Looking for a new tow vehicle to replace the X-trail...$70K max and New!!!

[tk421]

Furthermore VW's gobsmacking actions have put all diesels firmly in the Greenies cross hairs now.

Well no.  Rudolf diesel's first engine was designed to run on peanut oil, and there's plenty of diesels (mech injectors) running on waste cooking oil with little to no modifications. Far greener than petrol or diesel engines. Or you could even run on algae derived biodiesel.

[UIZ733]

I have gone through the same process of choosing a 4WD (budget up $55,000, + if really impressed by something).
Criteria other that price were;
*Towing capacity of around 2.5 Tonnes with appropriate ball weight provision. Vista weighs in at 1600Kg and 165Kg ball weight.
* Reasonable fuel economy towing and commuting in city traffic.
* Must have selectable low range.
* Reliability
* Must be a wagon.
* Comfortable interior, seats and driving position.
* Reasonable suspension particularly on poor roads.
* I have no brand loyalty
* I hate squandering money (banks and motor vehicles are top of my list of those that want to ge their hands on my money)

For the money all 4WD's are a crap drive (my opinion) and the object of the exercise was to get the least crappy drive at the lowest price NEW. Look at what can be bought for $50,000-$70,000 in a conventional passenger vehicle and there are some very nice wheels available that are amazing to drive. By comparison 4WD drives are positively boring and agricultural in their road manners.
We were paying cash. Yes I own it. I do not have an ABN.

Four wheel drive vehicles that may not be crap to drive possibly include LR Discovery 4, VW Toureg and Porsche Cayenne. Look at the buying premium though! Suzuki Grand Vitara Prestige with the V6 is also an exception, however it is not up the towing duties.
Vehicles we considered were Ssangyong Rexton, (because I already had an Actyon Sports that stood up well to its duties) Mitsubishi Challenger, Prado and Isuzu MUX. Jeep looked tempting!
I did not test drive the Prado as a family member had just bought one and I drove that. Impressions were that it was solid and drove quite well, however the $70,000 drive away price was very steep.
Test drove an up-spec MUX and I thought it was OK. In fact there was not a huge difference between it and the Prado on the road. Price was about $52,000 from memory.
Next up I organised by phone a test drive in a top-spec Mitsubishi Challenger at Toowong Mitsubishi. We booked a time and was assured the vehicle was in stock. Went in at the specified time and was greeted by "no mate we don't have any Challengers in stock" You can however test drive a Triton as it is the same. I told the sales manager he had a future in 'comedy'.
Last drive was the Rexton. I could not fault the drive when compared to the Prado and Mux. Drivetrain is smooth responsive. Negatives were only 4 airbags, skinny spare and lack of availability of aftermarket accessories. We do not carry rear passenger normally so airbags were not a major problem and the spare can be replaced by a full-size. Towing limit is 2.6 Tonnes (3.2T overseas). GVM is well within our requirements. It met major criteria and allows us to do other things with our hard earned.

A factor often mentioned is the poor resale value of vehicles like SsangYong. Compared to say a $70,000 Landcruiser Prado, I know for a fact that it is not a concern. I paid $37990 for my vehicle. That is $32,000 less that a Prado. Invest that for say 5 years (the life of a modern diesel before trouble???) at 5% or put it into Superannuation at a nominal 8% and I think the sums will look pretty good. If both vehicles had private finance, the equation would be even better.

To date the Sy has covered about 6,000km with 3,000 of that towing the Vista. It tows with ease and fuel economy towing has been 10.5L/100 lowest and 12.00L/100 highest. Like mentioned in another thread, as a 'modern' 4WD, it is effortless off road and I believe it will go anywhere we want it to go. Service intervals are 15,000Km. I believe it is well capable of completing the task.

I am not suggesting anybody buys a SsangYong, I am however suggesting looking outside the 'square'. There are viable alternatives. If money is not a criterion, consider all of the above as useless junk.

[prodigyrf]

Well no.  Rudolf diesel's first engine was designed to run on peanut oil, and there's plenty of diesels (mech injectors) running on waste cooking oil with little to no modifications. Far greener than petrol or diesel engines. Or you could even run on algae derived biodiesel.

Won't you please think of the kiddies and their peanut paste sandwiches? 

