would have gone out of business years ago.

[mikep]

Bramleys not Bradley's

[Ryeman]

Most on the Macan forum who talk about price paid seem to quote a price beginning with a 5 once 'necessary' options are included, and with such demand no discounts are likely. There's some rumour that the 12-month waiting list is rather artificial and marketing-led, caused by running the line at less than full capacity until everyone at Porsche is 100% happy with quality.  At which point, quoted waiting times will abruptly start to shrink. But whatever, £50K is too rich for my blood. Also, it's going to be a size bigger than the Yeti. Now, a Lesser Macan based on the Q3 rather than Q5 might be more of a temptation, but I doubt that Porsche will venture there.

My observation is that to survive long term you either keep increasing total sales or you end up taken over or die.

[Sporky McGuffin]

Bradley's are notorious for selling cars way over list price, I'm constantly amazed that people are that stupid, or they would have gone out of business years ago.

 

I don't think "stupid" is fair. It's a car you'd otherwise have to wait 12 months for; you can have it now for a premium. To some people that's worth it.

 

Anyways, I absolutely accept the point that the Macan is much more expensive than the Yeti - the spec I'd go for is very nearly double the price of the spec of Yeti I'd go for if buying now. But to me (and, I appreciate, not to others) it's still a competitor in that it's one of the cars I'm considering next, along with the Yeti. It didn't strike me, though, as vastly larger. A smidge bigger in each direction, perhaps, but not like the huge Kia Sorrento I had as a courtesy car.

 

Whether it's worth the extra has a lot to do with whether you've got the extra. On the assumption that I could raise the money, I'd rather have the Macan as a do-everything-I'd-like than a Yeti and an Elise, for example. Or a Cayman and a Panda 4x4, or any number of other combinations. With the Evoque I wasn't convinced it was worth the extra over the Yeti; with the Macan I was (though not so convinced that it was worth finding the extra, just that it was worth it if I had it!).

 

That said the Macan does make the GLA45 look like a budget option, price-wise at least.

 

I should probably add that getting back into the Yeti after the Macan, the things I felt ought to be improved on the Skoda are the wing mirrors and the seats.

[Ryeman]

Runout Tiguans are going for <£15K drive-away down here at the moment. Base model of course, but a lot for little IMO.

[Leon-y-k]

It's a very nice car, gotta get the right spec though for it to look "right" Just specced one up, 48k+ easy!!! Best get saving! :p

[Sporky McGuffin]

The one I specced came to £53, which is a bit steep. However, the indicative leasing costs weren't anything like what you might imagine.

 

Anyways. The GLA. I am aware that there is an element of unfairness to these comparisons given the huge price range across the three cars, but to me each could do what I need so compare I will. For reference, still on the list are the V40 Cross Country T5 AWD, the XC60, the new Lexus one and the Jaguar CX-17 if/when it ever arrives. Other suggestions welcome.

 

I tried a GLA250, petrol, auto, 4WD in the AMG sport trim. Which was the downside; it's just too low. Not enough ground clearance, and a slightly firmer ride than I'd like but not awful. The normal suspension looks adequate to my needs (which are crossing the occasional building site, a few rough unmade roads a year and not getting stuck in snow). I believe there's an option coming shortly to raise the whole car another 30mm as well.

 

Boot again not as practical as the Yeti but an OK size; the seats drop easily to nearly flat (no step or ridge but I'd guess at a 5-10 degree incline compared to the boot floor).

 

The interior was a touch plusher than the Yeti, a few more soft surfaces, but not in the Macan's league. Not as ergonomic as either; the aircon and heated seat controls are too low to see easily while driving (though I imagine one could get used to their positions) and I couldn't work out the Command interface beyond changing radio station. Also the gear selector (park, neutral, drive, reverse) lever is on the right steering wheel stalk, while there are two left stalks, one for cruise and one for wipers and indicators and full beam - that would take some getting used to, and I did indicate and flash the headlights trying to work the rear wiper. Ahem. The steering wheel had a pointless flat bottom and odd buttons (some of which partially replicated the Command wheel), nice clicky flappy paddles though. OK overall.

 

The seats were mixed; better lateral support than the Yeti but not as good lumbar support; after an hour and a half my lower back was getting just slightly sore. The electric seats are, I'd expect, better in that regard. Good wing mirrors with plenty of "kick" at the edges, but again a teeny-tiny back window. The B-pillars are a bit further forward so the rear 3/4 view is better than the Yeti. The windscreen felt very slitty and the rear view mirror blocks a lot of the view out - not sure I liked that. Very much like being in a normal car - there were hatchbacks on my test drive where the driver would be looking down at me!

 

I did (as mentioned) about an hour and a half of fairly mixed driving including some bumpy narrow country lane type stuff. Generally very good - loads of grip, 40mpg overall and a pretty tight turning circle. Bit tricky going from drive to reverse with that weird stalk gear change though. There's a strange electronic parking brake by your right knee, which I assume is meant to replicate the release on a C-Class with its weird foot operated parking brake? It worked well though; automagically releases when you touch the go pedal. The Macan had a better system in my view; as well as a centre-console pull-up-button-thing to set or release the parking brake you could also double-tap (just gently) the footbrake to engage "hold" which I thought was very neat.

 

The radio is a bit tinny. Not Toyota awful, but not as good as the Yeti's standard, let alone the upgraded Yeti one or the Macan one (which, without doing a proper comparison, is at least on a par with the 10-speaker Yeti system).

