Toyota Hilux..to buy or not to buy

Hi Ron, the hilux is a good choice as my nephew had one and was in love with it. He sold it as he was given a company vehicle and has regretted the move ever since.

I used to own a 97 80 series Landcruiser running duel fuel. That was up until early december when I bent it and the insurance company wrote it off. Luckily I was able to get a 96 HDJ 80 (turbo diesel) to replace it and from my experience there are many good 80 series out there at some reasonable prices. It all depends on what you want and what you need. Perhaps 95 to 96 is going a little far back for you?

Duel fuel or diesel turbo cruisers are on a par performance wise as far as I am concerned so I believe you could not go wrong either way.
There is not much in it when it comes to economy either. Depends whether you like the smell of diesel or your fuel is just a means to get you somewhere you want to go.
Regards,
Gazal

Hello Ron,
I own a 2006 SR5 Dual Cab D4D 4WD Hilux. It has plenty of power for your application. It tows a fully-laden hard-floored offroad camper trailer (810 kg dry weight) with ease, so it will handle your camper without a problem.

The Hilux will probably not be as comfortable as your Jackaroo. For me - used to 4WD vehicles - its ride is quite acceptable. Given the popularity of the vehicle, many thousands of drivers would probably agree with me. It is now more car like than previous models.

As for the cabin, I'm 6 foot 5 inches tall and find the driver's seat, leg room and headroom quite adequate. Sitting in the rear seat is not comfortable for me over long distances !

When laden and driven legally, fuel use is around 10l/100km. My vehicle has all-terrain tyres and plenty of accessories as it has been modified for offroad work. In new condition and unladen, the current Hilux is supposed to achieve 8.5 l/100km. This figure can only be achieved with a cyclonic tail wind or a long downhill run !You would find a Hilux considerably more economical than a Troopy as it has a motor a least a full litre smaller, maybe a litre and a half.

My vehicle has a canopy on the rear tub. Keeping the dust out is a battle when offroad. However, the plus side is definitely its ability to carry a load. A late model Hilux will carry 4 adults in considerable comfort plus all their baggage.

People tend to buy the Hilux because of its reputation for longevity, reliability and resale. Mine has done 70,000 km and the only fault has been a blown cabin light bulb.

Good luck with solving your delimma.
Netnut

Hello Ron. I too have recently ditched my 4jx1 Jackaroo Diesel after 7 years of faults and worry. Cut my losses and wore the low trade in value as I could not sell it privately and look a buyer in the eye and try and convince them they are doing the right thing. Reliability was not there. I ended up with a new 3.2 Diesel Dual cabTriton about 5 months ago and have been really happy with it so far.

Holden/Isuzu have lost me as customer.

I started out going for a Hilux but soon found the dismal trade in value dropped my targets a little lower. I also had some feedback from a relative who drives Hiluxes in the open cut mines here in Victoria who mentioned they were experiencing some reliability issues with the new Hiluxes with clutches and injectors. He has driven my new Triton and feels it is easily a comparable vehicle to the Hilux. After having so many issues with the Jackaroo I wanted to minimise the impact of breakdowns. The Triton comes with the Mitsubishi 5/10 warranty which won't hopefully have to be utilised.
You could join the Newhilux or Newtriton forums and read the comments people have about their vehicles.

Regards Craig