kiteboy dave said..

smicko said..
How many k's you doing a week Dave?

Varies.. up to 750.

There is 50-50 possibility I'll get a work car in the next few months, which would drop it right back to <100.

I was gonna suggest a tb48 but fark that if you're doing 700k a week, not at 18lt/100. A 3lt gu will do your head in if you're used to driving something with a bit of poke, they really are a slug, as is a td42 unless you throw lots of coin at it and then they're just as thirsty as a tb48.
If you can hold out till you know if you'll have a work bus then a tb48 would be well worth a look, plenty of grunt, as good as anything off-road, bulletproof drivetrain and service costs are minimal. You just gotta be prepared for 18/100.

If you don't need to climb mountains or tow your camper through soft beach sand than a Paj is probably about your most economical option, both purchase price wise and service and running costs.

It's worthwhile also doing your sums on petrol v diesel running costs, service interval on diesel is half that of pettys and more costly per service, do an injector pump and your generally up for at least 3k, not to mention initial purchase price. I've had over a dozen 4wd's of various breeds and have always been a staunch diesel man, but that was before you needed scan tools and a doctorate to service one, I wouldn't want to go sticking my head under the bonnet of a modern common rail diesel, but I'm happy doing my own servicing on my Patrol.

It all comes down to what you want it to do, if you want to go rock climbing and lots of high speed gravel and corrugations IFS sucks, they don't have sufficient wheel travel and you'll split CV boots and be forever throwing money at maintenance. That's where a live axel front end comes into it's own and there's really only two options there Cruiser or Patrol. If on the other hand you just want to be doing a bit of beach work and medium duty track work then you've got the Paj, Prado, Cherokee etc.

As an aside, by far the most capable 4wd's I've driven have been Landrovers, the Defenders,the Disco's and Rangies up to the end of the live axel jobbies are all amazing off-road. It's just their quality control and that drive train made of cheddar that let them down. I have no experience with Jeep.

^ That thing looks like a beast and i want one, but i would not like the fuel bill for it!!!!

http://www.pickles.com.au/cars/item/-/details/CP-08-12--Built-07-12--Toyota--Hilux--KUN26R-MY12-SR-Double-Cab--Cab-Chassis-Dual-Cab--5-Seats--4-Doors/452212262 (example that one over priced)

easy to service go anywhere Don't have all the bull**** modern gimmicks! go turbo diesel anyday ! cruizers and patrols better for towing but heavier on fuel The personal carrier is one of the best 4*4 ever built with the 4.4 lite straight 6

See what you can pick up Pajero / Prado wise. I am on my 4th Prado and they go anywhere I have pointed them. Gunbarrel, Cape, Uluru etc etc. You should be able to pick up a reasonable 150 for 25k. If you find you want more grunt you can get the ECU remapped and they'll jump from the 105kw upto around 155-160kw. That will also increase the torque heaps if your going to tow a CT or a boat. I tow a kk with mine and whilst you can feel it it still has more than enough grunt to overtake at highway speeds.

sameh said..
We run patrols, cruisers and pajeros in the fleet. Cruisers are the benchmark but 25 k buys a really old worn out one. Patrols are reliable, but rough and ergonomically challenged. small engine pushing a brick. Pajeros are under rated you would pick up a much later model for 25k than the cruiser, drive much nicer than the patrol, tow as well as the patrol and have a better warranty. Unless you are planning on doing the gunbarrel regularly they will go most places the other two will. My personal opinion is if the company is paying always go the cruiser. If its coming out of my pocket i would get a late model paj, best bang for buck.

Sound advice.

I'm a bit based against the paj for 2 reasons: I had a 98 petrol manual, it was slow as a wet week and drank like an irishman as well. I spent 5k on it in the last year before I sold it for 5k. Secondly my mate bought a newer one, 2 months later there was some major fault that was going to be 7k to fix. Not sure exactly but he mentioned ecu or wiring loom. Not engine as such, there was still a risk that would go later. Neither of these are great reasons I know. I'll have a look at some see if anything grabs me..

smicko said..

kiteboy dave said..

smicko said..
How many k's you doing a week Dave?

Varies.. up to 750.

There is 50-50 possibility I'll get a work car in the next few months, which would drop it right back to <100.

I was gonna suggest a tb48 but fark that if you're doing 700k a week, not at 18lt/100. A 3lt gu will do your head in if you're used to driving something with a bit of poke, they really are a slug, as is a td42 unless you throw lots of coin at it and then they're just as thirsty as a tb48.
If you can hold out till you know if you'll have a work bus then a tb48 would be well worth a look, plenty of grunt, as good as anything off-road, bulletproof drivetrain and service costs are minimal. You just gotta be prepared for 18/100.

If you don't need to climb mountains or tow your camper through soft beach sand than a Paj is probably about your most economical option, both purchase price wise and service and running costs.

It's worthwhile also doing your sums on petrol v diesel running costs, service interval on diesel is half that of pettys and more costly per service, do an injector pump and your generally up for at least 3k, not to mention initial purchase price. I've had over a dozen 4wd's of various breeds and have always been a staunch diesel man, but that was before you needed scan tools and a doctorate to service one, I wouldn't want to go sticking my head under the bonnet of a modern common rail diesel, but I'm happy doing my own servicing on my Patrol.