 

The GLA did have the same thing as the Macan, which I think is an emergent consequence of having an auto gearbox; for gentle acceleration it's fine, but ask a bit more and there's a definite lull before the gearbox kicks down and power arrives. Again, better in sport mode, and I should have tried the paddles more.

 

The AMG GLA45 is due in in August so I'm booked to try that. It has the gear selector in the middle console (yay) but is lowered even further, so the Mercedes chap is checking if the AMG can be had with the offroad package (which gives 30mm more clearance) or the standard suspension. If not then it's not going to be any use to me.

 

Getting back in the Yeti the two things that struck me (again) are that the Yeti needs better wing mirrors and more lateral support on the seats. However, I think I'd rather another Yeti than a GLA - we'll see if the AMG improves on that. I am increasingly of the opinion that the Yeti is an unusually good car - not that I didn't think that already.

[prodata]

No Audi's on the comparison list? Or are they done already in a different thread? Q3 would obviously be closest to the Yeti, but if you're willing to entertain Macan then Q5 would presumably also enter the reckoning.

 

Had a test in a 177 diesel Q3 S-line myself a couple of weeks back. Decent car, cabin is high quality and undoubtedly better than Yeti (but then so it ought to be for the price difference), rear seats a little cramped (but of little consequence for my typical use) and pseudo-coupe curve to the rear roofline does no favours to the height of the boot space. 

 

The bit I'm struggling with is the (relative) lack of headroom coupled with black being the only headlining choice for headlining in the S-line (but S-line being the obvious choice if you want an optioned-up spec). With black seats / black dash etc / black headlining it's all rather overwhelmingly black and all with the headlining just a couple of inches from your head. I do think that the Yeti rather spoils you for cabin height - you get used to the feeling of space.

Edited 8 June, 2014 by prodata

[Ryeman]

In a Yeti 'you CAN keep your hat on'......apologies to 'joe' :-))

[Sporky McGuffin]

No Audi's on the comparison list? Or are they done already in a different thread? Q3 would obviously be closest to the Yeti, but if you're willing to entertain Macan then Q5 would presumably also enter the reckoning.

 

The Q3 is, to my eyes, an absolutely horrible shape. There's something utterly wrong about it - the proportions are just "off" somehow.

 

The Q5, possibly, but the local dealer is pretty awful - I've twice been utterly ignored when trying to get some help. The Discovery Sport (as I believe the replacement for the Freelander will be called) looks a possibility. You're absolutely right about the headroom though - the company Passats most of my day-job colleagues have feel very "cosy" - bordering on slightly claustrophobic. I think the black headlining in the GLA250 didn't help. The Macan had it too but didn't feel quite as enclosed, and both had panoramic roofs.

 

'Course, even a full spec Yeti would be enough less expensive than the Macan or GLA45 that I could afford a very decent laser cutter. And that'd make money rather than losing it...

 

Dagnammit, what I really want is a Yeti with the engine from the Golf R or the CR240 from the next Passat, the heated and cooled seats from the Superb, maybe a heated steering wheel, and some massively oversized wing mirrors. It's not that much to ask!

[prodata]

The Q3 is, to my eyes, an absolutely horrible shape. There's something utterly wrong about it - the proportions are just "off" somehow.

It's funny isn't it how shapes affect people differently. There's something about the side profile of the Tiguan that really puts me off - can't put my finger on quite why but the shape just doesn't work for me (which along with the dash layout and various other minuses, just rule it our for me). The shape thing may be partly to do with whether it's trying to be a small SUV or a crossover. To me eye, the Yeti is an honest attempt at a compact SUV - it doesn't try to be any different, whereas the Tiguan (as for the original CRV shape, the current one being a little improved) tries to have a foot in both camps.

It's totally subjective of course, but the Q3 seems unashamedly to be a crossover (ie a hatch on stilts, much like the Qashqai). Can't honestly say that I'm mad about the look, especially from side profile though other angles are OK, but it doesn't antagonise me in the same way that Tiguan and CRV do.

Bottom line is that I'm personally happy to consider the Q3 (because its plus points outweigh the slightly dubious shape) whereas I'd rule out the Tiguan purely on a looks basis.

[Sporky McGuffin]

I think I may have overstated my feelings about the Q3 a little - it's not ugly enough to put me off completely, but I do feel it's misproportioned. The Yeti, original Forrester, Freelander are all very good shapes in my book. Blocky. Practical.

 

The slopier SUV/crossover style is OK but not as useful. I don't transport an awful lot of big boxy stuff, but it is handy from time to time.

[Kenny R]

It's funny isn't it how shapes affect people differently. There's something about the side profile of the Tiguan that really puts me off - can't put my finger on quite why but the shape just doesn't work for me (which along with the dash layout and various other minuses, just rule it our for me). The shape thing may be partly to do with whether it's trying to be a small SUV or a crossover. To me eye, the Yeti is an honest attempt at a compact SUV - it doesn't try to be any different, whereas the Tiguan (as for the original CRV shape, the current one being a little improved) tries to have a foot in both camps.It's totally subjective of course, but the Q3 seems unashamedly to be a crossover (ie a hatch on stilts, much like the Qashqai). Can't honestly say that I'm mad about the look, especially from side profile though other angles are OK, but it doesn't antagonise me in the same way that Tiguan and CRV do.Bottom line is that I'm personally happy to consider the Q3 (because its plus points outweigh the slightly dubious shape) whereas I'd rule out the Tiguan purely on a looks basis.

Every time I see a Tiguan side on, especially in white, I always think of the miseries as in the Askit fights the miseries advert.