Cheapest to run 4x4 around £3.000
Discussion
Hey guys
So, I live rural now, girlfriend didn't like Aberdeen so last year we moved further in land to a village. We have had fairly heavy snow twice since we moved last August, the salt truck doesn't make it to my street so it can get really rather treacherous. Without going into detail of the circumstance, I had to tow her out three times to get her to the main road, she has a Corsa C on good quality winter tyres but it just gets bogged down in deep snow, my Cherokee gets through it no problem, so she tends to borrow that, but because of our work circumstance sharing the one car is not really working.
Her commute is short anyway so we decided to sell the Corsa and get another 4x4 for her before winter hits again, though we don't know what to get, she is looking ideally for something that is not much more expensive to run than her Corsa, although I know that is unrealistic. Also it she would like to try some pay and plays, I have taken her along to plenty as a passenger and occasional driver in my Cherokee, would be great fun doing some together.
Had a look at a few things, I am thinking about a Suzuki Jimny, small N/A petrol can't cost that much to run and the whole truck weighs less than a most modern hatchbacks, being as I grew up in Russia my immediate response would be a newer FI Lada Niva as they literally go on forever and are fairly economical but I was disappointed to learn how rare they are now... and the fact everyone here laughs at them
. A part from those 2 vehicles I really don't know what else is out there, she would love a Wrangler, and as much as would be a great little brother to my Cherokee they hold their value far to well. I can't think of what else would work, I know some of the bigger stuff can be very cheap to run too (my Cherokee for example, 2 years with no more than consumables and just over 30mpg), our neighbour has recommended us an Isuzu Trooper 3.1. A friend I offroad with is trying to force a Land Rover on us! .
Any suggestions? We are in no real rush to buy, just need something before the snow hits in November.
So, I live rural now, girlfriend didn't like Aberdeen so last year we moved further in land to a village. We have had fairly heavy snow twice since we moved last August, the salt truck doesn't make it to my street so it can get really rather treacherous. Without going into detail of the circumstance, I had to tow her out three times to get her to the main road, she has a Corsa C on good quality winter tyres but it just gets bogged down in deep snow, my Cherokee gets through it no problem, so she tends to borrow that, but because of our work circumstance sharing the one car is not really working.
Her commute is short anyway so we decided to sell the Corsa and get another 4x4 for her before winter hits again, though we don't know what to get, she is looking ideally for something that is not much more expensive to run than her Corsa, although I know that is unrealistic. Also it she would like to try some pay and plays, I have taken her along to plenty as a passenger and occasional driver in my Cherokee, would be great fun doing some together.
Had a look at a few things, I am thinking about a Suzuki Jimny, small N/A petrol can't cost that much to run and the whole truck weighs less than a most modern hatchbacks, being as I grew up in Russia my immediate response would be a newer FI Lada Niva as they literally go on forever and are fairly economical but I was disappointed to learn how rare they are now... and the fact everyone here laughs at them
. A part from those 2 vehicles I really don't know what else is out there, she would love a Wrangler, and as much as would be a great little brother to my Cherokee they hold their value far to well. I can't think of what else would work, I know some of the bigger stuff can be very cheap to run too (my Cherokee for example, 2 years with no more than consumables and just over 30mpg), our neighbour has recommended us an Isuzu Trooper 3.1. A friend I offroad with is trying to force a Land Rover on us! .Any suggestions? We are in no real rush to buy, just need something before the snow hits in November.
loskie said:
Forester or Outback, yes I know they are bigger than a Corsa but what do you expect?
Panda 4x4 common in the Alps.
Oh she doesn't really care about the size, small tends to just be cheaper to run, which is why the cars we looked at where small, as I mentioned in the post we are open to something bigger if they are known to be cheap to run.Panda 4x4 common in the Alps.
Panda 4x4 is a great idea I never considered. I have have had bad experiences with Subaru's would never pick one up if I am looking for cheap running!
I would strongly recommend a Jimny, although I will warn you they are not as good on fuel as you would think, the little buzzy petrol really struggles to maintain early 30s MPG, other than that mine has cost buttons to run and abuse, the only major breakage has been of my own doing .
EDIT: I too would also recommend an Isuzu Trooper, they are probably one of the toughest old trucks out there, drive like pigs though and aren't the best on fuel.
