Alternatives to a Surf?

[Tallyman]

Colin (eccles291).

If you want to try a manual "Surf" there's one in Phoenix Cars in Gloucester Road, Cheltenham (the B road between Cheltenham and Staverton Airport - just before the M5 bridge).

The car is actually a UK spec 4Runner, so is a 3.5L V6 petrol rather than a deisel but it will give you an idea of how a manual Surf would drive if you're interested. It's around 92-93 plate (can't remember which but it was a few weeks ago when we bought the wife's Corsa from them). Worth a look. And if anyone else is interested, it was around £3K from memory.

[surfstar]

Hey Cris can you do me some Chips ?

There's always A Payback.... You just can't see it Comin !!!!

It really stinks when you have quiet a bit in.

[Simon811]

I have a 93 3.0SSR-X and I love it, the practicality of the rear tailgatre only became apparent on friday night when i went to pick up an engine for my race car. the guy had it suspended from a tractor bucket, simply reversed the surf up and lowered it onto the tailgate, nice and easy.

Mileage wise i reckon i get 25-26 but i srtill tend to drive it like a sports car and have a burning need to drive down verges at 40mph plus from time to time just because i can which doesnt help . One of these days i'll find a verge with a big rut down the backlanes of lincs and it'll cost me.

What i like most is the solid feel, the little things like the "proper" thud when you close the doors, all duggests a well thought out and made truck. Not owned mine long yet but hopefully it will prove to be as reliable as my mates similarly aged celica gt4.

[Apache]

Hi there,

First post here (drinks are on me).

ME and 'er indoors are looking at getting a 4x4 and a Surf is on the short list. We went to test drive a Discovery today (2.5 TDi auto) and found it a bit gutless TBH. I've been told that the auto's are a bit like that so we're going to try and find a manual to test and see if it's any better.

We need plenty of room in the boot (2 nippers under 2 yrs old and all the paraphernalia that goes with a trip out is more than our 3-series BMW can cope with!! ) and I occasionally need to use it for work (I'm a dry stone waller) so a 4x4 is gonna be needed. As I see it the plus points of Discoverys are:

• the TDi will do around 27 mpg, which is fairly respectable for a 4x4.
• they're not an import (insurance and spares/servicing of Surfs concern me a tad)
• there are plenty of 'em in dealers (we need to p/ex our car so buying privately is probably a no-go)
• bright and airy inside
• 'proper' back door (I'm not sure about the back door on a Surf. Is it right you have to lower the glass to open it?! )

Anyone on here had a Disco and can compare them with a Surf? Are they a viable alternative or are you gonna wave the flag and say there's nowt as good as a Surf?! (Rose-tinted glasses to one side if you can! ) Are there any other 4x4's that will do around 25mpg that might fit the bill for us?

Forgot to say, our budget is around £4000-£5000.

Cheers.

<rose tints disabled>

We used to use a couple of Discos at work, a V8 and a 2.5TDi (MOD get offroad use on gunnery ranges etc) but now have a Warrior and a Defender 110. The V8 was great but very thirsty and it did require a fair bit of repair. The 2.5 (manual) was reasonable and quite a nice 'car' on the road. It was however a TD5, and far better than the earlier ones we used to have. Rusted a bit early though, but as I said, it had a hard life.

The Warrior is nice and sprightly, but a tad noisy. The Defender, well, you either love them or hate them. Its a good work horse but a nightmare to drive or travel in more than a hour or two. Noisy, uncomfortable etc.

The Surf (I have a 3.0TD gen 2) I would say is somewhere between the TD5 Disco and the Warrior. It has a longer but not as tall load area than the Disco, and an obvious advantage of being able to carry long loads through the cabin which stuff like the Warrior cant do. It's as comfy as the Disco, and feels similar to drive, though has a more 'sporty' driving position by dint of the high floor. The Disco is more 'sit up' in position, though very nice in terms of visibility.

Insurance and spares for Surfs (and indeed any import) is no longer an issue. I pay £300 FC with protected no claims with Priviledge. Spares available all over. Roughtax (Bristol) and Milners (Derbyshire?) both do web sales, and lots of bits are available here and on eBay. Servicing seems straightforward from what I've seen so far!

There are now LOADS on dealers forecourts so this shouldn't be an issue.

I make 25mpg on a good day but I'd say 22 is more honest. Don't believe the bull from people who tell you 35mpg! It's a big heavy motor, it's not unreasonable for it's age and weight.

I have to lower the glass on mine. I dont believe you have to on 3rd egns. It's not that big a deal to be honest.

Alternatives? The Isuzu Bighorn looks tempting in terms of loadspace, if you can get past the name

<pink specs back on>

Mmmmm... Suuuuuuurffffff....

[slowdown.harrison@gmail.c]

http://<u>how</u>|http://www.hiluxsu...ad.php?t=20922

[eccles291]

http://<u>how</u>|http://www.hiluxsu...ad.php?t=20922

Eh?! What's the relevance mate?

