4wd - options

[cbfb]

Just applied for a loan for 6k to get myself a new car (yeah I know it's a bike site but I need a car too for practical stuff).

I want something that will tow a trailer/boat (nothing too heavy) and be good to use on the beach when I go surfcasting. And also be OK to do a bit of light off-roading in to get to huts/campsites when I go hunting or tramping with the gf. BUT it also needs to be comfortable and cheap enough for me to use for my hour round trip to work every day.

I am thinking Diesel. I have always liked manuals, and assume they are better off road than autos?

So far I am thinking a Hilux would be good, or a Terrano. But I guess a 4wd wagon could be a possibility?

Any thoughts or opinions welcome. Oh and if you know of one for sale in Palmy or near Woodville...

Cheers

[CookMySock]

Hilux Surf is the business. 3.0L Turbo engine goes real good.

[cbfb]

Hilux Surf is the business. 3.0L Turbo engine goes real good.

Sweet - do you know what the fuel economy is like? Got a mate who uses one of these on his farm reckons they are the bollocks.

[CookMySock]

The 1996 intercooled one will do about 600km on a tank (70L ish?)

The 1995 non-intercooled only did 520km ish.

The 1996 is also a lot quieter on the road at cruising speed, and has much better traction in the soft sand.

We are looking at upgrading ours (kms getting up a bit), and much as we look at getting something else, we just can't imagine not having another surf. A much loved wagon by all the family. Adequate in the soft, a tire-shredder around town, and loads of oommpf on the open road.

[Banditbandit]

I have a Nissan Terrano - 2.7 diesel with intercooler turbo ... bit gutless speedwise, but then I have the bikes for speed ...

I tow my Fryan 360 boat with it - no worries - I use it in the back country for hunting - no worries - been across snow in it - no worries .. down the beach, no worries.

It's auto .. and I don't find that a hassle off road. On snow I drop it into second and leave it there ...

It also has electric 4 wheel drive-two wheel drive select. Running it in 4 wheeel drive mode does lift the fuel consumption ..

I'm not that hooked on them that I think they are better than any other ones - but we've had no hassles with it at all .. just runs ... very comfortable long distance ... heaps of room inside and the back seats drop down ..

A good all-round 4x4 if your not looking for massive power and competitions

[cbfb]

The 1996 intercooled one will do about 600km on a tank (70L ish?)

The 1995 non-intercooled only did 520km ish.

The 1996 is also a lot quieter on the road at cruising speed, and has much better traction in the soft sand.

We are looking at upgrading ours (kms getting up a bit), and much as we look at getting something else, we just can't imagine not having another surf. A much loved wagon by all the family. Adequate in the soft, a tire-shredder around town, and loads of oommpf on the open road.

Awesome, have you had any mechanical issues I need to look out for?

I have a Nissan Terrano - 2.7 diesel with intercooler turbo ... bit gutless speedwise, but then I have the bikes for speed ...

I tow my Fryan 360 boat with it - no worries - I use it in the back country for hunting - no worries - been across snow in it - no worries .. down the beach, no worries.

It's auto .. and I don't find that a hassle off road. On snow I drop it into second and leave it there ...

It also has electric 4 wheel drive-two wheel drive select. Running it in 4 wheeel drive mode does lift the fuel consumption ..

I'm not that hooked on them that I think they are better than any other ones - but we've had no hassles with it at all .. just runs ... very comfortable long distance ... heaps of room inside and the back seats drop down ..

A good all-round 4x4 if your not looking for massive power and competitions

Yeah I drove a 2.7 diesel manual, pretty gutless aye but I go thru the gorge and back every day following campervans/nanas so not too much of an issue.

Again that sounds all good - so I'm assuming from what you've said that you've had no major mechanicals?

[spajohn]

I drive a '98 SWB Prado, diesel and auto. I get around 600k from the 90l tank, though it is full time 4WD, where are the Surf gearbox has 2WD and 4WD. It's been bashed offroad quite a bit (sides and roof) and still goes like a charm. Had it on its side for 2-3 hours, once we got it back on the rubber got it running again after 2-3 goes.

As for auto or manual loads of comp guys use Auto these days. It's better than it used to be when everyone wanted only manual. Main advantages of auto are you can gear change when in a river, and better up hill. Manual is preferred for downhill and just generally more challenge - hence less popular in comps.

