Best 4x4 for under £7k

[SLW79]

Need a temporary 4x4 for the mrs. Dont want to spend more than £7k.
Must be 5 door, diesel and reliable.
My thoughts...

X5 3.0D
X3 3.0D
ML270 CDI
Touareg 2.5 Tdi or V10 Tdi
Toyota Rav 4

Any suggestions or owner comments on above mentioned???

Thanks

Steve

[Watchman]

SLW79 said:

Need a temporary 4x4 for the mrs. Dont want to spend more than £7k.
Must be 5 door, diesel and reliable.
My thoughts...

X5 3.0D
X3 3.0D
ML270 CDI
Touareg 2.5 Tdi or V10 Tdi
Toyota Rav 4

Any suggestions or owner comments on above mentioned???

Thanks

Steve

Not all of these are within your criteria but for comparison, in our family we've had the following AWD/4X4 cars:

Rav4 T-reg (bought from new) 2.0 petrol - utterly reliable, pretty decent in the snow (didn't really exercise it on any lairy slopes though) although rear drive wasn't strong (low torque bias), and gave reasonable mpg (a little over 30).

CRV MY05 (bought from new) 2.0 petrol - utterly reliable, also good in the snow (although we didn't have a lot of opportunities during the years we had this one) but felt as though the rear drive was "occasional", you could feel it switching in on slippery surfaces, no complaints though because it never left Mom stranded, better mpg than the Rav4 by ~5.

X-Trail MY09 (bought from 6 months old and ~3K miles now at ~15K miles) 2.0 diesel - utterly reliable, best one yet in the snow, unstoppable during the 2010 winter on it's OEM tyres, around 40mpg, sometimes a little more (best yet).

ML320CDI MY08 W164 (bought from 2 years old and~18K miles now at ~50K miles), 3.0 diesel - tons of power, on Grabber AT tyres it was legendary in the 2010 snow (useless on the OEM tyres), ~26mpg. Tows so well you end up laughing (I have never been at the front of a queue), I've had 2-tonnes behind it.

Subaru Legacy MY05 (bought from 2 years old and ~19K miles - now at 120K miles), 3.0 petrol - most powerful, on Nokian winter tyres it towed things that shouldn't have got stuck in the snow, mpg is horrific (~20) but nothing ever goes wrong with it. Tows well but doesn't have self levelling suspension so hangs its arse on the ground when the car is loaded AND it's towing.

Subaru Legacy W-reg (bought 2 years old in ~2001 at ~19K miles and sold at ~130K miles), 2.0 petrol - gutless but totally addictive nonetheless because it just went where you pointed it on any terrain in any weather, poor mpg despite the low power, never had a single problem with this car in 111K miles.

Nissan Navarra MY06 (bought from new, not sure current mileage) 2.5 diesel (I think) - stiff ride but seemed unstoppable even in the 2010 snow on its OEM tyres (rated as M&S but not nearly as "blocky" as the Grabbers or Nokians), can get ~30mpg but tends to get used "full" most of the time (builder) so normally shows lower.

Defender MY04 (bought 2nd hand in ~2009 no idea of starting or end mileage - now sold) TD5 - this was chipped or mapped (before my bro bought it) to ~180/190bhp and on MT tyres would go wherever you pointed it (although they're not supposed to be much good on ice, it was never noticeable), poor mpg but reliable. Tows extremely well.


Sorry if none/not all of these are in contention but as we've had a decent range I thought I'd mention it. If you've any specific Q's fire them up here and I'll try to answer.

[Watchman]

Missed one:

Defender TDi (I think it was a 300) - these are not very powerful/fast. When loaded-up for holiday and with a small trailer behind, you have to go down to 3rd to get up the A38 at the end of the M5. Poor mpg but an absolute laugh in the summer on the beaches (it was a soft top). This one got stolen.

[RESSE]

Defender superb bit of kit (had 2 one a 200 TDi and one a 3.5 V8).

I wanted X5 for my wife but she preferred Rav 4 and we are in the same situation as you (wanted inexpensive 4x4 for a few months).

Paid £4,000 for a 1 owner/65,000 miles/full service history Rav 4 on the 1st of November - report so far:

1. Without fault.
2. Great to drive.
3. Inexpensive to insure/run.
4. A 'nice' family car (hope you get what I mean)?
5. Our new puppy loves the Rav.
6. Looks ok on the drive.





I am a big fan of the X5 and hopefully this will be our next family car

[schmalex]

I'd go for the Touareg. We have a 3.0 V6 TDI and it is very refined, quiet and well put together. It also has proper high and low range and locking diffs, which are most useful when we take it off-roading. From what I've heard, the 2.5 is a little underpowered if you want to drive it in a sprightly fashion (the 3.0 is plenty quick enough). The V10, on the other hand, has that legendary torque, but is very, very nose heavy and you pay for the power with worse fuel consumption and a tendency to go through front tyres pretty quickly.

[Dimski]

I recently bought an X3 2.0d SE to replace the Jag as a more abusable towcar, and I have to give it credit, it isn't a bad car. It has got a pretty crap ride, which is worrying as it is on smaller wheels and tires with at least some sidewall. I can't think what the 3.0d Sport on larger wheels with low profile tires would be like. Fg terrible I suspect.

But, it goes ok, does 40mpg running about, large inside, tows pretty well, and does drive well on good roads. It's already shunted the trailer around in situations the Jag would not have managed, and is big enough to chuck my mountain bike in without a fuss. Overall, it is a decent car.

In spite of that, I'm not really taken with it. I keep looking at the X5 and wondering why I didn't just sacrifice the economy for that 3.0d engine and extra comfort.

