I have a fundamental disagreement.
A car should be chosen on
function first.
If your requirement is just 'get me from A to B' then you look at other things second - like getting there in
style
I had to go for function first. I needed 4 doors, a usable boot. I wanted 4WD versatility. I wanted to retain a little bit of horsepower and have the ability to tow things as required - not heavy things, garden-trailer level stuff and the like.
Then came cost. Couldnt spend more than 10k.
Then came personal preferences. If I wanted a 'usable' boot I might as well go Station Wagon - most Sedans didn't seem very practical.
In the face of all of the above (4 doors, boot, 4wd, performance engine) and in order to stay with Toyota, the logical conclusion became the TZ-G Caldina.
Had I had a bit more money i'td have been the GTT.
For the record I took a Hilux Surf for a test drive too. The jump from GT-4 was too big, though. Sluggish beast...