which ute!

Jim,

I dispute your comment about the diesel Bravo/Courier having head problems. In my experience they are no worse than any other.

There are a large numbers around that have never had problems. In all the ones I know there is only one that has had the problem and the owner told me it was most likely his problem while towing and overheated.

Like a lot of comments, your source of information may be from " a mate's brother in law's mate's cousin"! It is best to document the evidence.

DW

Hi Jim,

Good call.
I have a brother in law who has owned every brand car under the sun & within a couple of years he will go around mouthing off what a lemon that particular brand of vehicle is telling everyone within earshot.

It's got nothing to do with the fact that he never services them & pretty well runs em into the ground!

LPG gas $1.02 the other day in Jurien bay

Well right or wrong its given me something to think about, I'm trading up because I don't have the time to do what's needed to keep the old bus going, so reliability is a key factor. As for the gas l had know idea the price would shoot up like that, our 100 series is on gas/petrol and the economy difference isn't all that great, so expensive gas would close that gap quickly. Diesel you'll find just about any where and still economical and less prone to breakdown...inless i have my head in the clouds.

DW,

For the record, Ian Johnston, host of "Going 4wd" has a Bravo Diesel that did its head at 150,000. I know him personally and he was told it was a common problem.

Jim.

Yes I learnt a little about that when we bought our landcruiser last year through toyota finance.

it's only a preference having auto, I'm a truck driver and jumping in and not having a clutch is just a little luxury.... rear seat space is important though. What are they like off road? and do they have the Grunt to pull a heavy trailer?

steve
All the utes at this age are more or less the same in terms of off road ability. They all have the same suspension set up with torsion bar front ends offering limited wheel travel. They are not as good as the old 60, but will do pretty much all you need to do if you put the wheels in the right spot....
Compared to the 8-10 yr old hilux triton & navara, Rodeo has way more rear legroom. (B.I.L has a 96 model -same shape as an 02 model, and it has noticably more that my '00 hilux (& 95 triton before that) .
The direct injection 3.0 isuzu diesel should have enough grunt to pull a heavy trailer. My 3.0d lux non-turbo pulls one from time to time - slow, but never stops pullin' - bit like an old 60 series!!!

how would it go for space with 3 teens across the back?

Hi Steve,

It's funny what you get used to. We travelled with our 2 kids for 6 months in our 90 Series Prado and Trak Shak. We thought our Prado was short on space! We looked at the space in the 100 series and Troopy's and dreamed on...

Mark.

Ain't that the truth.
Drawers and a fridge don't leave much room even in a large in a wagon.
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Joel