Hi everbody,

I'm looking for a car for daily (commuting)use. Not sure what the future will bring, but there is a good possibility I will take it to Africa one day.
Having done quite a lot of deserttravelling by motorbike, i'm not really into cars (yet). I was wondering if anybody has any experience with the Mitsubishi Pajero Pinin? On first sight it seems to be a well prepared to do some serious off roading. But how will it performe as a long distance travel vehicule? Is the (not so powerful?) petrol engine a problem, or can that be compensated by travelling light?

It would be very nice if someone who used the car could give me some info or advice.

Thanks,

peter

__________________
Peter Kik
Zaandam, Holland
peter.kik@tip.nl

I guess most people on the forum would be very intrested in how you get along with the car in Africa.

It's not the typical overlanders car, but given that large parts of Africa are travelled with 2 wheel drives, and since it's a relative new car, it will be reasonable reliable, I think it's OK to travel with in Afrika.

Just keep it light, and don't expect it to be a toyota or Land Rover.

In terms of covering the terrain it should be fine. Obviously not as capable as some of the more full on 4x4s but then most Africa trips aren't that serious - when your a long way from anywhere and you need to keep the vehicle going, you don't tend to start extreme offroading if you can help it.

2 limitations will be - 1) it looks like a flashy 4x4 which will make you more of a target (both robbery and bribes - if you look like you are worth more then they are more likely to try for bribes). 2) parts - we struggled getting parts for a 6 year old Landrover Defender and there are alot of landrovers in Africa. Apart from maybe the odd embassy vehicle, I doubt there are any other Pinins around. This coupled with the limited load space for carrying spares is unfortunate. As mentioned above, being a reasonably new vehicle should make it pretty reliable but make sure you have a supplier lined up who can ship bits in via DHS. (thats an experiance in itself as most countries impound it until you go to the airport and pay the taxes. Plus the DHS costs can end up costing more than the parts being flown in - its not a particularly cheap option. But if your broken down and you just need bits then its a way out).

[This message has been edited by Toby2 (edited 08 July 2003).]

[This message has been edited by Toby2 (edited 16 July 2003).]

Thanks for the replies. If we go for the Pinin we keep this forum informed

Peter

__________________
Peter Kik
Zaandam, Holland
peter.kik@tip.nl