I test drove quite a few vehicles before buying...Nissan were gutless even with turbo. I prefered the Prado to the Surf...Surf feels more like a car by comparison.

You pay for the name, and certainly a lot more for the diesel engine. You do the math on a 90l tank and don't forget RUC.

[spajohn]

Oh, and you can check this site for economy.
http://www.fuelsaver.govt.nz/index.html

[CookMySock]

Awesome, have you had any mechanical issues I need to look out for?

I tightened a fan belt once.

But seriously, you should check whether the coolant is clean and fresh looking. The 1KZ engine should never never never never be overheated.

[The Stranger:Me]

I have a Nissan Terrano - 2.7 diesel with intercooler turbo ... bit gutless speedwise, but then I have the bikes for speed ...

I tow my Fryan 360 boat with it - no worries - I use it in the back country for hunting - no worries - been across snow in it - no worries .. down the beach, no worries.

It's auto .. and I don't find that a hassle off road. On snow I drop it into second and leave it there ...

It also has electric 4 wheel drive-two wheel drive select. Running it in 4 wheeel drive mode does lift the fuel consumption ..

I'm not that hooked on them that I think they are better than any other ones - but we've had no hassles with it at all .. just runs ... very comfortable long distance ... heaps of room inside and the back seats drop down ..

A good all-round 4x4 if your not looking for massive power and competitions

+1 bought it to beach launch the boat. I wanted something cheap ($3k) that if it went for a swim I really wouldn't be upset about.

Goes great with a few cheap mods - I always take the cheap power.
I can get significantly more power from it but only problem is exhaust gas temps easily hit 800c when I cane it. Needs an intercooler to round out the mods.

The motor in these is recognised as being rock solid. The same mill is used in trucks, cars, London taxis, 4x4s, fork hoists and in a marinised version.

They say the auto is more fuel efficient than the manual on the road due to ratios. No good looking at my fuel usage as it's a fair bit more than it was standard. On the plus side there's a guy in Ausie been running his on 50/50 diesel/used sump oil for a couple of years. Can't be any worse than our current waste oil recycling program can it? The way oil is recycled in NZ is that it gets used to fire the kiln at the cement works.

I've added an auto trans cooler too which is pretty necessary for any significant towing jobs on these.

There is a common fault with rust under the back seat, so check this before you buy.

[cbfb]

I drive a '98 SWB Prado, diesel and auto. I get around 600k from the 90l tank, though it is full time 4WD, where are the Surf gearbox has 2WD and 4WD. It's been bashed offroad quite a bit (sides and roof) and still goes like a charm. Had it on its side for 2-3 hours, once we got it back on the rubber got it running again after 2-3 goes.

As for auto or manual loads of comp guys use Auto these days. It's better than it used to be when everyone wanted only manual. Main advantages of auto are you can gear change when in a river, and better up hill. Manual is preferred for downhill and just generally more challenge - hence less popular in comps.

I test drove quite a few vehicles before buying...Nissan were gutless even with turbo. I prefered the Prado to the Surf...Surf feels more like a car by comparison.

You pay for the name, and certainly a lot more for the diesel engine. You do the math on a 90l tank and don't forget RUC.

Thanks man - for some reason I hadn't considered the Prado, I always thought them a bit expensive. Will take a look though.

When you say more recent autos are better, how late are we talking? For my money I'll probably be looking early to mid nineties so don't know if that will apply.

I tightened a fan belt once.

But seriously, you should check whether the coolant is clean and fresh looking. The 1KZ engine should never never never never be overheated.

Good tip thanks will look out for that.

+1 bought it to beach launch the boat. I wanted something cheap ($3k) that if it went for a swim I really wouldn't be upset about.

Goes great with a few cheap mods - I always take the cheap power.
I can get significantly more power from it but only problem is exhaust gas temps easily hit 800c when I cane it. Needs an intercooler to round out the mods.

The motor in these is recognised as being rock solid. The same mill is used in trucks, cars, London taxis, 4x4s, fork hoists and in a marinised version.

They say the auto is more fuel efficient than the manual on the road due to ratios. No good looking at my fuel usage as it's a fair bit more than it was standard. On the plus side there's a guy in Ausie been running his on 50/50 diesel/used sump oil for a couple of years. Can't be any worse than our current waste oil recycling program can it? The way oil is recycled in NZ is that it gets used to fire the kiln at the cement works.

