vehicle choice
 

this has possibly been brought up many times before, but i'm having difficulty in choosing a vehicle to replace my landrover 110 CSW.
what i'm looking for is somethinig that can/does;

carry 4 adults comfortably
camping gear and food for 2 weeks (for the 4 above)
able to do an easy 70 on the motorways
comfortable to drive at these speeds
over 20mpg
range over 300 miles
cope with mild off road work ie; iceland
relaible


all of the above plus manage the dog when taking hoildays at home

as you can see, my landrover ticks some of the boxes, but not all of them, namely comfort and speed. overland, yes it's great, having to do thousands of miles on the motorways to get to such places NOT SO!

i've been looking at landcruisers and patrol's but think the boots are too small. though i stand to be corrected not actually knowing the dimensions.
oh, and i don't have a kings ransom to pay either! it's my second vehicle so about £8000 please.

any thoughts?

thanks.

might be a controvercial suggestion but have you considered a Merc G Wagen
cheers
chris

nothing is controversal. yes i'd thought of a G-Wagon, and like them but they're like rocking horse poo in the uk.

I've had one for about 5 years now and have no complaints. have a look at this link
GWOA

What about a Toyota 80 series Landcruiser? I got 28mpg from mine once on the way back from Val d'Isere loaded with people and stuff. I was doing 50mph though.
On another occasion I was towing a heavy trailer with a broken down fully kitted out 110 on, and I was late for the ferry. Doing 80mph with heavy trailer it uses about 1 gallon every 12 mins!!! But that's another story... (I got to the ferry!)
They still did the 80 series up to about R reg.

Or a Discovery TD5. Don't be put off by all that electronic talk. They're good.
Fitted with a bigger intercooler and chip they'll be as powerful as a Landcruiser and use less fuel. Very nice driving position as well. And more leg room for the passengers in the back. The Landcruisers and not too good for that.

Oh, what about the Landcruiser 3.0 Colorado? I don't know much about them really, but there are plenty about.

Good luck!

Cheers,
Matt

Too small!?
 

You might be struggling to find something that is bigger - unless you go up to small trucks.

What engine does/did your 110 have?

if it's fairly new, why not get it chipped & intercooled (if it's a Td5) or intercooled and injection pump tweeked (if its a Tdi), and then fit a discovery transfer box?

that'll give you better cruising ability (not necesseraly speed, but certainly less noise at a given speed) and with the higher gearing, you should get better milage.

on a 110 there is room under the rear wheel arches, or if it's non Td5, under the RH drivers seat, to fit an extra tank or 2, so that would give you ample range.

i have a V8 with lpg

i think that the only 110 that would give me just about everything would be a td5. however, these are still quite expensive secondhand. the tdi's have all accumulated high mileages by now and to replace the transfer box with that from a disco (and the usual intercooler/fuel pump tweak) would add more to the initial cost.

this is why i'm considering another vehicle.

like i originally wrote, it doesn't have to be up for a winch challenge, able to cross iceland (so i can go back and do the rest of it) would be good.

i also want to visit the pyrenees but it involves a 1300mile motorway trip just in the uk to get to the ferry. i just don't fancy that in a 110.

also a trip to north cape from bergen, 1300 miles each way. i just don't..... well you get the idea.

how about a people carrier on a 4wd chasis? (don't laugh)

look at this: YouTube - Mitsubishi Delica Drivetime TV Reviews

I was just going to suggest a delica. a mate of mine here in swindon has one, thinks it's great!

I agree with Matt.

For the money you cant beat an 80. I have had one for 2 years, done 50,000 miles of work and pleasure. it cost £6k with 140k on the clock. I have added / improved over the time- putting drawers in the boot has massively improved it. its a family car, work truck-towing 2.5ton sawmill, expedition truck(used as support for bike rally in Morroco). It does it all. I have spent about another £4k over the 2 years on mods but each one improves it and it spreads the cost as now it really is spot on. There are lots of people out there running them so it says a lot.
I know a few people with the Delicias and they seem to like them but an 80 ticks every box so to speak..
For work we got a new L200 extra cab and ended up selling prefering to use the 80 at over 10years old..

Hope it helps..

i've never seen an 80 series for sale. or am i loking at the wrong thing? can you seat 4 in an 80 series? don't they have just 3 doors?

I agree with Stan who agrees with this 'Matt' chappy. For 8k you will get the best 80 going. 80s are also known as 'VXs' in the UK but this relates to the spec level (top, and the only one you get in the UK). You must have seen some 80s in Iceland with tractor tyres.
Maybe you're thinking of the (unobtainable in UK, a few in Europe) TLC 75s and 78 (or even new 76) Troopies. You dont want one of them. Get an 80 off a nice middle class family with FSH - its the best 4WD deal in the UK.

Flick through my Sahara book next time you're in a bookshop - p.71-81 covers TLCs. Matt and all the rest will point out the higher-mileage pitfalls.


Ch

thanks. could someone furnish me with some pics? all i can find are colorado or amazon 'cruisers.

see above pictures I sent the other day! Not the Discovery, not the Colorado, but the other one.

Cheers,
Matt

As others have pointed out, go for an 80 series LC - they are basically the big mother of an LC with usually 7/8 seats - the grey one in Matts photos.

These were available from 1989-1998 in the UK in diesel or petrol. The recommended one is a 4.2 Turbo Diesel available as a 12valve auto and manual up to 1995 and then manual only in the UK from 1995-1998 when the 24valve engine was introduced (although you can get Jap import 24valves in Auto format).

Do a search on Autotrader for landcruiser with 4.2 as a keyword, that will filter out all the Colorados and petrol models.

They are often known as Amazon, although not badged as such until 1995.

£8k should get you one for around £5k with 100-150,000 miles on the clock (nothing really for an LC), leaving £3k to give it a baseline service (checking all seals, bearings in the drivetrain, replacing all oils and filters, changing brakes, etc) as well as doing a mild suspension upgrade and possibly sticking on an intercooler and/or decent exhaust to get the best performance/economy.