buying a 4wd to tow a camper and explore
Submitted: Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 07:02
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Linda M4
Hi all, up until now we have been tent campers, towing all our gear in a trailer with our Hyundai i30 diesel hatch. We have just ordered an Aussie Jay Crusher camper trailer and obviously very excited about the step up.
Now we have to find a 4wd with a budget of $14000. This is the hard part. I have been using exploroz for reviews so thank you for the help so far. I was hoping someone could help further with narrowing down options please.
These are our requirements:
4wd (with low range), reasonable fuel economy, 4 seats (to accommodate teenagers),be able to tow up to 1.5t. It will be used both for towing and for getting around town, to and from work.
things that don't matter to much are: auto/manual, diesel/petrol, ute/wagon.
Although diesel/auto would be lovely, it pretty much puts anything worthwhile out of reach for us.
Linda
Reply By: Linda M4 - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 07:15
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 07:15
oh and good boot space.
AnswerID:
516033
Follow Up By: Member - Oldbaz. NSW. - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 10:46
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 10:46
$10k will get you a 99 V6 Jackaroo with only 80k on it..
Where..? carsales.com..private seller.
If you can find a better fullsize wagon for the price,,buy it...
No affiliation..just a biased Jack owner..:)))..cheers...oldbaz.
FollowupID:
795327
Follow Up By: Bazooka - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 12:48
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 12:48
Agree, the Jack is a great vehicle Linda, incredible value, great to drive everywhere, reliable, the V6 3.5l petrol engine is excellent.
The one Oldbaz mentions is an auto, if you prefer a manual this looks like a great buy (get the usual checks done):
2000 model 5 sp manual $8990, 98000km.
If you look at Jacks avoid the 3.0l diesel. The V63.2l (pre1998) is good but the 3.5 (1998 on) is much better. You will probably find many of them have done little hard off-road work. Some people bought them as comfortable touring wagons with 4WD as a bonus.
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795330
Follow Up By: Bazooka - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 12:55
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 12:55
By the way Linda, the dickie seats in the rear of the SE model in the link above (pic8) fold vertically but are easily removable to reduce weight and open up "boot" space. If you intend loading anything heavy or solid in the rear a cargo barrier or some other restraining system is a MUST.
FollowupID:
795331
Follow Up By: fisherPete - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 20:45
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 20:45
We have four jacks in our family, great very reliable vehicles. As others have said the v6 3.5 is the one to go for. We have one auto and three manuals, the main advantage of the man is much better fuel economy around town. The diff is about 100ks per tank, also the 98, 99 early 2000 models where 140kg lighter then the later wide trac models with free wheeling hubs and give better economy. My pick is the red and silver man, it looks very
well looked after. If driven for economy they will get down to 11/100(on 95 oct) and about 15 to 16 towing. trick when towing is to sit on 90 to 95.
Cheers Pete
FollowupID:
795353
Reply By: Member - Mark (Tamworth NSW) - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 07:37
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 07:37
If $14k is your budget and you are not thinking of going to extreme
places, why not consider a Hyundai Terracan.
You will get a younger vehicle with a lot lower mileage, probably in much better condition than a larger 4WD like Patrol or Landcrusier.
I wouldn't be that perturbed what type of 4WD you get, I'd be more worried about getting one with a good service history.
IF you are thinking of going to
places where you need more clearance, maybe a
snorkel and or greater load carrying capacity, then you will need a bigger vehicle.
AnswerID:
516034
Follow Up By: Best Off Road - Monday, Aug 19, 2013 at 15:59
Monday, Aug 19, 2013 at 15:59
I owned one of these and with a lift kit and some decent tyres it went everywhere the "big boys" went. Great value vehicle.
FollowupID:
796096
Reply By: Linda M4 - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 13:35
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 13:35
thank you all so much for your very helpful replies. I live in
Melbourne, so am now looking at jackaroos around here and there is 3 to choose from on carsales at the moment. I will also
check out the Terracan.
As an example of the types of tracks I want to use, I would love to do the Corryong to
Omeo, out past Nariel, trek. In the
vic high country. So maybe the jack maybe more suited than the terracan.
Thank you again, and I will post when I have bought something.
Linda
AnswerID:
516043
Reply By: Member - flashcher - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 14:33
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 14:33
The Mitsubishi challenger is also worth a look. It is mid size, has a large boot section and is comfortable to drive and ride in.
AnswerID:
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Follow Up By: Linda M4 - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 15:10
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 15:10
ok thanks flashcer, will add that to the list to look into.
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Reply By: Batt's - Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 21:00
Wednesday, Aug 07, 2013 at 21:00
If you don't mind using a lot of fuel and I do mean a lot V6 and straight 6 and V8 petrols will use a lot some people will try and tell you there ok but believe me their thirsty especially when towing and stop start situations around town & in hilly areas I've owned a few. Just to give you a basic Idea a petrol 4.2ltr GQ towing a 16.6" pop top van 26lph and a 2.5ltr turbo diesel disco 16lph same van both at 100kph.On the plus side petrols are quiet and require less
services. Depending on what state you live in when you find a vehicle you like ring the RTA & find out how much rego is some states go on weight and it cold be dearer than what your use to paying. If you already have a diesel and don't mind them I would suggest stick to a diesel and definitely something with a turbo on diesels generally have more torque which helps sorry I can't suggest what ute or wagon I think that's a personal choice to suit your needs.
AnswerID:
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Follow Up By: Bazooka - Thursday, Aug 08, 2013 at 10:54
Thursday, Aug 08, 2013 at 10:54
Diesels are almost always better for fuel economy and towing torque at the right revs but the total cost of ownership needs to be considered. The up-front diesel vehicle cost is usually considerably more and servicing, fuel and oil prices are all higher for diesels If you go CRD prepare for a rude shock to the wallet when your injectors are due for replacement! An awful lot of litres of fuel in $10 grand - which is the rough difference in price between a good V6 Jack and a comparable diesel vehicle. Unhitched, the 3.5l manual Jack delivers quite good economy, even better if you drop below 100kph and don't use cruise control.
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Reply By: Linda M4 - Friday, Aug 09, 2013 at 11:42
Friday, Aug 09, 2013 at 11:42
Thanks bazooka for your info. :)
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Reply By: Linda M4 - Monday, Aug 19, 2013 at 15:48
Monday, Aug 19, 2013 at 15:48
found this in the trading post, looks good to me, almost to good at that price, what do you guys think? Should I go and have a look at it?
AnswerID:
516689