I've added an auto trans cooler too which is pretty necessary for any significant towing jobs on these.

There is a common fault with rust under the back seat, so check this before you buy.

Cool, good info thanks. I've heard people mention the rust under the back seats on a few 4wds, will look out for it.

[spajohn]

Thanks man - for some reason I hadn't considered the Prado, I always thought them a bit expensive. Will take a look though.

When you say more recent autos are better, how late are we talking? For my money I'll probably be looking early to mid nineties so don't know if that will apply.

I'm by no means a mechanic but as I understand it from 4x4 club guys 90's onwards would be fine. I think the essential takeaway is that it really comes down to preference these days and quite frankly it's bit of a myth, or at least old boys, that reckon manual is the only way to go with 4x4's. As I say though, if you are gonna drive it in water, the auto would be better.

As for price you are gonna pay more for anything with a Toyota badge on it. I don't recall the Prado being much more than a lot of Hilux's that were similar age (as I was looking at swb Prado) but I guess it comes down to what bargains you can find around the place.

[george formby]

Had a 2.7D Terrano & an old 2.0P Surf.

The Terrano was really nice vehicle. It was auto & a lot of heat came up from the box even though it had an oversize oil cooler fitted, if I remember rightly they have gear driven cams. Despite the heat I never had any problems & I thrashed it, lived on an 18k beach at the time so the poor thing spent hours in the dunes, had it airborne & launched my tinnie off the beach.
Bit of a pain to service though. I sold it & went overseas.

Came back from overseas & bought the Surf, cheap as chips. Lived in the same place & if anything treated it worse than the Terrano. It was cheaper to run when you include diesel tax & was better off road. Servicing & maintenance was a doddle. The engine ( same as a hiace ) was unbreakable.

The Terrano was as slow as wet weekend but the Toyota struggled to keep up which actually made driving very stress free & enjoyable. Their was no point in trying to overtake anything.

Both good vehicles so go for the best condition, youngest, lowest mileage etc.

[cbfb]

I'm by no means a mechanic but as I understand it from 4x4 club guys 90's onwards would be fine. I think the essential takeaway is that it really comes down to preference these days and quite frankly it's bit of a myth, or at least old boys, that reckon manual is the only way to go with 4x4's. As I say though, if you are gonna drive it in water, the auto would be better.

As for price you are gonna pay more for anything with a Toyota badge on it. I don't recall the Prado being much more than a lot of Hilux's that were similar age (as I was looking at swb Prado) but I guess it comes down to what bargains you can find around the place.

Lot easier driving an auto round town too, which I do quite a bit of the time. Will keep it in mind, like you say best to have plenty of options you never know what will come up.

Had a 2.7D Terrano & an old 2.0P Surf.

The Terrano was really nice vehicle. It was auto & a lot of heat came up from the box even though it had an oversize oil cooler fitted, if I remember rightly they have gear driven cams. Despite the heat I never had any problems & I thrashed it, lived on an 18k beach at the time so the poor thing spent hours in the dunes, had it airborne & launched my tinnie off the beach.
Bit of a pain to service though. I sold it & went overseas.

Came back from overseas & bought the Surf, cheap as chips. Lived in the same place & if anything treated it worse than the Terrano. It was cheaper to run when you include diesel tax & was better off road. Servicing & maintenance was a doddle. The engine ( same as a hiace ) was unbreakable.

The Terrano was as slow as wet weekend but the Toyota struggled to keep up which actually made driving very stress free & enjoyable. Their was no point in trying to overtake anything.

Both good vehicles so go for the best condition, youngest, lowest mileage etc.

Hmmm, interesting the Surf was cheaper to run, I would have put it the other way round (dunno much about it tho was just an assumption). Pretty much let the availability make the choice for me then, if a good example of either comes up will grab it.

[george formby]

Hmmm, interesting the Surf was cheaper to run, I would have put it the other way round (dunno much about it tho was just an assumption). Pretty much let the availability make the choice for me then, if a good example of either comes up will grab it.

Bear in mind it was the 2 litre petrol engine in the Toyota, the starter motor had more grunt. The RUC took any advantage out of the diesel & it had higher servicing costs. A 3ltr surf is a pretty thirsty beast too.