For larger options you get a LOT for your money in one of the older Kia Sorento's, they actually perform better than they look off road & have a proper body on frame design with a modern diesel which will net 30+mpg without breaking a sweat.
.EDIT: I too would also recommend an Isuzu Trooper, they are probably one of the toughest old trucks out there, drive like pigs though and aren't the best on fuel.
For larger options you get a LOT for your money in one of the older Kia Sorento's, they actually perform better than they look off road & have a proper body on frame design with a modern diesel which will net 30+mpg without breaking a sweat.
Edited by caelite on Thursday 3rd August 21:42
Just a random suggestion that is completed and entirely unbiased of course....
LR Freelander? Most of the petrol ones have had their 'phase' with head gaskets over and done with (fixed once and fixed properly they don't reoccur in my experience) and the only other common issue is the VCU - which is all of £200 and 30 mins of spannering to fit a refurbished one. You could pick up a decent 1.8 petrol one for half your budget, slap some decent tyres on it, swap over the VCU and still have £1000 left over.
Diesel ones use BMW engines - so are pretty economical and robust in that department. For around £2000 you can get a pre-facelift one - the later 03/04 onward ones cost more / look more modern but are ultimately the same vehicle underneath. Any other LR products would be a bit maintenance-intensive in the sub-£3k market (I say this as a Discovery 2 owner - it isn't the cheapest thing on the planet to run) or probably too big/overkill for your purposes.
Petrol-engined stuff will cost more in fuel - but a lot less to go (expensively) wrong than a diesel so it depends how many miles you do. Any 4x4 costs more to run/maintain than a 2WD car - I run on the theory that it makes sense to go for one that has plentiful and cheap parts readily available in this country, with a big support base on the web and locally you can call on if it needs tinkering with.
Other than that, any Subaru is pretty bombproof especially in non-turbo 2.0 form. Forester/Legacy would be my go-to choice if I suddenly had to swap the Disco for a car-like replacement - since it's easier to find a non-thrashed, non-modified example compared to an Impreza.
LR Freelander? Most of the petrol ones have had their 'phase' with head gaskets over and done with (fixed once and fixed properly they don't reoccur in my experience) and the only other common issue is the VCU - which is all of £200 and 30 mins of spannering to fit a refurbished one. You could pick up a decent 1.8 petrol one for half your budget, slap some decent tyres on it, swap over the VCU and still have £1000 left over.
Diesel ones use BMW engines - so are pretty economical and robust in that department. For around £2000 you can get a pre-facelift one - the later 03/04 onward ones cost more / look more modern but are ultimately the same vehicle underneath. Any other LR products would be a bit maintenance-intensive in the sub-£3k market (I say this as a Discovery 2 owner - it isn't the cheapest thing on the planet to run) or probably too big/overkill for your purposes.
Petrol-engined stuff will cost more in fuel - but a lot less to go (expensively) wrong than a diesel so it depends how many miles you do. Any 4x4 costs more to run/maintain than a 2WD car - I run on the theory that it makes sense to go for one that has plentiful and cheap parts readily available in this country, with a big support base on the web and locally you can call on if it needs tinkering with.
Other than that, any Subaru is pretty bombproof especially in non-turbo 2.0 form. Forester/Legacy would be my go-to choice if I suddenly had to swap the Disco for a car-like replacement - since it's easier to find a non-thrashed, non-modified example compared to an Impreza.
All the Alpine villages around here are full of either Panda or Swift 4x4s. There are also lots of Subaru 'G3X' which is a 4x4 Suzuki Ignis but I'm not sure they were sold in the UK. You could also look for a Vitara which I guess will fit the bill nicely as well.
To the poster suggesting a Freelander, you need to be very careful it's actually still 4x4 - a lot of them have been converted to FWD after the rear diff implodes.
To the poster suggesting a Freelander, you need to be very careful it's actually still 4x4 - a lot of them have been converted to FWD after the rear diff implodes.
Panda 4x4 or Jimny or Mitsubishi Pajero Junior (similar size to the Jimny). The Mitsubishi's are imports only, but we had one and loved it. 1 litre petrol, 4x4 etc. Comes in auto or manual too. You can see them already imported and for sale now and again. The newly imported ones are more expensive. (imported from Japan).
All we did was stick some chunky winter tyres on and it was awesome in all weather.
All we did was stick some chunky winter tyres on and it was awesome in all weather.
Edited by seadragon on Friday 11th August 20:39
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