Toyota Alphard / Nissan Elgrand
Discussion
Got a rarer model Vellfire G's (Gazoo) and had to go through a jap specialist broker to get it insured. Not as much of an issue with the E52 Elgrands or the more common Alphard/Vellfire variants though.
Agree with the fuel consumption though. Still went for the 3.5 V6 as I've read that there's not much difference between this and the 2.4.
Agree with the fuel consumption though. Still went for the 3.5 V6 as I've read that there's not much difference between this and the 2.4.
designforlife said:
Both a non issue.
Use Toyota/nissan main dealer for parts, or Amayama.com if you don't mind waiting a couple weeks.
Insure through brokers who are used to dealing with imports.
Exactly this. I've had more trouble/delays getting parts for UK supplied cars that are 10 years old than for a 23 year old imported Toyota.Use Toyota/nissan main dealer for parts, or Amayama.com if you don't mind waiting a couple weeks.
Insure through brokers who are used to dealing with imports.
The only thing I'm concerned about is how long it'd take to source a windscreen if there's no UK counterpart. And that's only because I haven't had to yet.
2005 E51 Elgrand 3.5 Highway Star owner here, have been since 2019.
Insurance - This has never been an issue for us. Direct Line seem particularly competitive on these. We pay <£250/annum, fully comp on 4k miles a year in the South East.
Most mechanical parts (at least those which are common failure or service items) are readily available. As mentioned above, some parts are shared with other Nissan UKDM vehicles anyway (X-Trail, Murano, 350Z etc), which helps. There are a number of specialist Elgrand service/repair places as well as online parts suppliers out there and prices are not silly, but you will struggle to get genuine Nissan parts in many instances.
The bigger struggle is for some body panels - in particular OEM bumpers, side trims, grilles, headlamps....these will cost you an arm/leg due to demand and obsolete from Nissan, so it'll be second hand parts only if you do end up having a bump.
Fuel Economy (on the 3.5 Elgrand at least) is something to be aware of - 18-23mpg on average. Upto 25mpg on a run. And they need to be run on V-Power. This gets expensive on longer trips, but I wouldn't change it for the world. Very versatile and comfortable vehicle.
Insurance - This has never been an issue for us. Direct Line seem particularly competitive on these. We pay <£250/annum, fully comp on 4k miles a year in the South East.
Most mechanical parts (at least those which are common failure or service items) are readily available. As mentioned above, some parts are shared with other Nissan UKDM vehicles anyway (X-Trail, Murano, 350Z etc), which helps. There are a number of specialist Elgrand service/repair places as well as online parts suppliers out there and prices are not silly, but you will struggle to get genuine Nissan parts in many instances.
The bigger struggle is for some body panels - in particular OEM bumpers, side trims, grilles, headlamps....these will cost you an arm/leg due to demand and obsolete from Nissan, so it'll be second hand parts only if you do end up having a bump.
Fuel Economy (on the 3.5 Elgrand at least) is something to be aware of - 18-23mpg on average. Upto 25mpg on a run. And they need to be run on V-Power. This gets expensive on longer trips, but I wouldn't change it for the world. Very versatile and comfortable vehicle.
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