Originally Posted By Boshly

Couple of things, firstly the Jag looked good in the flesh, a bit bigger than I anticipated and the grill was awful (IMO) but otherwise good presence and good Jag influences and touches.

Secondly, you state above that the Aston Martin Rapide shows how it should be done yet having spoken to two car collectors and Aston fans (and owners) at Geneva both saying that the Aston is not really a 4 seater (enough room, but access, egress and vista all severely compromised) and that the Panamera in particular is a far superior car in this instance.

And subsequently back to my beloved X6 smile it thus performs a fantastic service in satiating my needs: four doors, roomy, high seating, 4WD, rakish aggresive looks (some say 'pumped up Nike' looking laugh2 but great IMO) modern reliable and practical....

There are and of course will be many others who will not want or need the above criteria and that's what makes variety great.


Your final para sums it up well! perhaps with the addition that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I have to confess that my only exposure to the Aston was in a Singapore motoring magazine which did a comparison test between it and the Porsche. They much preferred the Aston because of its presence, ride qualities and interior compared with the Porsche. The access was not mentioned - I wonder if they were not large gentlemen? Looking at the photos (as opposed to seeing it in the flesh) the Aston looked a lovely shape. The Panamera's I have seen in the flesh do not appeal to my personal taste in design (to me personally they have a rather boring shape).

I suspect that X6 is again very much a matter of personal taste and ability to meet individual needs. I just don't think it looks great from side on or rear three quarters view as the sleek roofline somehow to my eyes (and this is a personal view) doesn't quite fit in with the high riding stance. Mind you when it comes to cross-over vehicles for me Volvo seems to have got it most right with the XC90 (which probably damns my taste...) or the new Saab 9-4X may also look reasonable in the flesh. Overall though I prefer traditional 4WDs rather than crossovers.