[thesyn]

Wife has an 08 X3 3.0d on 17 inch wheels.

It is absolutely great, rides well and is embarrassingly quick.

[stropley]

I've got a LWB Shogun which I do recommend but I note they're not on your list. Not sure if you'd use it but they have 6th & 7th seats in the boot, which have come in handy loads of times, and fold away completely when not in use unlike the Disco3 / early ML Merc.

This X5 looks spot on for your budget, '02 with low miles & not a coal-hole interior like most :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2002-BMW-X5-3-0D-SPORT-5...

[Dimski]

thesyn said:

Wife has an 08 X3 3.0d on 17 inch wheels.

It is absolutely great, rides well and is embarrassingly quick.

I bet the 3.0d engine shifts.

Did they revise the suspension between '05 and '08?

[billywhizzzzzz]

stropley said:

I've got a LWB Shogun which I do recommend but I note they're not on your list. Not sure if you'd use it but they have 6th & 7th seats in the boot, which have come in handy loads of times, and fold away completely when not in use unlike the Disco3 / early ML Merc.

This X5 looks spot on for your budget, '02 with low miles & not a coal-hole interior like most :
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2002-BMW-X5-3-0D-SPORT-5...

Oh my God. That interior.

[okie592]

ermmm..




The best 4x4xfar

[marmitemania]

I cannot believe the Range Rover has not been mentioned yet. If you are going along the Kraut route the ones in your price range will have BM engines in them if thats your bag. Go on do the right thing and by a proper car not a pretender to the throne.

[SLW79]

Thanks for all the useful info
Will take her to drive a few and see how we get on.
She leased a SLK200 AMG 12 months ago £250 incl vat and still have 12 months remaining. Fool proof plan until fell pregnant. Due to living in a rural location I thought a 4x4 would be useful as baby due 13th December + always wanted a big motor to fit my mountain bike in. We looked at a Dodge Nitro but she said it was to much like a safari jeep! Reading above the RAV 4 looks good!

[mat777]

Discovery 2
Maybe a discovery 3 but tread carefully

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-LAND-ROVER-DISCOVER...

[pikeyboy]

Depends on how capable it needs to be when it gets muddy or wet. IMHO x5's and 3's are pants as a proper 4x4 although they do drive like a 5 series.

rav's are a good compromise, 4x4 works well, drive like a car, not a lot of ground clearance though.

Disco's are good but have errrr lots of reliability issues as do range rovers and freelanders.

Defenders are probarbly far to agricultural.

Shogun or Land cruiser would be my choice for a proper 4x4.

If you can get away with a 4x4 estate with decent ground clearance subaru outbacks take some beating.

[SLW79]

mat777 said:

Discovery 2
Maybe a discovery 3 but tread carefully

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2005-LAND-ROVER-DISCOVER...

Looks very nice. Are these as relaible and as good on tarmac compared to the likes of X5 / Touareg / Rav etc?

[300bhp/ton]

SLW79 said:

Need a temporary 4x4 for the mrs. Dont want to spend more than £7k.
Must be 5 door, diesel and reliable.
My thoughts...

X5 3.0D
X3 3.0D
ML270 CDI
Touareg 2.5 Tdi or V10 Tdi
Toyota Rav 4

Any suggestions or owner comments on above mentioned???

Thanks

Steve

What's the intended use of the vehicle? And how temporary?

I'm a LR man at heart, so I'd recommend a Freelander (my Mum is on her 2nd) or a Disco.

I'm also quite a Jeep fan and the Cherokee or Grand Cherokee are worth a look.

Rav4 isn't a bad soft roader to consider though.

A V10 Touareg would be very cool indeed, although not great on fuel. Wouldn't bother with a 2.5 myself.

[Bill]

SLW79 said:

Looks very nice. Are these as relaible and as good on tarmac compared to the likes of X5 / Touareg / Rav etc?

Short answer: no. They're good family cars, but bigger and slower and the early ones (pre-06) have lots of (usually minor) issues. The XC90 is not on your list, but bear I mind the early ones have lots of (often major) issues.

If you don't actually want to goo off road then look at things like the Audi Allroad, Volvo V70 cross country, and Octavia Scout. All of which are jacked up estates which will tend to be cheaper and have better fuel economy and handling. You can also get the same estates as standard models with AWD with further improvements in handling.

Or you can do what I did and get a Mazda 6 estate and put it on all season tyres for about 1/3 of the money

Edited by Bill on Friday 23 November 11:10

[300bhp/ton]

Op, you might want to read up on Touareg's, I've looked into them, and while good vehicles and capable, are not the pinnacle of reliability.

If you don't really need proper 4x4 abilities you might want to look at a Subaru Forrester or Legacy Outback. Ok you'll likely be looking at petrol offerings, but they are probably quite simile pence per mile to run as most diesel 4x4's and cheaper than some on your list.

[SLW79]

Something to get is thorugh the snow or floods should the mrs go into labour! Plus always wanted a 4x4. I like the dodge nitro but she doesn't. Some people on here have suggested allroad cars such as A4 and Subaru etc. May check some of these out but 4x4 is cooler.

300bhp/ton said:

What's the intended use of the vehicle? And how temporary?

I'm a LR man at heart, so I'd recommend a Freelander (my Mum is on her 2nd) or a Disco.

I'm also quite a Jeep fan and the Cherokee or Grand Cherokee are worth a look.

Rav4 isn't a bad soft roader to consider though.

A V10 Touareg would be very cool indeed, although not great on fuel. Wouldn't bother with a 2.5 myself.