best 4x4 on a budget that can tow!

china

china

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im doing my trailer test soon so im looking at 4x4's for the future. i cant afford a posh trailer so it will be a rice or similar so wont be overly light. will only be towing one as my horse will only travel on the right. most of my friends have heavier horses than me so not really an option to tow two. i cant afford a flash 4x4. £1500 max really. but i want something realiable that isnt going to fall apart when towing. im only 18 so it cant be to big and beefy coz insurance is over £1000.
i cant find any fourtraks relativley close to me for sale!
really like pajeros but for some reason insurance is over £2000 :O
i like freelanders but dont like the idea of being tipped over towing in a crosswind on the m5!
i dont mind discoverys, they are abit big for me and insurance is £1200 but i could cope knowing it was going to be reliable, few people have had nothing but problems! my job at the moment untill september is a 20 mile round trip. i do 25 miles a day so would like something fairley economical.
any sugestions :)
 
Have you looked at short wheel based Pajeros? We have one and it's great for towing, we did overload it (2 big 16.2hh + horses and heavy Ifor) and it struggled a bit uphill, but apart from that it has done us wonderfully, although can be a bit thirsty, but not too bad, plus not too big!
 
Subaru :D
If onea budget you can't go wrong with a Legacy, also being more of a car than a 4x4 it saves you costs on fuel and sky high insurance!
We've had a Legacy and now a Forsester and they are super cars!
 
yeah thats the pajeros i want but the insurance is insanely high, didnt really understand why. dont know wether it was because some of them are imports.
 
I have a new(ish) (07) Shogun and an old (p -reg) fourtrak and I'd really go for another fourtrak!
I'm on my third fourtrack and really truly love them... they are a little basic and bouncy but you always get to where you are going with them!
I love my new shogun and much prefer to use it for distance towing but the fourtrak gets me through everything.
I've used it every single day through snow and muddy fields with a flatbed trailor carrying 3 bales and never once has it been stuck! My shogun wouldn't even get through the gate without being towed lol!
My cousin has a Trooper and it has been good but really guzzles the fuel.... the fourtrak is very reasonable even though I use 4 wheel drive every day!
Cheaper insurance, reliable and cheaper on fuel!!!
Good luck on your search!
 
We've got a short wheel base pajero, and its really good - tows easily! Only downside is it does about 40 miles a day and costs a FORTUNE in diesel! We found it really difficult to find insurance for me to drive it to and most wouldn't insure me until I was 25 - when we asked why they didn't really know! But have a look in the yellow pages, we went with someone in there, can't remember what they're called though :S Not much help! Sorry!!
Otherwise I've always been told a defender or a disco! :) Good Luck car shopping and taking your trailer test!!
 
Pajero's are expensive insurance as they are all imports and have a reputation of 'easy' to steal, try a broker who will find a company that will specialise in high risk vehicles................( I use Natwest- but I am older than you)

What about the Nissan Terrano, Ford Maverick or the Hyundai Santa Fe, towing capacity of around 2400KG with slightly better MPG
 
IMO an elderly, but well looked after disco will do the job.
I bought my P reg with 120K miles on the clock for £1800 2 years ago. relatively little work had to be done (new brakes, and new antiroll bars totalling £900 in 2 years). tows up and down 1in6 banks (as i found out today) with heavy wooden trailer and big 650kg horse with ease.
 
Don't even consider towing with a Freelander. Any of the other 4x4s you mention should be fine, LWB gives more stability than a SWB Fourtrak or Shogun/Pajero. I tow with a 1997 300TDi Discovery and it's great.

I'd love to know who you finally get insured with, my own insurers won't even quote for my 23 year old daughter, who has had a clean licence since she was 17. They won't consider adding her until she is 25!
 
Short wheel base Isuzu Trooper that is p/t 4x4. I am old though so I have no idea how much the insurance would be for a young person. For the miles I do (a lot), and what I put it through (ferrying about hay/straw/feed bins/water one minute, commuting up and down the M4 the next) it is fairly good on fuel consumption. It tows very well too.
My own one has broken down a few times in the last couple of years but every time it did the RAC guys would say how they were surprised because Isuzus hardly ever break down, so I can only assume mine is especially more **** than the average one, so it is one to consider.
 
I too would hold out for a good old Fourtrak, I love mine- it has towed my hunters safely for years and can make it up icy hills that other vehicles have slid back down. It will be worth the wait!
 
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Love my Isuzu Trooper. Its a 3.1 turbo diesel and is actually good on fuel. Tows fabulously and Im lucky, OH is an RAC man and so maintains it so hasnt cost a lot to keep, is a 1995 one and I daresay you can pick one up like mine fairly cheaply. Wouldnt like to think what your insurance will be for a 4 X 4, costs me £380 per year. I will be especially sad when she dies needless to say. Shes a propery workhorse as I use her for my rug wash business, have had as many as 48 rugs in at once. Takes some beating !!!!!!!
 
On the subject of insurance, my partner was 24 when we bought our Shogun Sport & he managed to get insurance with Swift Cover for around £600 fully comp.
As to older 4x4's i loved my old Nissan Terrano LWB 2.7, it was fab to tow with & not to heavy to run either, i imaigine you could pick one of those up easily within your budget.
 
