I was in the same boat as you trying to replace my Jeep Cherokee. Money was sort of not an object (I could have gone up to 50k) and since I planned to finance the vehicle I was looking also at the possibility of modifining it without worrying about breaking lease agreement. I looked at landrovers at they were overpriced. Great cars and I rode quite a few but you are not getting enough for your buck. The new versions are much softer than original since they are considered a luxury SUVs. Now maintanace is also expensive and if you plan to keep the car around every freaking part cost a lot of money.

In the end I also looked at Toyota FJ which is a great car but too new to purchase and there is a lot of feedback in the field about problems with first year run.

I eneded up buying an Xterra Off Road edition. Great car, nice stiff ride and with few mods (better side skids, better rear bumper with extra tire, and skid plates and front gourd) it makes excellent all around vehicle. I'm taking it to Alaska this year.

Just my 2 cents....