Drive Car of the Year 2025 – Best Large SUV Under $80K finalists announced – UPDATE
Today at 11:18 PM
Here are the finalists in the running for the Drive Car of the Year 2025 – Best Large SUV Under $80K category.
Drive Car of the Year 2025
Now in its 20th year, the annual Drive Car of the Year awards program continues to be the Australian new car buyer's most-trusted advisor.
At Drive, we test drive more than 200 new cars every year, evaluating each against its innate promise to sort the best from the rest. We divide the 400-plus new passenger cars, SUVs, 4WDs and utes into 19 price-banded categories focused on the end-user. Then we analyse the strengths and weaknesses of every car to find the cream of the automotive crop.
Drive Car of the Year 2025 is a go!
Drive Car of the Year 2025 – Best Large SUV Under $80K
The next stage of voting for the cars set to compete for the title of Large SUV Under $80K this year has finished, with the judges selecting the three vehicles that they decided are most deserving of reaching the finalist stage.
Alongside the Toyota Kluger, last year's winner which once again makes it through to the final round, the Hyundai Santa Fe and Kia Sorento will join it because they both represent great value for money, are good to drive, and challenge the Kluger by bringing hybrid power to the segment.
The Hyundai Santa Fe was completely revamped in 2024, arriving in June with an edgy new look that aligns the model with some of its more futuristic-looking Hyundai SUV range-mates such as the Kona and Ioniq 5, and sets it apart from its competitors.
For the starting price of $55,500 before on-road costs, the new Santa Fe packs in a lot of kit, and lots of space too – even in the third row.
The hybrid range kicks off with the eponymous Santa Fe Hybrid, and it's worth noting that the entire line-up is initially available only as a hybrid – with power coming from a 1.6-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder engine driving either the front or all four wheels even in the base grade.
Even the range-topping Calligraphy variant – either as a six- or seven-seater – is under the $80K cap. Non-hybrid 2.5-litre turbo-petrol variants are on their way to Australia, but they were not available in time for testing.
Read more about the Hyundai Santa Fe range here.
The Kia Sorento has always been a popular large SUV with families – winning Drive Car of the Year in 2021 – and the update it was treated to in 2024 hasn't changed that.
The heavy facelift brought with it fresh design changes to bring the Sorento into line with its fresher siblings such as the EV9, Picanto and Carnival, and was headlined by a dazzling new pair of 12.3-inch screens – helping to justify the circa-$3000 increase in sticker price.
Powertrains for the Sorento, which now starts from $50,680 before on-road costs, stay the same – offering a choice of 3.5-litre petrol V6 or 2.2-litre four-cylinder diesel engines, as well as a 1.6-litre hybrid variant under the price cap.
And in another case of 'if it ain't broke…' Kia has kept much of the interior space similar so it retains its hugely practical and spacious cabin.
Read more on the Kia Sorento range here.
Rounding out the final three, the reigning champ Toyota Kluger was hard for judges to ignore as a solid all-rounder worthy of making the large SUV shopping list.
The Kluger took the title in 2023 for being cheap to service and fill at the bowser, combined with a comfortable and practical package that ticks all the boxes for buyers.
In 2024 the Kluger range dropped pure-petrol power entirely, with the sole choice now the hybrid which combines a 2.5-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with two electric motors and a small battery pack.
Only the top-spec Grande falls outside of the $80K limit, with the line-up starting from $60,920 plus on-road costs for the entry-level GX.
Read more here about the Toyota Kluger range, and here to learn about its 2024 Drive Car of the Year category victory.
The Drive Car of the Year Best Large SUV Under $80K will be announced on 24 February 2025.
The below was published on 15 November 2024:
Welcome to the where Australian families come to shop. The Best Large SUV Under $80K category is the heartland of value-packed, seven-seat, do-everything vehicles set to adorn driveways and carports around the nation.
This segment makes up around 10 per cent of all new car sales and are the cars that will see bags flung, seats stood, chips lost, crumbs spilt, and be “are we there yet” asked on a daily basis. These verstaile are expected to work hard under the demands of family life.
The current category winner, the Toyota Kluger, has held the title for the past three years with judges rewarding its durable and flexible nature plus the cost-effective running costs garnered from its efficient hybrid driveline. For the 2025 awards though, the Toyota has some serious competition.
This is a predominantly urban-focussed category where DCOTY judges will prioritise on-road performance and family functionality over outright off-road skillsets, noting too that seating for seven is always considered, but not crucial for eligibility.
If you are shopping for a big SUV that needs to head out of town, many of the cars eligible for this award also fit into the Best Off-Road SUV under $80K category, where the weighting is more focussed on how these big SUVs manage the road less travelled.
In terms of contenders, the Kluger now has some hybrid competition from the new Hyundai Santa Fe and Kia Sorento. While the full Santa Fe range can be considered, all bar the Sorento plug-in hybrid are in contention from the Kia camp, owing to its over $80K price.
Still talking hybrid, the big GWM Tank 500 is also in the running. Taking a slightly different approach to electrification than the Toyota, Kia, and Hyundai, the GWM uses its petrol-electric combination for punch rather than economy.
There’s a Toyota showroom challenge in the form of the new Toyota LandCruiser Prado, which in GX and GXL trim, falls just within the category’s price cap (GXL from $79,990 before on-road costs). Yes, the Prado is predominantly considered an off-roader, but there are plenty that earn their keep on school runs and shopping trips.
Also more off-road focussed, but still eligible in this category is the updated Jeep Wrangler Unlimited, which switched its V6 engine for a more torquey four-cylinder during 2024.
Showroom battles aren’t limited to Toyota either, with Mazda’s large five-seat CX-70 and seven-seat CX-80 both eligible for this category. Not all variants come in under the $80,000 price cap, but even with this in place there is plenty of choice for Mazda buyers within the category fight.
Rounding out the field, and leading from a value position, is the freshly updated LDV D90 SUV.
All nine contenders have plenty to offer the families of Australia, with judges set to pay particular attention to value both at purchase and through ownership, to see if any of the newcomers can topple the top-selling Kluger from its leading position.
FAQs
Which cars are eligible for this category?
Drive's rules require that, for a car to be eligible, it must:
- Be all-new or significantly updated.
- Be on sale with customer deliveries commenced by 31 December 2024.
- Retail examples be made available for Drive to road test before that cut-off date.
- Pricing cut-offs exclude discounts and limited-time offers.
| Contenders | Not here in time |
| – Cars that are all-new or significantly updated since they last contested Drive Car of the Year. – New categories are open to all cars that fit category requirements. – Last year's winner is an automatic inclusion. | – These cars meet category requirements, but are not due to arrive in time for Drive Car of the Year 2025 judging. |
| GWM Tank 500 Hyundai Santa Fe Jeep Wrangler Kia Sorento LDV D90 Mazda CX-70 Mazda CX-80 Toyota Kluger (defending) Toyota Prado | Skoda Kodiaq Hyundai Palisade |
What are the next steps?
The winner of the 2025 Drive Car of the Year – Best Large SUV Under $80K will be announced in February 2025.
Before then, we will announce the finalists, all of which deliver tough, roomy and practical transport for growing and active Australian families.
Read more:
Drive Car of the Year 2025 is a go!
Drive Car of the Year Overview
Drive Car of the Year 2024 winners
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