Hey don't get me wrong, I couldn't care less what VW did, just that it will fire up the watermelons (see you can't trust these horrible capitalists and we need more Gummint folks!) and although it's put the spotlight on diesels, petrolheads are not getting off lightly with these Euro standards.

Streuth I've been on the rollies til the beginning of the year when I finally saw the light and Gaia's way and took up aromatherapy with my essential oils- https://yaeliq.com/
No smoke, fire, butts, ash, the crackle in the chest disappeared in a week and I'm still getting a hit while saving at least $100/week. It's my personal protest Treasurer and up yours! So I have much empathy for all you heinous, public enemy No1, oiler owners nowadays and the bludging passive smokers should always have been made to buy their bloody own

[stevem]

Vey much a personal choice - I'm a ute man as they serve many purposes.

The first word of advice and its probably been said before - don't buy the first of any new make or model. We brought one of the first new RA Rodeos back on 2004 and it was the biggest heap of junk I've ever owned. Never ending issues with sensors and all that - we sold it after 2 years when it had 40000k's on the clock, we couldn't deal with it a moment more.
We currently have a 2 year old Hilux and I stuck my nose into the Toyo dealer earlier this week to have a look at the new lux's and my mate who's a salemans there said hold off 9-12 months before buying. He said they have been heavily tested and don't expect any issues but ya never know.

If you're after something mid-sized, in a wagon configuration take a look at the Isuzu MuX - they are a really neat kit, 3t towing etc etc etc. Diesel engine will keep, or even get you better, fuel economy than your current ride. Off road the MuX is really impressive. My rellies own the TJM at the Sunny Coast and I can at test its off road abilty first hand from 4wd trips.
I wouldn't suggest the Holden varient as the Isuzu is leaps and bounds ahead with it engine etc. Mux seems to be more refined for some reason compared to the colorado. The MuX has been out for a while now too so all the bugs are ironed out unlike the Everest and the Fortuner which are new to the scene and untested in the real world.

I like the Challengers, but really they aren't a huge seller and you have to wonder how long Mitsu will keep them on the market.. and also what resale values are like.

If you want something a bit bigger than the MuX the Pajero's would be my next pic. My brother owns one (2013 model) and its been thru its paces and he lives at Mt Isa so its sees plenty of outback gravel roads. He happens to be th emanager of the TJM at Mt Isa and he came to choose the Paj after seeing all the various makes and models come into the shop and seeing how they all stood the test of time.

Prado's have never intersted me.... friends have an older model and I've driven it a few times and it's just unappealing. If ya gunna spend all that doe on a Prado you might as well just spend the few bucks more and get a proper cruiser that's built proper tough and not made flash for shopping trolley/school drop off reasons.

[prodigyrf]

"I like the Challengers, but really they aren't a huge seller and you have to wonder how long Mitsu will keep them on the market.. and also what resale values are like."

June 2010 model price was $49960 new and they reckon with 80-130K on the clock now private sale is $20-$23K but who cares when as the man says-
http://www.carsales.com.au/bncis/details/Mitsubishi-Challenger-2015/AGC-AD-18434248/?gts=AGC-AD-18434248&gtssaleid=AGC-AD-18434248
and the last of them without DPF, etc. Sheesh, who'd want to buy secondhand at that price and how could you go wrong?

[Julian Kaye]

I have gone through the same process of choosing a 4WD (budget up $55,000, + if really impressed by something).
Criteria other that price were;
*Towing capacity of around 2.5 Tonnes with appropriate ball weight provision. Vista weighs in at 1600Kg and 165Kg ball weight.
* Reasonable fuel economy towing and commuting in city traffic.
* Must have selectable low range.
* Reliability
* Must be a wagon.
* Comfortable interior, seats and driving position.
* Reasonable suspension particularly on poor roads.
* I have no brand loyalty
* I hate squandering money (banks and motor vehicles are top of my list of those that want to ge their hands on my money)

For the money all 4WD's are a crap drive (my opinion) and the object of the exercise was to get the least crappy drive at the lowest price NEW. Look at what can be bought for $50,000-$70,000 in a conventional passenger vehicle and there are some very nice wheels available that are amazing to drive. By comparison 4WD drives are positively boring and agricultural in their road manners.
We were paying cash. Yes I own it. I do not have an ABN.

