Agri Vehicles Insurance from Greenlands

Author Topic: Cheap 4X4s  (Read 15205 times)

Shropshirelass

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • South Shropshire
  • A country lass who loves it all!
Cheap 4X4s
« on: July 04, 2013, 02:17:48 pm »
I'm thinking of getting a cheap smaller 4x4 to use to do a bit of farm work, & shifting heavy things & winter use & a bit of towing in future. What I want to know is can anybody recommend anything - I quite like the suzuki grand vitaras & Land rover freelanders but what are they like on fuel & what are their towing limits? For starters I'd only want to to small to medium sized garden trailers but eventually would like to try to tow small livestock trailers & horse boxes. I need to sort out a trailer licence as well so any details on that would be great as well.

Any tips & advice as this wouldn't be the main vehicle used, but I'd like something that's good off road & a good work horse & have seen both in action x

john and helen

  • Joined Mar 2013
  • Devon
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Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #1 on: July 04, 2013, 02:34:54 pm »
Can't comment on the above makes, but i have a ford ranger duel cab... i do think some of these 4x4's are fashion cars more than work horses... a friend of mine does have a free lander, but it seems to be in the garage more than on the road, maybe he just picked a dud.....

my ranger does 30+ to the gallon ..not the fastest of things, but does work hard

Stellan Vert

  • Joined Apr 2013
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #2 on: July 04, 2013, 02:41:02 pm »
Hi SL

I can't comment on 4x4s

But i have towed a trailer, vans etc for years, check the legislation as if your you took your driving test some years ago you may not need a futher towing test.

There was a useful peice on towing in the sheep association's (NSA) magazine from late last year/early this year.

SV

shygirl

  • Joined May 2013
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #3 on: July 04, 2013, 02:51:34 pm »
discoverys are ace tho i would love a landy 110

Shropshirelass

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • South Shropshire
  • A country lass who loves it all!
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #4 on: July 04, 2013, 03:15:34 pm »
I do love discoveries & 1 of my mates is in off-roading clubs & is a specialist mechanic on them & it's amazing how capable machines they are & I like the idea of ford rangers - but at the minute I'm just after a smaller 4X4 due to insurance & fuel costs as i'm 25 but will have had my full licence 2 years this november - so I know I'll have to take a towing test of sorts x

plumseverywhere

  • Joined Apr 2013
  • Worcestershire
    • Its Baaath Time
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Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #5 on: July 04, 2013, 03:50:20 pm »
We have a freelander 2 and a discovery currently and I used to have a Suzuki Vitara. Out of the 3? I'd go with a Disco every time!!  I love it  ;)  Tows brilliantly, fairly good on go-go juice and I feel very safe, much safer than I did in the vitara. The vitara was a pain in the bum when things went wrong, getting parts etc.  I know there's a few on here that warned me off the landrovers but actually owning 2 now can't imagine having anything else  :fc:   
Smallholding in Worcestershire, making goats milk soap for www.itsbaaathtime.com and mum to 4 girls,  goats, sheep, chickens, dog, cat and garden snails...

happygolucky

  • Joined Jan 2012
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #6 on: July 04, 2013, 04:05:30 pm »
I am hoping to get a small short wheel base 4x4 soon too..we are always off road,its a daily thing and I do not go too long distances......so I am interested also in what people say :thumbsup:

Shropshirelass

  • Joined Jul 2012
  • South Shropshire
  • A country lass who loves it all!
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #7 on: July 04, 2013, 04:22:53 pm »
Yeah I appreciate that with the bigger 4x4s & would love 1 but it's not practical unless I want to use it a lot x

Beewyched

  • Joined Feb 2011
  • South Wales
    • tunkeyherd.co.uk
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #8 on: July 04, 2013, 04:28:27 pm »
I adore Landys - give me a Disco 2 anytime  :thumbsup:
Though IMPE I'd avoid any 4x4 that's been in Scotland for any amount of time - we went through 4 in 4 years & every one went due to bad corrosion  :(
 
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plumseverywhere

  • Joined Apr 2013
  • Worcestershire
    • Its Baaath Time
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Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #9 on: July 04, 2013, 04:40:39 pm »
I was told that Rav 4's are quite good and they are small ish aren't they?  I also like defenders  :love:
Smallholding in Worcestershire, making goats milk soap for www.itsbaaathtime.com and mum to 4 girls,  goats, sheep, chickens, dog, cat and garden snails...

moony

  • Joined Aug 2012
  • Dent
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #10 on: July 04, 2013, 07:51:48 pm »
For off road and farm work we had an old Vitara with a set of offroad tyres on and it was brilliant. Would do anything we wanted it to and would never get stuck. Towing wise it would be useless though. Best vehicle for towing we have ever had was a Fourtrak which would tow anything and legally. Why they stopped making them I will never know. There are still a few good ones about but a lot of them are at the age where they need welding work. Brilliant workhorse vehicle. For any sort of horsebox towing now you want a Disco, Defender or a big pick up/4x4. With size comes reduced economy though. When we were looking we used Auto Trader website. If you search for the model you want and click on a car of that type you can get performance information with fuel economy and under dimensions it tells you kerb weight, gross weight and towing capacity which is what you need to know. For towing small trailers Skoda Yetis are good and very economical but are still a newish vehicle and as such are expensive. We also quite liked the diesel Santa Fe as value for money. Remember the gross weight of the trailer cannot exceed the capacity of your vehicle. Regardless of whether you ever tow that weight so for a horsebox like an Ifor 505 or 506 you want minimum of 2400kg or 2600kg towing capacity.
« Last Edit: July 04, 2013, 08:02:51 pm by moony »

happygolucky

  • Joined Jan 2012
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #11 on: July 04, 2013, 07:57:17 pm »
Noticed on my BT internet page, there was an article that listed cars that  hold their value, one was the  Skoda Yetis, wish I could afford one!