[sumo]

ok now its my turn..
Why get a surf? because they are a very useful and versatile bit of kit,that is baised on one of the best performing pick-ups on the market (the hi-lux) and have proved to be reliable and tough.Even after some improvements in the looks department,engine design,available toys they still do the job better than any other 4x4 or estate on the market,and now that there are so many in the uk parts and repairs are no longer a worry,even if you do have trouble getting bits there is always someone on here to point you in the right direction.
Iv'e had my 1st gen surf almost 7 years (she is now 17 years old) and in all that time she has never let me down even after the abuse I give her,and thats not only offroad,in her time she has pulled a 10 tonne truck (not that far but she did it)been over loaded with allsorts of stuff fron bricks to rubbish and even had a complete garden shed put on her back (on the 1st gen you can take the roof off and it becomes a pick-up)
Ok so Iv'e just had to replace the head but hey that was not the surfs fault,it was bad driver error,but even when broken she kept going and would have done so until meltdown was reached.
I have driven all sorts of 4x4's and for me the surf is the perfect vehicle.
Like what the advert says "it does exactly what it says on the tin."

[laser_jock99]

For some strange reason battered old Discos (and Landrovers in general) seem to retain value far beyond their actual worth. With £5K you could get yourself a more reliable Jap 4x4 like a Grey Import Surf which is a few years newer for the same money. Okay -a Surf won't quite match a Defender for 'off the shelf' offroad ability- but it definately isn't a 'softroader'. They can also be easliy modified for improved mud plugging abilty. Not only that but it will more comfortable on-road and should have less body roll than a Disco- important if your children are inclined to travel sickness. With a Jap import mod cons like aircon are standard- you might not get these on older Discos.

Another problem I have seen with Discos is the sunroof(s)- they tend to leak. I tried a Google search on "DISCOVERY SUNROOF WATER LEAK" and got 66,000 hits......

If the Surf is a recent import you might even be faced with a completely rust free motor, that doesn't stink of dogs inside, has never towed anything, has never been abused offroad and hasn't got a milage like it's been to the moon and back!

Got to be worth considering in your price range?

[TJG]

To my mind the disco is not an alternative to a surf. I looked (& I already have a LR & love it so I'm not biased) and it was just too small in the luggage area. It is also quite tall so you will have trouble getting junk to the tip. The only reason to get one would be for that V8 burble but then petrol is a very serious 12mpg problem!

To my mind the only serious £ 4 £ contendor is a Mitsubishi Pajero (that should liven em up!). I had an older 2.5td and it was the best most reliable car I have ever had, just a bit on the slow side, but the 2.8 was much better. The real bonus is that it is MUCH more comfortable than the Surf and if you need it has 7 seats. Once again it is a tall car so accessing some places is a problem.

Most Disos have ben to the moon and back whereas you can get imports that haven't even been run in. My 1st Import (Pajero had 36k miles and my 2nd Surf 16k Miles), so I wouldn't even bother looking at anything with more than 50k on it. Mat of mine just got a 96 Disco V8 with 50k on it, paid £5kish but then another £2.5k for an LPG conversion, so he now gets around 10-11mog at 40p/l. He is gonna need to do a lotta miles to pay it back!

[eccles291]

To my mind the only serious £ 4 £ contendor is a Mitsubishi Pajero (that should liven em up!).

Hmm, we saw a Pajero yesterday, very nice spec inside, wood trim etc. Not sure how they drive though. Main problem for me is the colour schemes... that green/silver combination is just not that nice. Still, if it means we can change the car... hmmmm!

[TJG]

Hmm, we saw a Pajero yesterday, very nice spec inside, wood trim etc. Not sure how they drive though. Main problem for me is the colour schemes... that green/silver combination is just not that nice. Still, if it means we can change the car... hmmmm!

Can't speak for the 2.8 cos I never had one but my 2.5 LWB was like driving a sofa around. it was sooooo comfortable. Mine was dark blue over silver and looked very smart. I agree some do look a bit chavvy. If you drove the 3rd gen surf though it will have nowhere near the punch of that, but like I said the 2.8 is supposed to be much better. Have a look on www.pocuk.com which is their version of this forum.

[laser_jock99]

Can't speak for the 2.8 cos I never had one but my 2.5 LWB was like driving a sofa around. it was sooooo comfortable. Mine was dark blue over silver and looked very smart. I agree some do look a bit chavvy. If you drove the 3rd gen surf though it will have nowhere near the punch of that, but like I said the 2.8 is supposed to be much better. Have a look on www.pocuk.com which is their version of this forum.

GOOGLE SEARCH

"PIKEY + PAJERO" = 4,420 HITS

"PIKEY + 'HILUX SURF'" 56 HITS......nuff said.

[BUSHWHACKER]

I quite like the Nissan Patrol!

[Chillitt]

look, its bad enough saying there are alternatives to a surf, but to say there ais a forum like this anywhere else is just plain wrong.....

[BUSHWHACKER]

Thread resurrection!

I parked next to a new Pathfinder today....
http://www.nissan-adventure.co.uk/ 4 litre V6 mmmmmm!

and I liked it very much.


Thank you.