Four wheel drive vehicles that may not be crap to drive possibly include LR Discovery 4, VW Toureg and Porsche Cayenne. Look at the buying premium though! Suzuki Grand Vitara Prestige with the V6 is also an exception, however it is not up the towing duties.
Vehicles we considered were Ssangyong Rexton, (because I already had an Actyon Sports that stood up well to its duties) Mitsubishi Challenger, Prado and Isuzu MUX. Jeep looked tempting!
I did not test drive the Prado as a family member had just bought one and I drove that. Impressions were that it was solid and drove quite well, however the $70,000 drive away price was very steep.
Test drove an up-spec MUX and I thought it was OK. In fact there was not a huge difference between it and the Prado on the road. Price was about $52,000 from memory.
Next up I organised by phone a test drive in a top-spec Mitsubishi Challenger at Toowong Mitsubishi. We booked a time and was assured the vehicle was in stock. Went in at the specified time and was greeted by "no mate we don't have any Challengers in stock" You can however test drive a Triton as it is the same. I told the sales manager he had a future in 'comedy'.
Last drive was the Rexton. I could not fault the drive when compared to the Prado and Mux. Drivetrain is smooth responsive. Negatives were only 4 airbags, skinny spare and lack of availability of aftermarket accessories. We do not carry rear passenger normally so airbags were not a major problem and the spare can be replaced by a full-size. Towing limit is 2.6 Tonnes (3.2T overseas). GVM is well within our requirements. It met major criteria and allows us to do other things with our hard earned.

A factor often mentioned is the poor resale value of vehicles like SsangYong. Compared to say a $70,000 Landcruiser Prado, I know for a fact that it is not a concern. I paid $37990 for my vehicle. That is $32,000 less that a Prado. Invest that for say 5 years (the life of a modern diesel before trouble???) at 5% or put it into Superannuation at a nominal 8% and I think the sums will look pretty good. If both vehicles had private finance, the equation would be even better.

To date the Sy has covered about 6,000km with 3,000 of that towing the Vista. It tows with ease and fuel economy towing has been 10.5L/100 lowest and 12.00L/100 highest. Like mentioned in another thread, as a 'modern' 4WD, it is effortless off road and I believe it will go anywhere we want it to go. Service intervals are 15,000Km. I believe it is well capable of completing the task.

I am not suggesting anybody buys a SsangYong, I am however suggesting looking outside the 'square'. There are viable alternatives. If money is not a criterion, consider all of the above as useless junk.

$70k buys a pretty high end Prado, A GXL can be put on the road these days for under $60k, I bought a GX on the road for under $54k, so maybe not a fair comparison, but I agree with you on the Ssangyongs, pretty under rated vehicles, a mate has one and it's a pretty nice drive.

[landbarge]

I would be looking at a Y62 Patrol. Some bargains to be had out there.

That's what I came here to say... cheap cheap

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[Topender]

That's what I came here to say... cheap cheap

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Some would say "Cheap" for a reason 

[landbarge]

Good value? They are at a price

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[Topender]

Good value? They are at a price

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk

Yes they are....if that's what you're looking for.  Unfortunately not for us for many reasons.

Dave

[landbarge]

Yes they are....if that's what you're looking for.  Unfortunately not for us for many reasons.

Dave

Buy what you want. You only die once

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[McTavish]

How long till you decide Topender?   There is only so much defending our own choices we can handle !!   



No pressure !!

[prodigyrf]

How long till you decide Topender?   There is only so much defending our own choices we can handle !!   



No pressure !!

Yeah you'd reckon any half decent bloke would award the winner of the best argument the dough to go out and buy his new tug for him 

[landbarge]

Buy what you want. You only die once

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The new mid range sized 4b look the goods on paper. Fortuner, Everest, Mux etc. FJ cruises look the mustard too. A lot of left over coin for mods too.

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[McTavish]

Yeah you'd reckon any half decent bloke would award the winner of the best argument the dough to go out and buy his new tug for him 

Paper Scissors Rock - he who wins gets to use his money and buy him a replica of our own !    Now that's bringing a bit of excitement to the thread.    What do ya reckon Topender - are you up for it??    Love spending other peoples money !!

