im looking to buy a 4x4 for a family car and work horse towing and off road
im looking at a
landrover discovery 300tdi 1996
mitsubitshi pajero swb i think its about 1999
rangerover 2.5dse 1999
isuzu bighorn must be a 3l and 1993 ish al though this is a very square looking motor im not to keen on it
well thats my options i got a small budget of 1500 and dont really want to travel to far hence thats why these are my options what do you guys think ive been stumped for days
Top of that list would be the 300tdi the older 200 has no power the newer Td5 has lots of electrics that go wrong, just make sure its a solid one inner front arches, cill and boot floor are rust problem areas. Second the pajaro wont normally go wrong as much as the land rover but when it does its normally a lot more expensive. Range rover next but if its to new will have all the electic bits that go wrong unless you can go to a disco 3 or very new range rover where the problems seem to have mainly gone away [new owners]SORRY DONT TO ISUSI TOO UGLY
IF YOU BUY A LAND ROVER I HAVE TOO MANY SPARES TO MENTION :)
Ive had Nissan Patrols for 20 years, virtually indestructible!
Current one for 12 years.
Definitely go Japanese, unless you are a dedicated enthusiast, old land rovers DO NOT look after themselves.
I used to repair many 60s and 70s Landies, as a workshop, and the repairs that we were constantly repairing were the reasons that the Japs took over.
The old type Patrols, non coil spring, 3.3D, are around for your money.
Like all these vehicles they are large, hence potentially large amounts of rust, you dont want that.
Mitsubishi is probably your best bet.
Crank sensors etc can be an issue, just check the forums, all these problems are well documented.
A £1500 Land Rover that has been sorted for today will cost in excess of £4000.
As for old Discovery, think 4x4 Maestro van - you dont want that, trust me!
Just my bigoted view.
Happy New Year
isuzu bighorn must be a 3l and 1993 ish al though this is a very square looking motor im not to keen on it
I had one of these - in two years the only thing I spent on it was for fuel. bullet proof.
Towed anything any where at 60 mph.
My view on them now is, if I had to get a 4x4 again - I would not even consider anything else.
I hear loads of people saying this and that and land rover disco blah blah blah. I had mine for the purpose of towing across muddy fields - it was perfect.
isuzu bighorn must be a 3l and 1993 ish al though this is a very square looking motor im not to keen on it
I had one of these - in two years the only thing I spent on it was for fuel. bullet proof.
Towed anything any where at 60 mph.
My view on them now is, if I had to get a 4x4 again - I would not even consider anything else.
I hear loads of people saying this and that and land rover disco blah blah blah. I had mine for the purpose of towing across muddy fields - it was perfect.
I thought you'd be more Fiat Panda 4x4 Pearcy
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Culmstock area - Devon TRF Group member - KTM 690 Enduro
Just bought a RAV 4 for a friend at £300, fine cheap little truck, in a poncy sort of way.
Oi Ive got a RAV 4!!
More of a car with off road capabilities than a work horse but it pulled Kerry's blooming great volvo out of the muddy pits without breaking a sweat. If your looking at them I understand the petrol ones are longer lasting than the diesels, mine's a 5 door, 2 litre petrol - it does 30mpg but the car tax is scary!
I liked my Suzuki Grand Vitara, bit of a hairdressers reputation but bulletproof (i've had 2 & never had a thing go wrong with either) & with high/low ratio box & able to transfer from 2 wheel drive to 4 wheel drive on the move it was good off road as well.
Boot space is a bit limited but they are pretty cheap.
Had a disco Td5 never again, have a Y reg Nissan patrol for the last 5 years and it ticks all the box's for me, I think the older model looks the business.
well lads i ended up with none of the above i found tucked away on a far a isuzu trooper 3l td its got a far better looking front end than the big horn it also had 9 months tax and test decent tyres all round id say good condition it was up for £1800 then droped his price to £1500 but i got it for a bargain price of £1300 i think i done well there
well lads i ended up with none of the above i found tucked away on a far a isuzu trooper 3l td its got a far better looking front end than the big horn it also had 9 months tax and test decent tyres all round id say good condition it was up for £1800 then droped his price to £1500 but i got it for a bargain price of £1300 i think i done well there
300 Tdi Discovery any time, the only problem is the metal mouse. Wish I still had mine, Parts are cheap. TD5 discovery not as torqey as the 300 tdi, a nice drive however
Mitsubishi Pajero, you know they do not sell this model in any Spanish speaking country as Pajero translates as W*A*N*K*E*R, which just about sums them up
Land Cruisers excellent just the parts are an arm and a leg
No experience of Patrols
Daihatsus don't know what the new ones are like the older ones are terrible, and were known for falling over on motorways when the transmission used to wind itself up
Grand Vitara, Rav 4, Freelander well they are all hairdressers cars, used to be supplied with stick on mud graphics
Vauxhall Frontera, Stick as far away as possible trouble with a capital T
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Riding with enthusiasm upon the ragged precipice of disaster
Filled the land cruiser up £115.00 and it wasn't even empty drove to Donnington in Derby 240 miles and only half a tank left, will let you work out the maths but if I had brought the disco 300 probably would have been cheaper but may have not even made it. Nothing better off road than a good old land rover though.
Had quite a few Toyota's over the years (Hi Lux) they are indestructible and good fun on wet roundabouts
Had a V8 Hi Cap Landy - good fun, thirsty as hell and no power steering - hell that was a beast to drive and a few 110's over the years.
Wife has had a Freelander 1 since new (05 plate) and its the best thing I have ever driven on tarmac in snow and despite the reputation has been a brilliant family car (but again not a tow car.......
Dan - not driven a RAV but seen a chap embarrass a defender with one on sand (some good vids on you tube)
Worse one I ever had was a 2.8 TD Maverick - not bad off road (with a set of BF MT's on) and used to pull a 2.5T cable trailer into all sorts of places with it - but it spent more time in the garage than it did on the road
And the best thing I ever had off road?
A tiny little SJ410 I used to trial, lad has a Jimny and its brilliant (not a tow car though well anything heavy at least )
-- Edited by jt on Tuesday 31st of December 2013 08:11:52 PM
and a few 110's over the years.
well anything heavy at least 
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