[dhamer]

Hi Zookie Sages, Grease Monkeys, Modding Masters,

Wanted to introduce myself.
My names Dean and I am about to drive my Camry to the wreakers.
We moved 3hours east from melbourne 10months ago, the 91 Camry was dying when we left and was never going to see out the year.

Wife has given me $5000 (Of my money) to buy a car, but said, "Its on your head if you get a lemon, and your not geting another one for 5 years"

Need a hand as i have never bought or owned a 4wd.
Will take my dad, and younger brother (MotorSports Mechanic) when inspecting them.

I Want:
A love affair with my 4wd
cheap to run
cheap to fix
cheap to modify
fun to drive, on and off road.
keep up with the patrols, that everyone runs out here.

Don't care about top speed or getting to 80km/h quickly being in the country im never in a hurry.

I am 6ft 7..... will i fit in a sierra or vitara?

So, i come to you of wisdom.

What should i look for?
Year, Mileage, Model and price?
What should i look for so i 'seem' knowledgable
How do i keep the wife happy and not get a lemon.

Any push in the right direction would be really helpfull... hopefully i'll have some pictures to post in the next fortnight of a new zook.

[Jccck]

5k won't quite get you a good condition Coily Sierra.. So i'd probably head for a LWB Vitara, something around the early 90's
Nice and comfy, plenty of room.. Fairly impressive offroad

Chuck a 2" body, coilspacers(With longer shocks) and 30's on it.. And it'll perform nicely

No doubts a leaf sprung softtop Sierra is the cheapest to fix/modify and also the most fun =P
But if its your only car, the ride comfort could get annoying on those long gravel roads

[FullyZooked]

If you are doing much road driving which I'm guessing you will be, you can't go past a Vitara. Jlx if you can get one, they have colour coded bumpers/grille, electric windows and all the nice stuff. Look for something 1992-1996 or thereabouts with around 200 on the clock. Most prefer the efi 1.6 which comes in the LWB vitaras and also the post 95 SWB models if I remeber correctly. The Vits are good to drive, mad offroad and super easy to mod and make as extreme as you like or as extreme as you can push the your front ifs. Hope this helps.

[dhamer]

Thanks for the quick replies.

Its a 2nd car that will go 7km to work and back on the road.
On the weekend we may take it 40mins out to a farm.
Most road trips we'll take the commodore.

My Brother said vitaras have very very few proper 4x4 accessories.
I think his talking bolt on accessories.

Looking at a 97 JX Vitara thats got 130 on the clock and never been offroad, full year rego and rwc, (only did 2000k last year) but need to squeeze more money from the wife.

Love any more comments.

[tanshi]

the vitara has pretty much all the bolt of accessories that the sierra does, they are a bit more expencive to buy though.

a sierra can be made to be comfortabe on long drives, any one who tells you other wise is full of shit

im 6'4 and drive a leafy sierra with no issues, but the vitara will be more accomidating.

[Ben_Sierra]

SOunds to me like maybe you need a new wife to go with that new car

But seriously...

Do you have kids? If so, then LWB vitara wold be the go I would think.

The Sierra's are a great car to have some fun off road in, but I wouldn't want one for a daily driver. Sierra's have more aftermarket parts available, but unless your doing some serious off-roading, you won't need them and the vitara will cope just fine.

[Microwire]

X10 for Vitara ,

Mine's a 90' JLX Vit pretty much stock except for the wheels, I bought it about 2 months ago for $3K it's in imaculate condition.

Hunt around and you can pick up a bargin.

Quote:

My Brother said vitaras have very very few proper 4x4 accessories.
I think his talking bolt on accessories.

I don't know why you'd even need em, they go just about anywhere.

[atari4x4]

there are just as many 4wd accessories available for the Vitara as the Sierra, lockers, gears, bar work etc.

if you don't plan to do anything to extreeme & want something thats able to do some long distance touring in comfort look at the Vitara, the Sierra is a great base to build a little off road weapon but can be a little on the rough side for touring, but in saying Superduki just did something like 6000kms in a Sierra leaving from Tassie & seeing VIC/NSW/QLD/SA in his epic solo mission.

