Best cheap, reliable 4x4

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SarahRicoh

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Hi all,

Looking to purchase a small 4x4 that is cheap to buy (i mean like under £2000- I know it'l be old etc), cheap to run/insure and is reliable. So far it seems to be a suzuki jimny is all I can find.
Are jimnys good? If not, can anyone suggest anything else?

Thanks
 
Well you shouldn't use cheap and reliable in the same sentence... however, I find anything Japanese falls into reliable category... can't guarantee insurance will be though.

Check Autotrader for toyota, isuzu, nissan etc I'm sure you'll find something you want at £2000.
 
I've just sold one :( Jeep Cherokee, great car, really cheap to buy (sold my R reg for £800), not bad to insure, £250 tax for the year. Not that great on fuel - I got around 23mpg from my 2.5l petrol. Worth looking at though. I only sold mine to replace it with a newer Grand Cherokee!
 
Hyundai Santa fe- i love love love mine!

2.7 v6 automatic 2.3t tow load (i believe)

my 52 plate cost me 1300 quid (with 12months tax and mot on)
 
broke_but_happy said:
NOOOOOOOOOO!!! thirsty, unreliable, rustbuckets!
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Sadly they're not the cheapest to run but they are IMO the best, I learned to drive in one :D never had reliability issues with any of my parent's ones and we've owned various different Disco's since about 1991. Jesus, that's 20 years, blimey! As I say we've not had any more issues with them than any of our other cars.
 
I have just bought an x reg freelander for under 2k. I know they don't have best rep for reliability but my OH fixes LRs for his hobby! His attitude however is anything that was going to break will already have done so and been repaired! I love mine :-)
 
Dizzle said:
Sadly they're not the cheapest to run but they are IMO the best, I learned to drive in one :D never had reliability issues with any of my parent's ones and we've owned various different Disco's since about 1991. Jesus, that's 20 years, blimey! As I say we've not had any more issues with them than any of our other cars.
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agree! i do think it depends on what one you pick up. give it a thorough inspection. i picked my N reg disco up for £1100 high milage but bloomin well looked after! everything has already been welded and reciepts for everything replaced. serviced on the dot every year. absolute bargain. yes its thirsty but i only use it for the yard and towing (dont even feel the trailer behind!) i have another car for commuting to work. it harrows the arena and lugs water across the field. fab so far! (touch wood) it is one of the better models though. the automatic tdi 300. look after it and they last forever!

insurance wise. i am only 20 so fully comp is to expensive. about £1000 a year. i insure it tpft and thats £560 a year.
 
Im only 19 so something with a smallish engine but still powerful would be good.. I was thinking a freelander would be about right but apparently theyre very unreliable :( want it 4 general driving, possible offroading and when i finally can afford 2 do test to trailer...
 
well if your wanting to to a jimmy or a freelander is a big no no. not large/heavy or powerful enough for safe towing.

I have a mitsubishi pajero (SWB) which is super reliable and fantastic at towing - you would probably be able to pick one of these up in your budget - if it can stretch another grand it might be worth pm'ing me in about 8 weeks time...
 
If you read up about Vauxhall Frontera's it will frighten you to death but I bought mine, last model made, top of the range (full leather, electrics, etc etc) for £3k and I've done well over 20K in it and its been an absolute dream. It was one of the very few cars to get about during all the deep snow, its automatic and tows brilliantly. OK its a bit swaying to drive but on the motorway its fab, its hard to keep under a ton ;) and off road its been brilliant and believe me, what with the shooting and living on the moors, I do an awful lot of off road driving ;)

I'm not sure if I have been lucky enough to pick up a "good one" but as far as I can see the general write ups are unfounded!

If I hadn't bought that I would have probably bought an X trail 2.2 diesel - but you are looking at more money.

I did have a Rav 4 which again was brilliant off road but very costly to run as its AWD and petrol rather than diesel.
 
Pajeros are reknowned for being ultra reliable and great workhorses which will end up going round the clock twice if not more. Mine is an automatic - super for towing with, great in snow and ice etc and so far in a year an a half of owning it has never missed a beat. I use mine as my every day car and we had a terrible winter in yorkshire and it started first time every time in temps right down to -17

Downsides with them: 2.8 litre engine so you may struggle with insurance plus they are thirsty (but then again most 4x4's are!)
 
