Which 4x4?

[Nathan Davies]

Got a budget of about £5000.

Vehicle will be used for pricing jobs and occasionally towing trailer full of wood on bigger jobs.

Looking at a vehicle that's not a pickup, thinking of something like a Shogun Sport or Discovery.

Does anybody have any thoughts or recommendations?

Thanks in advance.

[Conor Wright]

Landcruiser.

[HuntingHicap]

You could get a nice Td5 Discovery 2 for 2k, and you would have a spare 3k for if you need to accessorize or fix it. Avoid Discovery 3s, you won't get a lot for 5k and they can be VERY expensive to run.

[pie eater pete]

Shogun at that price..5k would get you a fairly hammered Cruiser..

[Big J]

I have a one owner, 55 plate V10 Touareg, which I bought in November for £5k. I then spent £1300 on it going over everything with a fine tooth comb, and touch wood, it's going well. 

 

Compared to towing with the 4x4 Sprinter (160ps), the Touareg (370ps) floats up the hills like they aren't even there. There is a hill I fairly regularly traverse called Hembury Hill. It's 110m of climbing, rearing up to about 1 in 8. Not hugely steep, but very long. The Sprinter (when towing the forwarder, at 3.2t) would be reduced to 20-23mph with my foot stapled to the floor in 2nd. It'd only just manage it in second. Same load, same hill, but in the Touareg and I'm cruising all the way to the top at 40mph (maximum safe speed with a trailer) on half throttle. So much less stressful, and only giving away a 2mpg penalty. 

 

So whilst I'd never pretend it'll be a cheap vehicle to run, the Touareg has to be more reliable than a Landrover and having owned a Disco 4, it also tows more adeptly too. 

 

That said, it depends where you are in the country. You don't need the horsepower if you're somewhere flat. It's just that Devon is the automotive equivalent of a rollercoaster ride with the inclines.

[Will C]

4 hours ago, Big J said:

I have a one owner, 55 plate V10 Touareg, which I bought in November for £5k. I then spent £1300 on it going over everything with a fine tooth comb, and touch wood, it's going well. 

 

Compared to towing with the 4x4 Sprinter (160ps), the Touareg (370ps) floats up the hills like they aren't even there. There is a hill I fairly regularly traverse called Hembury Hill. It's 110m of climbing, rearing up to about 1 in 8. Not hugely steep, but very long. The Sprinter (when towing the forwarder, at 3.2t) would be reduced to 20-23mph with my foot stapled to the floor in 2nd. It'd only just manage it in second. Same load, same hill, but in the Touareg and I'm cruising all the way to the top at 40mph (maximum safe speed with a trailer) on half throttle. So much less stressful, and only giving away a 2mpg penalty. 

 

So whilst I'd never pretend it'll be a cheap vehicle to run, the Touareg has to be more reliable than a Landrover and having owned a Disco 4, it also tows more adeptly too. 

 

That said, it depends where you are in the country. You don't need the horsepower if you're somewhere flat. It's just that Devon is the automotive equivalent of a rollercoaster ride with the inclines.

What sort of mpg to you get from the toe rag, we have thought it could be a good option but worried the v10 might be some what thirsty! 

[Big J]

1 hour ago, Will C said:

What sort of mpg to you get from the toe rag, we have thought it could be a good option but worried the v10 might be some what thirsty! 

Average is about 24mpg. Up to 30mpg on a run, down to 15mpg when towing heavy. It's really not that much worse than your average pickup, but it's golf GTI fast and seems to tow well with it having air suspension.

[Commando]

Average is about 24mpg. Up to 30mpg on a run, down to 15mpg when towing heavy. It's really not that much worse than your average pickup, but it's golf GTI fast and seems to tow well with it having air suspension.

About the same as a new shape Hilux then! Not so bad for such a big lump[emoji106]

[difflock]

https://www.autoexpress.co.uk/isuzu/d-max/352141/new-isuzu-d-max-tipper-conversion-announced-2020

[Big J]

The only thing I guess I'd say about the Touaregs is that if you're young and with limited no claims, you're going to struggle to get insurance. I think mines about £400/pa but that's a business policy.