It all comes down to what you want it to do, if you want to go rock climbing and lots of high speed gravel and corrugations IFS sucks, they don't have sufficient wheel travel and you'll split CV boots and be forever throwing money at maintenance. That's where a live axel front end comes into it's own and there's really only two options there Cruiser or Patrol. If on the other hand you just want to be doing a bit of beach work and medium duty track work then you've got the Paj, Prado, Cherokee etc.

As an aside, by far the most capable 4wd's I've driven have been Landrovers, the Defenders,the Disco's and Rangies up to the end of the live axel jobbies are all amazing off-road. It's just their quality control and that drive train made of cheddar that let them down. I have no experience with Jeep.

Appreciate the advice from one who's tried them all.

Bit turned around on a Patrol now, I had thought the 3L auto got along all right around town, haven't test driven any yet, holding off till the wife can come. The only way I'd go bigger would be petrol on gas.

I would say I'm only going to be doing mainly medium tracks, beach, and some outback touring. Not really serious serious stuff.

probably time for some test drives.

/not going near Rovers of either kind or anything US made.

Mastbender said..

These are very popular here in the states, 4 x 4 Ford van, Sportsman (or Sportsmobile ) equipped. They can go anywhere and carry everything.
Maybe you have something similar where you're at.

OZZI OZZIE OZZIE OI! OI! OI!





Might blow a big hole in your budget though


stephen

I think you need a serious evaluation as to what you want from the vehicle.... The original question was " choose me a big tough 4x4"
If this is still the case you only have two options cruiser or patrol.... Or maybe unimog or okka these cars will go everywhere and parts can be easily obtained even in the most remote of places.
Upon further evaluation it seems you probably want something a bit softer something more comfortable something the Mrs will happily drive that will get you 90% of the places you would possibly want to go.
This next category would be the Pajero, Prado option. Both have about equal off-road ability and so it would come down to personal preference and budget. I would probably go the Pajero and spend the savings on equipment ( tyres suspension or camping gear )

Cord, I wonder about the advice a bloke above who is on his 4th Prado in the same timeframe as I have had one fourby that has not missed a beat. 1999 Challenger, with the old pussbucket motor........ but rock solid triton chassis, truck gearbox etc.

None of them have missed a beat either. I just don't like keeping them until they're too old. My first Prado which was the 120 kz is still doing laps around the place. I sold it to a mate of my fathers.

Admittedly it does go pretty slow as that kz motor had some big holes in its torque range.

crakas said..


And buy yourself a scan tool or a WiFi dongle to hook to your iPhone so you can get the codes, clear them and fix the thing yourself.

Sounds interesting... Do tell more.

Buster fin said..

crakas said..


And buy yourself a scan tool or a WiFi dongle to hook to your iPhone so you can get the codes, clear them and fix the thing yourself.

Sounds interesting... Do tell more.

As you probably know, you have a OBII port to access the car computer under the dash somewhere. Well.....you can purchase either a genuine scan gauge (can be hard to get at a decent price) to access this or you can buy a WiFi dongle that goes into the port off eBay for no more than $30. You then download an app on iTunes etc such as Dash Command (there are others) for around $10 and connect the WiFi to your phone an you have access to fault codes, resetting them and engine information. You can even use it while driving.

The only issue with the app on the phones is that you are not able to access the airbag systems or reset those codes.

Anyway, it will give the error codes...eg. 234779. You need to find out what these codes mean and this is where the internet is great. For my previous car I downloaded a Mitsubishi fault codes PDF for a particular vehicle. There is also a international standard for codes and what they mean, but it is better to get hold of the vehicle specific ones.

For example, you get the fault code 234779 (not a real code) and cross reference that with the PDF and it says the the "Suction Control Valve is sticking". If I took it into Mitsubishi for a SCV issue, it would have cost me around $500, but I fixed it myself in 30 minutes with a 10c "O" ring and a piece of 2000 grit wet'n'dry.

I would steer clear of any vehicle with an independent rear end (eg Pajero) for towing and carrying heavy loads as they have issues with inconsistent tire wear when loaded.

kiteboy dave said..
I pulled up at a car yard today and they had 2 cruisers (100 or 105 series) and a prado so I had a good poke through them. The cruiser definitely had the height and space that I'd prefer, Prado (oldie) felt tiny in comparison. Bit ordinary dash etc in the cruisers though, very basic.

So maybe I'm going back around the circle to a big petrol engine on liquid injection gas. That way I could run a big cruiser or patrol with heaps of grunt, lower servicing costs, and still cheap on fuel.

This one could be all right, k's not too high for a cruiser
http://www.carsales.com.au/private/details/_/SSE-AD-3889578

(Mark's favourite colour though... could be a bit hot in the outback..)

KBD that's not too shabby, being a Sahara. Priced that I am sure could be negotiated on. Wouldn't be too concerned about the colour. Wife had a Jeep for a few years, same colour, and no issues with that being a dark paint in sunny down town WA.
Always been diesel myself, but this looks like it has all the smart kit fitted already

Careful going gas option. Service stations are pulling out gas bowsers all over the place and the industry is declining very rapidly. Service station equipment is reaching end of life and is not being replaced due to rapidly falling demand.