[Topender]

Some things in life can't be rushed.....I've waited 6 years for this and if I have to wait another 6 months it's not going to kill me.  If and when I get to drive a few more and find a stand out that ticks all the boxes then I'll jump.  The 4WD and adventure show is next weekend so anything is possible 

Dave

[hecle]

Triton with a canopy or a challenger without... best bang for buck out there. Drove 100 series v8 petrol auto wagon for 7 years prior to the triton near on 3 years now. Cruiser a better drive 18 L/100. Triton 14L/100

[prodigyrf]

Some things in life can't be rushed.....I've waited 6 years for this and if I have to wait another 6 months it's not going to kill me.  If and when I get to drive a few more and find a stand out that ticks all the boxes then I'll jump.  The 4WD and adventure show is next weekend so anything is possible 

Dave

Worried his poor old mum too when he began pulling little girls pigtails in kindy

[Steffo1]

http://www.mahindra.com.au/auto/10000km-holiday-in-a-pik-up-no-problem/
I know the bloke who owns this & yes, he has had a few niggles with it but, for the miles it's done & some of the places he's been, I don't think it's any worse than anything else around. Plus he's the sort of cove who's never going to die wondering  . Since this trip he's been to the Corner Country & surrounds, Bribie, D.I.Point, Woodgate , Kinkuna, Burrum to name a few.
Rear seat leg room seemed better than average too although I'm no expert.
Would I buy one? Maybe not but it would certainly be in the mix if I was looking for a dual cab or similar.

Good Luck with the choice
Steve

[Topender]

Ok so I bought the wife a new car for her birthday today, so now is out of the way the proper hunt can begin for mine    I was going to take her to the 4wd show today but it wouldn't have gone down too well if I got my car first.  I did try to look at an Everest today but the dealer didn't have one 

Dave

[prodigyrf]

Mind you if you're having a mid life crisis and can stretch another $15k or so 
http://www.carsguide.com.au/car-news/2016-range-rover-evoque-convertible-new-car-sales-price-36643?utm_source=cg&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=theguide

[gronk]

After having a Challenger, I wasn't going to suggest it, but the new Pajero Sport is out in another month, and on paper, it looks OK.

Still a smallish engine...2.4 diesel with the normal high output, 8 speed auto, diff lock, traction control and terrain modes that are supposed to work very good ( which wasn't the case on the Challengers ) and they supposedly have made it ride a lot nicer.

Might be worth a look ??

[Topender]

After having a Challenger, I wasn't going to suggest it, but the new Pajero Sport is out in another month, and on paper, it looks OK.

Still a smallish engine...2.4 diesel with the normal high output, 8 speed auto, diff lock, traction control and terrain modes that are supposed to work very good ( which wasn't the case on the Challengers ) and they supposedly have made it ride a lot nicer.

Might be worth a look ??

Cheers. It was already on the list!...Will be checking all the options before diving in.  The old Toyota isn't what it used to be so I'm finding out (service wise that is)

Dave

[briann532]

After reading this thread and doing a bit of googling on Toyota, I find very little difference between the fortuner and the prado....
Maybe just me, but the seem very similar expect on price...

The prado has a bit more torque, but the fortuner looks like it might be a goer for the grey nomads.

After recently being bent over with absolutely no vaso for an upgrade to the tow capacity, knowing full well it can do it, but its Cruiser sales related, I reckon I wish I had of waited and got the fortuner....
Maybe not, but at least there is a choice now.

Towing the tubby hawk is an absolute breeze for the playdo and I'm sure the fortuner would have no problem.
Of course after having a test of the new Fraud Everest, I was very impressed.
While Personally I think the quality of the Toyota is just a bit better, the Everest certainly looks like good value for money.

As always everyone has their own opinion, but for me I tow a lot and clock up the kms, so comfort and ride always come first and I think the coil springs on the playdo work best for me.
Also has the reliability which I like and as per previous threads I do like the long range. Refuelling every day on a trip eats into my beer time......

Now to chuck in the spanner.............
Given the time again, I'd go for the new patrol Y62. $70k brand new with an abundance of loud pedal.........Overtake uphill with the caravan on the back. Yee Ha....
Damn the expense - life's to short..........

[gronk]

Given the time again, I'd go for the new patrol Y62. $70k brand new with an abundance of loud pedal.........Overtake uphill with the caravan on the back. Yee Ha....
Damn the expense - life's to short..........

The diesel 200 series has been doing this for over 8 yrs now !!   

The Playdo is a bit underpowered compared to the opposition, but as you said , it is a Toyota !!