XD351

You cant go wrong with a toyota hilux turbo diesel. A mate has got one, 2007 model, he does a lot kms of city driving and a little bit of country driving. He gets between 750km and 1100kms per tank. They are also very nice to drive.
We have a 1992 hilux non-turbo diesel and its a great 4x4.
Hope this helps

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Junkie

I looked at all of the above utes when looking for mine, and the Hilux came out best. For a 4x4 i wouldnt go anything other than diesel, especially if you want to do a bit of camping and offroading. Stay away from the tritons, I have heard that they are cheap and nasty. And I have never been a fan of the Rodeo/Colorado.

I think that you would be best off at looking at the Lux or the Nav, forget the other two.

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Simex_Mav

Look, out of what you have there the Hilux and the Navara are stand out cars.

In most comparisons ive seen the hilux wins over the Navara but they are both still very nice cars.

The navara is a little more exposed underneath and can be damaged easily but dont let that put you off it, if allot of offroading isnt really planned. There still a great car. The Hilux like I said, wins alot of reviews etc.

Check out 4wdaction forums for the reviews on both the cars.

As for the Holden.. its brand new not amny ppl have them and therefore I cant see too many opinions being put forward on them.

Cheers Rhys

lala85

Hey,

go buy the 4x4 australia (october 2008) front cover says bush brutes!, okay they've done a review.
The catagories judged on were as word for word summarised in mag:

Value - is judged according to a cvehicle's equipment level, safety features and price relative tp its direct competitors

Breaking Ground- refers to advancements in technology and design. If a vehicle has the latest safety features, engine technology or advanced driveline, it will score well

Built Tough- is the obvious one, it refers to how strong a vehicle is and how well it will cope with the rigours of tough off-road driving environments

Doing the job- is judging according to a vehicle's design brief. In the case of a dual-cab ute, we look at how well it carries a load, how comfortable it is and how it performs

Bushability- refers to how well a vehicle is equipped for aussie off-road travel. Suitability of the standard tyres for rough roads, touring range and underbody protection are factors that are considered.

And they came in at:

7th place- Mitsubishi Triton GLS
6th place- Holden Colorado LT-R
5th place- Mazda BT-50 SDX
4th place- Navara D22 ST-R
3rd place- Ford Ranger XLT
2nd place- Toyota Hilux SR5
1st place- Nissan Navara D40 ST-X

I hope this helps you out....

cheers
Laura

Junkie

Hey Rhys,
Dont know how many people actually know this, but the Colorado is actually identical to the Rodeo, in fact it is the same car. Holden lost the rights to the name "Rodeo", as Isuzu
didn't want to re-sell the name to Holden. So, Holden had to come up with a new name, Colorado.

How do I know this....? my old man works for Holden at Fisherman's Bend

Cheers
John

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Simex_Mav

Yeah i know its replaced the rodeo, i had heard of a large engine being offered in it.. something to compete with the large v8 pick ups.

Don't know how solid that is but. Either way if its the same as a rodeo dont get it haha there are much better choices lol

Brindi Pixie

I reckon your best bet would be a Hilux. Never heard of anything going wrong with them but as with all 4x4's check the chassis rail if buying 2nd hand to see what environments the vehicle has been in.

I have heard some nasty stuff about the newer Navaras -- have to remove the whole engine just to change the head (got this off a diesel mechanic). And if anything breaks, you're looking at big $$$ to replace.

We just bought an '01 Toyota Prado GXL. Very very nice vehicle but not what you need.

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big bear

hilux sounds like the go out of that list, just makes sure its a coupla inches higher than a stock new one and has a decent set of tyres on it for offroading (if it's the newer shape), they go hard those turbo diesel lux's.
Not as imprssed with the navara's performance wise, but i've got a coupla mates up here that have put 2 inch lift and bigger tyres on and they'll go where you need to get as well as anything else. Triton's (up here at least) seem to fall to bits.

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Scoobs

Hi All,

Thanks HEAPS for your invaluable replies! I've bought the glossies (thanks Laura, grabbed the mag you suggested!) - and boy - does it make my head spin more or WHAT?!!!!

I'm leaning (on the basis of Bush Brutes review) towards either the Diesel Lux or Nav D40.....

Between those two now boys and girls - let the gulping begin!

Cheers again for your replies - and if you want to say either way on the opted two - PLEASE!!!!