Looking to buy 2009-2011 Sport or Touring or GT WITH NAV, thoughts?

atlzbest

Member
Guys

I am looking at purchasing a CX-9 after going through all the competition (Highlander, Pilot), even GL450, CX-9 has the best handling/drive in my opinion. I know 2010 had slight appearance changes in front/steering wheel controls. NAV/backup camera/leather is a must. Some questions

1. I have gathered the factory NAV is just ok - how bad is it really with routing/voice recognition?
2. I have a couple of 2011 sport options but i lose auto headlights/leather/NAV/power liftgate. Which year model and which trim would you say is the best value for money? I like the littlle comfort options i mentioned before.
3. If going aftermarket NAV....which ones works/integrates the best with full steering wheel control/voice recognition?
4. how different is the ride from 20" GT to 18" non-GT?
5. can auto headlights and power liftgate be added aftermarket?
6. any common problems?

thanks
 
Greetings!

GL450 is nice, however, as an insurance adjuster, I see quite a few mercedes, and honestly I am shocked at how maintenance heavy they are. We are talking pages of service records just in the first couple years of ownership, on average, for most newer mercedes. Would never recommend one to anyone except those who already have multiple vehicles and just want a garaged vehicle to use "on the side."

1. Its not THAT bad. It gets the job done, just not the prettiest looking. Its nice having the touchscreen controls for nav/radio/sat, etc
2. People on here are getting FULLY LOADED GT'S with all options for 32-34k, go GT. GT is the only option with fog lights, and also with GT you have xenon headlights with electric leveling motors...you can move them up or down, a very nice option. GT has a couple of nice other features, but the xenon lights are great, and fog lights are a must have for myself.
3. See the electronics section for folks on here that have posted all the parts they used to integrate a/m nav so that all the oem steering wheel controls worked correctly, and the upper info display worked correctly.
4. The only "ride" difference is the tires, the suspension is the same, as far as I am aware. 20's are 245/50 so you get a little less "squish"
5. not sure
6. Not really in 12, for the most part, they have corrected all the past problems (not like there were that many).

Good luck!!
I love my CX-9
 
The navigation is sub par at best comparing with other OEM ones needless to say all the greater and cheaper Garmin or TomTom, etc. The Voice recognition is a joke so don't even bother to use it. It only has a very limited feature. It does not let you voice the destination and it's very hard to use.... The navigation part is ok and it will take you to your destination 80% of time accurately on target. However, I have the rear entertainment system I do like the factory BOSE 11 speaker system that's part of the nav/audio package.

The GT will give you the best value, with everything loaded you are looking at $41.5K~$42K MSRP but you get about $7K plus discount then we are talking a really attractive deals.

Most major brand aftermarket Nav should give you the controls of the steering wheel but you will lose the "INFO" button feature for the important data at the top of your center stack. The Chinese brand (I have reviewed it in the Audio section) has bad built quality and no guarantee for warranty and if you do have problems you are SOL. It's really up to you to decide....

20" wheel rides very well. The tire thickness is 50 series means 50% of 245mm. It is thick enough for having a decent ride and remaining the sharp handling and beautiful appearance.

Other common gripes for the CX-9: limited storage space in the first and second rows and for the 09 and earlier models the rear LED tail lights do not light up correctly, a few LED bulbs are aimed at angles too high or too low. Gas mileage is just so soso.

Other than that, the CX-9 is great for me. It has lots more strong points than weakness. I love my CX-9 too.
 
I have read that Bose w/rear entertainment is 10+1. My non-res is 9.1 (9 speakers + sub). Where is this extra speaker for res?
 
If you CAN add auto headlights and power liftgate after market--aren't you spending as much, if not more, than you would just getting the GT?
 
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