[dhamer]

Thanks guys.
No kids...yet, young married couple, but kids are on the cards next year (or so im told).

I am certainly leaning towards a Vitara

But will checking out a couple of sierras while im in town.

i have 2 sierras options, both with 200 on the clock for $5000 driveaway, one 97 hardtop, other 93 softtop?
What would you be checking on the sierra before buying?

[tanshi]

sierras are prone to rust specially if they have been on the beach: in the sills, around the windscreen frame. around the tail gate, under the carpets. pretty much any of the body seams

[Jccck]

dhamer wrote:

Thanks guys.
No kids...yet, young married couple, but kids are on the cards next year (or so im told).

I am certainly leaning towards a Vitara

But will checking out a couple of sierras while im in town.

i have 2 sierras options, both with 200 on the clock for $5000 driveaway, one 97 hardtop, other 93 softtop?
What would you be checking on the sierra before buying?

97 Hardtop would be worth a look

[JrZook]

Jccck wrote:

dhamer wrote:

Thanks guys.
No kids...yet, young married couple, but kids are on the cards next year (or so im told).

I am certainly leaning towards a Vitara

But will checking out a couple of sierras while im in town.

i have 2 sierras options, both with 200 on the clock for $5000 driveaway, one 97 hardtop, other 93 softtop?
What would you be checking on the sierra before buying?

97 Hardtop would be worth a look

Will be a coiley too

[Jccck]

JrZook wrote:

Jccck wrote:

dhamer wrote:

Thanks guys.
No kids...yet, young married couple, but kids are on the cards next year (or so im told).

I am certainly leaning towards a Vitara

But will checking out a couple of sierras while im in town.

i have 2 sierras options, both with 200 on the clock for $5000 driveaway, one 97 hardtop, other 93 softtop?
What would you be checking on the sierra before buying?

97 Hardtop would be worth a look

Will be a coiley too

Exactly =)

[Trojan]

Jccck wrote:

5k won't quite get you a good condition Coily Sierra..

If somebody splashed $5k at me for my coily, i'd probably even throw my Hilux into the equation, a carton of beer and a shout at the local brothel

[Jccck]

Trojan wrote:

Jccck wrote:

5k won't quite get you a good condition Coily Sierra..

If somebody splashed $5k at me for my coily, i'd probably even throw my Hilux into the equation, a carton of beer and a shout at the local brothel

They seem to go for 6-7k in nice coniditon in my area.. Bit rich tbh

[inbits]

I'd go with the vitara they are capable and comfortable come with efi air conditioning and power steering.
Personally I prefer the lwb over the swb vitara you get more space and the extra seats will be handy if kids are on the cards. And you wont need to upgrade when that time comes.
As has been said there are heaps of aftermarket gear for them but it is a little more expensive than a sierra.

hope this helps

edit; you can also get the lwb in a 2.0 litre v6

[Microwire]

Nah Go Vit SWB Carby;

Pro's
+ Go SWB - You have a commodore for the kids + you don't want to many freeloaders in your car
+ 1.6 Carby - No Computer controlling your car, so if you drown it, it's not the end of the world plus you can fix is on the side of the road as long as you have duct tape, tech screws, WD40 and a screwdriver.
+ Soft Top option for those days where you need sun but no wind when wheelin
+ SWB... better over sharp rises that would slow or stop the LWB

Con's
- No EFI - Less Power, more fuel
- LWB might be better for long trips with the added storage space
- Soft Top - can Shrink (some do) can't find a fibreglass hardtop ANYWHERE in AUS under $2000, soft top may leak.
- SWB not as stable as LWB in some situations

[dhamer]

Thanks guys, this has certainly helped with what i should be looking for.
Going to nurse the camry, and try to keep it running alittle longer.

Ill be keeping my eye out for a 97-98 vitara, or a cheap sierra (And spend remaining budget getting it tidy)

In the mean time, I'll be lurking and reading more 4wd magazines.
Probally be popping up and ask a few questions .