mate needs a 4B for work

[disco gazza]

A mate of mine has a new job down here in Tassie,but needs a 4X4 to get in-out of yard(its on a farm).
He had a disco 1 before and liked them,but they are few and far between and the price of some of them are ridiculous.
He doesnt want a ute as his family is often with him when out and about away from work.
Also his budget is not the best for these strange times of high 2nd hand car prices(currently unemployed)
Any suggestions as to what would be a resonable 4b to buy until he can afford a more suitable replacement would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

DG

[Hogarthde]

DG, some of those little units ie, Daihatsu , Suzuki can be good value.
Of course if his family is more than four then no good, or a Delicia .

[disco gazza]

Those little units are not any good for my mate. He is a BIG boy lol,and his mrs isnt on the small size either.[bigrolf][bigwhistle]
Thanks for the suggestion anyway lol.

DG

[gromit]

We had a Mitsiubishi Delica for some years.
Big, cheap, 4WD. Auto common, manual less so.
A couple of companies import parts to support them but basically a Pajero with a Starwagon body.
SWMBO loved the sliding rear door (to get the kids in quick when it was raining), enough room to walk between the front seats and into the back.
8 seater, although the seat by the step folds down and was a bit flimsy, we tended not to use it.


Colin

[cripesamighty]

A family member bought a 2006 Pajero 3.8 petrol which was not too expensive and quite capable.

[Fattima]

Another vote for a Delicia or Pajero.
As mentioned a petrol Pajero can be picked up at a reasonable dollar. If he is after a four door ute Courier/Bravo are not a bad thing either and can be found pretty cheap.

[scarry]

A family member bought a 2006 Pajero 3.8 petrol which was not too expensive and quite capable.

Yes one of those or an old Prado,or Patrol.

An LC will probably blow the budget.

Hopefully he is good on the spanners as they may/will need some work.

[disco gazza]

He leaves the spannering to his mechanic...[bigwhistle]

Once he is down here,I can do most of the spannering,but some things I will leave to my mechanic.

DG

[LRJim]

needs a 4X4 to get in-out of yard(its on a farm).


If that's the only real reason he needs a 4x4 why not go for something like a CRV or any of the other smaller AWDs out there? Would probably be better if it's also a family car, I know it sucks but its probably the cheaper/easier option. At least it won't be flogged out as much a 4x4.
Ps I saw a Tdi D1 in tassie for 3k on gumtree today, so he might get lucky.
Cheers Jim

[disco gazza]

Hi Jim, he needs a true 4x4,not a pretend one with AWD.
There will be times when a 4x4 is required on the farm and a small soft offroader will not cut it.
Thanks anyway for your suggestion.


DG

[RobMichelle]

Hyundai terracan is a very capable 4x4

[I Love My Landy!]

Hyundai terracan is a very capable 4x4

Great suggestion! My mate owned a turbo diesel model and he LOVED it. Some people slag them but I bet they've never owned one. Not the most attractive 4x4, but then again it looks pretty similar to a 90 series prado which people seem to like.

[AK83]

Hi Jim, he needs a true 4x4,not a pretend one with AWD.
There will be times when a 4x4 is required on the farm and a small soft offroader will not cut it.
....


DG

How true! and what budget?

Assuming non softroader, but not a really hard core twin beam axled beast(LR/Patrol/Cruiser) type and that a IFS type true 4WD is ok, and that say a $5K budget to get 'er going, I'd suggest the Holden Frontera.
Basically a nicer riding Rodeo.
Not as capable in really hard tracks, but if big axle articulation isn't a requirement, the Frontera is fairly capable. I'd say a bit more so than the harder riding Rodeo.

I've had both. Rodeo (dual cab) is practical for family, other than the need to put more sensitive family oriented stuff in the tub, mum/dad/2kids wasn't a major issue.
But the Frontera was more family friendly in that the sensitive family stuff(ie. the stuff you don't want dusted/wet/vibrated to high heaven) the rear load space in these deceptive little 4WDs is very good.
Where the D1 had height as the benefit, the Frontera had width and length. So depended on what you loaded up in the rear.
From observation, I reckon all Fronteras had standard roof rails/racks.. so kids bikes and stuff went up there. Handy for a geek photographer looking for a different vantage point too [biggrin]

Mine was reliable enough, but if on LPG, the motors weren't up to the task(of longevity) .. worn valves if on LPG. Quite economical, and more than enough power in them.
It was also on LPG(how it was got) and I had valve issues, and pushed it as far as I could till it had to go. The only other issue was it needed pretty much all suspension bushes to be done too... very loud and crashy on rough roads.

Somethign like that I'd expect you'd pay in the 2-3K region for a rough, but usable vehicle .. maybe $5K for one in 'pay and go' condition.

Honorable mention goes to a Nissan Pathfinder too. Mate had one at the same time. Quite family friendly size, good power, but much more aggressive on the bowser(and hip pocket).
Where I'd get easily 10 or even 9lt/100 in the Frontera, his Pathfinder would get into the 12's!

In terms of 4WDing, Frontera type 4WDs are capable, but IMO, they seem to require pushing harder. I never dared to try harder bush tracks(ie. high country types), but my common off road experiences between the Frontera type IFS and the Disco1/RRC .. has been sandy tracks out in the centre(and Vic).
While the Frontera had power to burn in low range, compared to my RRC and now D1, they seemed to need it more. It really felt like they scraped the front cross member or belly, or something when in wheel ruts, and even tho the LR axle had diff pumpkins doing same, the D1/RRC didn't feel the need for the power that the Frontera and Rodeo had by comparison.

ps. the Frontera comes with LSD as standard, and it helped it in soft sand(my primary off roading experiences in them).

[reefmagnet]

You can pick up older Jeep Cherokees and Grand Cherokees for pocket change. It's true you get what you pay for, but they are capable offroaders and comfy to boot. The 6 cyl petrol is the best choice.

[PhilipA]

On the Bitsa****ti theme a mark 1 Challenger is cheap and capable.
Or an earlier Nissan Pathfinder with a new timing chain.
Regards PhilipA

[disco gazza]

Thanks for all the suggestions guys,but he,s caught the LR bug so its gotta be an LR....
He just missed out on one that had a heap of things to improve the reliability of the TD5(including a nanocom). :soapbox:
Theres a couple of others that he hopes will work out,time will tell.

DG

[Hogarthde]

DG, if a Landrover is what he wants , then a call to JC , Browns Rd . Kingston should be plan A

[4runnernomore]

As a interim I can highly recommend a Kia Sportage up to 04 . Real 4WD and surprisingly very capable. I have a little bum (smaller rear with spare tyres mounted on rear rack. I’m a real Aussie male and fit easily. Cheers

[disco gazza]

Well he,s the proud owner of a D2a now...
Will get some pics from him and put them up.

DG

[RobMichelle]

Well he,s the proud owner of a D2a now...
Will get some pics from him and put them up.

DG

Pretty sure it won’t be long and he will be on here anyway lol