ferretkeeper

  • Joined May 2013
  • Carmarthenshire
    • Brecon View Farm
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Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #12 on: July 04, 2013, 11:31:06 pm »
Also have a Ford Ranger twin cab J&H - yay - it was the best thing we've ever bought, like EVER! Just renewed insurance - I am 35 with older named driver, been driving since 17 and 5 yrs no claims and the best I could do on a commercial policy was £400.

It was up in the field this week unloading/loading pigs and has been a Godsend as we have no quad (yet). We have a 6x4 livestock trailer and a 5x8 Ifor Williams job - the truck can tow both fully laden have towed livestock, mini diggers, dumper trucks, trailer full of our stuff across Europe twice in a month - you name it it has coped. Fuel econ isn't bad did a 360 mile round trip last week on a tank, £80 ish to fill. It's a 57 plate apparently that's when a new engine was being rolled out and that's made it perform a lot better than older models. Sailed thru it's MOT every year, inc today, still got the original rear tyres on with 60k on the clock. Max towing is about 2700kg, the bigger trailer is the same total max weight so both compatible. It drives better when loaded IMO, all round great vehicle

I also have a Range Rover P38, sitting off road ATM because it was too expensive to tax and insure and not get much use, but that will tow a good 1000 kg more than the Ranger, so it may need to be back on the road soon...they are fraught with electrical problems but I love mine, 4.6 petrol monster!

Speaking to a bloke today who reckons Defenders are going up in value, new ones are too complicated, stick to older ones...think we've missed the boat there!

Freelanders - looked at them too, watch for transmission probs apparently because it's permanently in 4wd or something, it can be disengaged...? Also the petrol engines were dodgy, made by Rover, the diesels were built by BMW and far more reliable. Some of that may be wrong, it's just from memory but I found out loads on the forums when we were looking for a Rover, loads of good tips.

What was the pick up on Top Gear that just wouldn't die, toyota, Hi-lux? That seems like a good bet!

You could always get a cheap 4x4 that's an MOT failure and just use it on the land to start with, get used to towing etc? And for the minimum miles you're allowed to go off with a farm vehicle, check insurance etc. Or what about just a quad?

Something like the little almost wanna be jeeps/suzuki Jimny springs to mind or the likes. They should be reasonable to buy, have some towing capability and are small enough to make insurance feasible - I'd try a few insurance comparison websites and some of the ad sites to gauge prices...
 
breconviewfarm.co.uk Rare breed, free range.

Factotum

  • Joined Jun 2012
Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #13 on: July 05, 2013, 12:22:52 am »
We had an old Range Rover - a 'Classic' - cost less than £5K, bought when it was about 9 years old - converted to run on LPG - but still expensive to run - sub 20 MPG. It was a great car to drive, and very capable off road, but it became unreliable - every car journey required a set of tools, 5 litres of water and a can of oil in the back.

We changed it for a Toyota Rav4 - very good road car, tows our cattle trailer fine, 40+ MPG, cheap insurance (but then we've both been driving over 20 years), comfortable drive and reliable.

When I worked for a medical equipment company, I had a company car that needed towing home one day - long story - the VW dealer had done something stupid with the service that meant the car leaked out all of the engine oil - on the long journey home I chatted to the recovery driver about the cars he got to recover. His opinion - avoid Land Rover cars as he'd towed more of those than any other 4*4 type - Japanese cars are reliable  - Toyota or Daihatsu were OK.

We're happy with our Rav4.

Sue


ellied

  • Joined Sep 2010
  • Fife
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Re: Cheap 4X4s
« Reply #14 on: July 05, 2013, 08:08:10 am »
If you want to tow horses then you need a 3.5tonne capacity and a Discovery or similar.  The Freelanders and other leisure 4x4s do not have the capacity and are illegal when towing a standard 2 horse box, though it's common to see them with just one horse loaded rather than 2 as if actual loaded weight made it legal because it can move. 

I can't speak for the farm work you want but again I reckon the ones that were primarily brought out for the leisure market and suburban mums wouldn't do the job in mud in the winter like an old Defender, in which wind whistling through the clunky cab is a feature but worth it for the actual work it'll do.

A lot of farmers and horseowners now go the pickup route and swear by them - just watch if you don't have enough weight at the back of a pickup it tows badly but properly balanced they are the new luxury workhorse the Disco used to be.  Before Landrover got turned into just another high priced luxury item with electronics that die and cost thousands to fix..

I have a Disco II (2002).  I drove a Disco3 where the shape changed and the gadgetry went through the roof and I didn't like it or the subsequent upgrades.  To me they're wrecking the brand now so once this has had it I'll be going the pickup route.  Toyota are the best but pricy, the Mitsu L200 was the farmer's choice last I checked but some did have problems, I didn't get so far as finding out more because for now my Disco is irreplaceable, I had an old 200 before it that was even better, the parts came in pieces rather than units so you could replace just the broken bit not the whole thing, but I messed up and let a scrappie take it when I couldn't afford the repair bill and it was sitting at my mechanic's making me feel bad :( 
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