Got to be a Landy!! Its cheap on the insurance, particulary with the NFU and a new trailer driver. They aren't flash, they don't go fast, probably leak (all good ones do) and they actually have the capacity to tow something decent - now i don't meen a freeloader, i mean freelander (they aren't proper landies anyway). You might even pick up a 300tdi disco, which I have recent found for a friend for about 1500 and not only gives you the max towing capacity that you can get but a really good vehicle for spares and runs on heating oil - providing you do a 50% split. pm me if you want more details, my mechanic is an expert here not me!!

IMO Shoguns are really expensive for their age, mavericks don't hit the grade, fourtracks are rare, montery's are old looking but cheaper and subarus are great apart from usually petrol and more on the insurance. Troopers or landcruisers are also rare at the low end budget - unless they have gone to the moon and back (like most others) whatever you buy you have to ask what will tow what and why is it that price? Plus insurance?
 
I'd keep looking for a fourtrak too, mine went on forever and was never sick :) It's just been retired at 25 years old and I've had it for 13 years :)
 
palomino698 said:
Don't even consider towing with a Freelander. Any of the other 4x4s you mention should be fine, LWB gives more stability than a SWB Fourtrak or Shogun/Pajero. I tow with a 1997 300TDi Discovery and it's great.

I'd love to know who you finally get insured with, my own insurers won't even quote for my 23 year old daughter, who has had a clean licence since she was 17. They won't consider adding her until she is 25!
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depends what you are towing - i have 480kg horse in a single horse trailer and i tow with my freelander - it doesnt even realise trailer is there it has no problem at all. However - if i was to tow a double trailer or want to tow more than one horse i would upgrade to something more substantial, so dont dismiss freelanders for towing, they cope perfectly well. they can officially tow 2tonne - and my horse and trailer must be 1300kg so well within. also get 35 to gallon (and its auto so less mpg) TBH I used to tow her with my passat estate!! and it was fine too! What about older diahatsu?? they good on price and can tow anything!!
 
I love my Pajero - its a proper little work horse. I have a 2.8TD LWB and I tow a Ifor 510. My OH scuba dives and he tows his little skanky trailer laiden with tanks.

I would'nt have thought people would want to steal them.
 
I have had a number of Isuzu Troopers. They have one of the highest towing capabilities - they can tow a braked trailer up to 3.5 tons, lots of power, very reliable. I don't find it very juicy to drive unless you have a heavy right foot.
 
Daihatsu Fourtrack or Nissan terrano - although 4 track is cheaper to insure! i can't fault either and I've had Mitsubishi's, nissan, land rover, Toyota and Daihatsu's. anything imported (like the pajero) will prob cost you more, certainly worth travelling for a 4track if you can find one.
 
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Dont get a freelander, they are useless!
Becareful on towing weight as the cheaper 4x4 are cheap as they are useless at towing!

I have had quite a few 4x4.
When i was 18 i had a fronterea.
That was pretty economical and strong and you should be ableto get one on a budget.
The best i had was an l200 but costly to buy.
A shogun sport is great with a bigger boot than a pajero or shogun, there are lots of them around at good prices.

Good luck, make sure you do your home work!
 
I know you seem to like a short based PAjero.............. that is the same car as a showgun just a different name due ot being an import! :)
So....... if you like it, go for a showgun alternative! :)

Disco's are commonly used and loved.

Lots of epople on here seem keen on the Sorento.

Never heard of a ford maverick........ (goes to find it on google!)
 
izuzu SWB commercial (ie two seats & van back) - P/T 4x4 - cheap tax - quite economical - high tow capacity - fab work horse - i loved mine.
for a bit more money - i have a ssangyong rexton - higher tax band - buuut - v cheap to buy, cheaper on fuel than zuzu - same tow capacity - tows really nicely again - great merc engine - i'd def recommend
 
I would hold out for a Fourtrak or a SWB Trooper. I had a Trooper and it was the the best car I've ever had! If you like Pajeros, why not look at SWB Shoguns? They are the same vehicle but not imported, so the insurance is likely to be cheaper.

Don't touch Freelanders, a friend of ours burnt her clutch out manouvering her trailer (didn't even have a horse in it at the time) and had to have a new one at a cost of £1000. The car was alright for normal driving, but could no longer cope with towing. I would not touch any vehicle without low range for towing.
 
kezimac said:
depends what you are towing - i have 480kg horse in a single horse trailer and i tow with my freelander - it doesnt even realise trailer is there it has no problem at all. However - if i was to tow a double trailer or want to tow more than one horse i would upgrade to something more substantial, so dont dismiss freelanders for towing, they cope perfectly well. they can officially tow 2tonne - and my horse and trailer must be 1300kg so well within. also get 35 to gallon (and its auto so less mpg) TBH I used to tow her with my passat estate!! and it was fine too! What about older diahatsu?? they good on price and can tow anything!!
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I also tow one 16.2 with a new auto freelander and it is great :)
 
I have a Pajero SWB and it's fab it cost about £1800 off ebay had it a year so far so good! It has towed 2 cobs with out any problems and I couldn't have done without it in the snow, not cheap to run I agree so not good if you want an every day car.

I looked at the Pajero owners web site they have a list of insurers, mine is on limited mileage insurance 5k per year as it's just for towing and I have access to another car, if you know what your mileage will be for the year you could go on one of these policies which just may bring down the premium, I am with 2gether insurance they have been very helpful and found the best/cheapest policy for me. You can find them on the pajero club web site.

The Pajero is a Shogun basically but it's an import, so called Pajero in Japan. I have only had to get a brake hose and service kit so far and it was no prob getting the bits again look on line. Milner off road is a good place for parts etc. Good luck!
 
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