Holden Captiva MaXX Review

Overview

The gearbox control logic should not be doing this with any newer age cars. The Captiva MaXX's engine struggles to push the car forward, especially on an incline. Speaking of longer trips, I hope you are not planning on using a trip computer. Why? The cruise control seems to quite buggy as well. In any other vehicle with an electronic throttle this problem would be unheard of. One positive thing about the Captiva MaXX is that it does manage to grip the road very well. In conclusion, the Captiva MaXX has more cons than pros.

Details

If you take a look under the hood you will find the 3.2 liter V6 engine. The engine runs pretty smooth and doesn't make very much noise. Though it may seem like a great engine the toque just does not add up. The vehicle is very heavy and the engine really has to do some work to pull its weight. This is definitely noticeable when driving the Captiva MaXX and could use some improvement. One of the most annoying things that will happen while you are driving though is the constant dropping back of the gearbox to ascend even the smallest hills. The gearbox control logic should not be doing this with any newer age cars. You will find yourself changing between two gears numerous times while going up a single hill. This is completely unnecessary and could have easily been avoided.

Unfortunately the Holden Captiva MaXX appears to have been left behind in this spout of recent changes. This was pretty surprising and disappointing to me, since the car was recently released. The gas mileage you get will remind you of driving older SUVs and that certainly is not a good thing. As far as the ride goes, it is anything but smooth. The Captiva MaXX's engine struggles to push the car forward, especially on an incline. Since the engine is 3.2 liter V6, this was another shocking disappointment. The seats are not very comfortable and would be quite a pain to deal with on longer trips. Speaking of longer trips, I hope you are not planning on using a trip computer. Why? Because it doesn't even have one! I couldn't believe this was a feature that wasn't found in the car. The Captiva MaXX is the most expensive model and should at least have a feature that is this useful and small.

Many people tend to dislike SUVs for their daily traveling. Since they are quite hefty and large, they often get extremely poor gas mileage. With today's gas prices bouncing around sporadically, that can be a big deal breaker when choosing a vehicle to purchase. However, many manufacturers have taken note of this as well, and have made some changes to improve the cost and value with the newer age vehicles.

The problems certainly don't end there. The cruise control seems to quite buggy as well. It can get pretty jumpy when driving on a road with quite a few hills on it. If you ascend a big hill you will see your speed drop greatly. In any other vehicle with an electronic throttle this problem would be unheard of.

The interior of the vehicle is just as disappointing as everything else. In fact, it appears that the car has been stripped at a chop shop! If you open the rear door you will notice markings that show the existence of a first aid kit and also a warning triangle. However, once you look in the panel there is nothing there. The items that should be found here are considered accessories and cost extra to obtain. Another confusing issue is the missing trip computer. If you go purchase the lower version model Captiva LX you will find a trip computer, but on the more expensive MaXX it is nowhere to be found. Features that did make it to the vehicle are as follows: air bags, electronic stability controls, decent controls, built in 6 disc MP3 compatible CD Player, auto recirculation switch, and an electric driver's seat. The controls and dashboard are a bit puzzling, but any owner would get used to the unusual layout. The orange and black LCD screen that displays the radio, climate control, and main display information is extremely bright. Aside from the blinding brightness, the LCD screen does its job well.

One positive thing about the Captiva MaXX is that it does manage to grip the road very well. At the same time though, the precision is way off. The steering on the vehicle is too light and falls short of where it should be. There is a large amount of noticeable body roll as well. All of these problems mixed together make driving the Captiva MaXX on long trips a huge pain.

In conclusion, the Captiva MaXX has more cons than pros. It appears like they almost put a car together, stopped half way, and then released it regardless of all the broken qualities. Many problems found with this vehicle were just baffling and made absoulutely no sense. With that said the car is definitely not worth $42,990. In my opinion the price either needs to be lowered or they need to fix the numerous problems. Until one of those things takes place I wouldn't recommend this car to anyone.