I second pajero but don't think you'll be rich owning one... they drink fuel like a fursty ferret!!!
 
Daihatsu Fourtrak - picked one up recently for £700 (s reg) - spent £180 on welding the underneath, rest of it in super condition, not bad to insure & plenty powerful enough for towing.
Friends got a Kia Sorento - lovely car, but don't think you'll get one cheap (could not find one in my £2k budget).
 
OP, you are going to find it virtually impossible at 19 to get a 4x4 to tow with that is cheap to insure (and you will never find one "cheap" to run compared to other cars unless your definition of cheap is vastly different to mine :D )

Have you tried an online quote for anything? I think you will be shocked at how much insurance will be :(

I have a Toyota Rav as my main car, he is fantastic despite being called a "toy" 4x4. He is N reg, 2 litre engine and is a permanant 4WD. He got me through all the worst of the snow and ice (and I had to go up some shocking roads) goes through mud easily and has not let me down yet. I tow my small harrow and would put a small gardening type trailer on but nothing bigger - they are well known for not being able to pull the skin off a custard. I am 28 with 9 years no claims and insurance for the Rav is £450. I do about 350 miles a week whihc currently costs me £60, tax is extortinate though £112 for 6 months.

The other car I drive is a Mazda 2500 pickup which is one of the big beefy "proper" 4WDs with hi/low gearboxes. This would tow a horsebox (but I don't as I have a small lorry.) This was going to replace my Rav however despite being considerably older and with more no claims than you I couldn't find a quote for less than about £800. We got round it by my dad insuring her and I am a named driver. She is not a convinient car to drive though :D parking can be a nightmare and she is EXTREMELY thirsty. I would hate to do a long motorway drive in her however she is so useful.

A friend of mine is 24 and has a Suzuki Jimny which TBH you could do ALOT worse than. She does the same roads as me and it did the trick.

Realistically you are not going to get a cheap and powerful 4x4 - I would be DELIGHTED to be proved wrong as I would love one. They might seem cheap to buy at the moment (it's the right time of year to buy one) however running one is expensive. The Jimny is a good option if having a 4x4 is an absolute must, or getting a parent to insure it and being a named driver, or doing without until you are a bit older and have built up your NCB. Or perhaps looking for LPG conversion which would cut your fuel cost.

I apologise if I have read it wrong and you can afford one.
 
minigal said:
I have a Toyota Rav as my main car, he is fantastic despite being called a "toy" 4x4. He is N reg, 2 litre engine and is a permanant 4WD. He got me through all the worst of the snow and ice (and I had to go up some shocking roads) goes through mud easily and has not let me down yet. I tow my small harrow and would put a small gardening type trailer on but nothing bigger - they are well known for not being able to pull the skin off a custard. I am 28 with 9 years no claims and insurance for the Rav is £450. I do about 350 miles a week whihc currently costs me £60, tax is extortinate though £112 for 6 months.
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Food for thought there, that's in my price range! I wouldn't tow with it but I could use it to hitch to to practice loading the beast (never been in a trailer) and then Daddy and Land Rover can tow me about! (I've told him this is revenge for not doing it when I was a child).

I went on a towing taster course recently and the chap said that what ever your current car costs you to run, you should double every single cost. At least.
 
Dizzle said:
Food for thought there, that's in my price range! I wouldn't tow with it but I could use it to hitch to to practice loading the beast (never been in a trailer) and then Daddy and Land Rover can tow me about! (I've told him this is revenge for not doing it when I was a child).

I went on a towing taster course recently and the chap said that what ever your current car costs you to run, you should double every single cost. At least.
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I wouldn't hesitate to recommend a Rav (or as we call it the Chav4 :D ) I forgot to put purchase price in - Rupert was £800 and I've just had a quick look on ebay and you can pick one up for less than a grand. My dad used to laugh at him and call him the "hairdressers car" but after we rescued the 4th person in that dreadful weather last year, and took everyone to work etc, AND got up a road that other "proper" 4x4 couldn't he now think's he's fantastic.

But no, they are not a cheap option. However, I keep my horses in a very rural area and so a 4x4 is an absolute must for getting there in the depths of winter.
 
I have an Isuzu Trooper 3.1 diesel engine, excellent for towing (even 2 horses in a heavy old Rice) , pretty good fuel economy for a car of its size I think but obviously it is more expensive than a normal car, especially for tyres and fuel.

It's a 1998, has a few dings and currently the bumper is hanging off but I try and get it serviced at least once a year (twice if I can manage it) I did burn the clutch out of it once and have had some issues with the electrics/alternator but *knock wood* on the whole it is ok.

If I were to replace it I would go for the Vauxhaull Monteray (which I think has same engine) or maybe a Mitsubishi, Toyota or Diahatsu.
 
minigal- your not wrong about me not having a lot of money but I also keep my horse in quite a rural area so i will need it to get there in the winter and to work and I just generally want a 4x4. It was just an idea to see what I can get.
I did an insurance quote for my dads 4.0l jeep cherokee and it was £2000 which may seem a lot to you guys but is very very good for my age(With 1yrs ncb) and his is LPG so I am tempted to buy it off him but I think it'l still be too thirsty on the fuel even with LPG.
An isuzu trooper i did consider but couldnt find one in my price range.

I think if i do decide to get one it'll be between the rav4, suzuki jimny or the freelander. Which one would everyone suggest as best?
 
If you've got someone mechanically knowledgable to go with you, try
www.brightwells.co.uk

there are hundreds of freelanders there (tell you something about their popularity that the trade sends them to an auction to shift them??)

would be interesting for you to go and have a look anyway - see what you get for your money :) :)
 
SarahRicoh said:
minigal- your not wrong about me not having a lot of money but I also keep my horse in quite a rural area so i will need it to get there in the winter and to work and I just generally want a 4x4. It was just an idea to see what I can get.
I did an insurance quote for my dads 4.0l jeep cherokee and it was £2000 which may seem a lot to you guys but is very very good for my age(With 1yrs ncb) and his is LPG so I am tempted to buy it off him but I think it'l still be too thirsty on the fuel even with LPG.
An isuzu trooper i did consider but couldnt find one in my price range.

I think if i do decide to get one it'll be between the rav4, suzuki jimny or the freelander. Which one would everyone suggest as best?
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:coughsplutter: £2000?!! I wouldn't dream of spending that on insurance...but fair play if you can afford it!

Have you considered the Fiat Panda 4x4?? If you have £2000 to spend on insurance you might be able to get one of these, apparently they perform quite well off road...

If I were you though I would stick to a small car and ask your Dad if you can either be a named driver on his Jeep, or add it your insurance as a temporary car if we get bad weather.

If you have your heart set on a 4x4 then then I would go for the Jimny and the money you save on insurance can go towards a decent 4x4 when it becomes more reasonable to insure.

I hope this doesn't sound patronising I am still reeling from the insurance quote :D
 
SarahRicoh said:
minigal- your not wrong about me not having a lot of money but I also keep my horse in quite a rural area so i will need it to get there in the winter and to work and I just generally want a 4x4. It was just an idea to see what I can get.
I did an insurance quote for my dads 4.0l jeep cherokee and it was £2000 which may seem a lot to you guys but is very very good for my age(With 1yrs ncb) and his is LPG so I am tempted to buy it off him but I think it'l still be too thirsty on the fuel even with LPG.
An isuzu trooper i did consider but couldnt find one in my price range.

I think if i do decide to get one it'll be between the rav4, suzuki jimny or the freelander. Which one would everyone suggest as best?
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If you have the time then see if you can go north - I found most cars were at least £1500 cheaper. I drove from Surrey to Derby to get my truck but still ended £1400 better off with the diesel costs.
 
My 1.6 Suzuki Grand vitara is awesome, 30-33 MPG cheap to insure, low ratio box so great control in snow, very very reliable & will go absolutely anywhere on snow & ice even with road tyres on. Mine was just over £2k by can get them cheaper. Oh & has 90k on clock still flying MOT's.
 
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