Hi General Advice required

[hdj]

Hi everyone. Whilst I have been viewing the posts on the site for some time, this is my first post. Its a great site and you should all be proud of your contributions. Thanks for having me!

I would welcome some general advice from you. I dont own a surf, but have been keen to get one for some time. I drive 20 miles to work, say 2 days a week and sometimes to see clients. Other than that i dont drive too far. I currently own an audi a4 quattro avant 2.8 petrol and so Im hoping that the consumption is likely to be similar (mid 20mpg, 30 on a run). Whilst I will have access to another car (missus) the surf would be my main vehicle. At this time, I dont want to spend more that 2k on a surf because I have stared a new business and money is tight for now.

i live in a very rural area and really do need more ground clearance on my vehicle as well as the larger boot space and the ability to drive on my field if required.

Is it realistic for me to expect a reliable 3ltr 2nd generation (i presume for the price this is the best deal) for that price? Im not particularly mechanically minded and whilst I hope to learn more I dont want to be having to work on surf too regularly and/or be hit by regular bills for maintenance. I appreciate that from time to time things do go wrong, and Im looking forward to learning more about the vehicle.

Also, can I realistically expect a surf at that price to be reasonably smart looking given age etc? (I see clients sometimes and its cant look too shabby). I certainly dont expect perfection.

Thanks very much for considering this guys. Any advice welcome.

[wuzie123]

No, yes...

[schrodingers-cat]

i`d say yes yes myself

[madcampbell]

Hi everyone. Whilst I have been viewing the posts on the site for some time, this is my first post. Its a great site and you should all be proud of your contributions. Thanks for having me!

I would welcome some general advice from you. I dont own a surf, but have been keen to get one for some time. I drive 20 miles to work, say 2 days a week and sometimes to see clients. Other than that i dont drive too far. I currently own an audi a4 quattro avant 2.8 petrol and so Im hoping that the consumption is likely to be similar (mid 20mpg, 30 on a run). Whilst I will have access to another car (missus) the surf would be my main vehicle. At this time, I dont want to spend more that 2k on a surf because I have stared a new business and money is tight for now.

i live in a very rural area and really do need more ground clearance on my vehicle as well as the larger boot space and the ability to drive on my field if required.

Is it realistic for me to expect a reliable 3ltr 2nd generation (i presume for the price this is the best deal) for that price? Im not particularly mechanically minded and whilst I hope to learn more I dont want to be having to work on surf too regularly and/or be hit by regular bills for maintenance. I appreciate that from time to time things do go wrong, and Im looking forward to learning more about the vehicle.

Also, can I realistically expect a surf at that price to be reasonably smart looking given age etc? (I see clients sometimes and its cant look too shabby). I certainly dont expect perfection.

Thanks very much for considering this guys. Any advice welcome.

Helps if you put a price to this as one at £800 is going to be nasty but one at £3500 could be bling

[Scorpion]

No, yes...

Wow, great advice. Nothing like helping a newbie out!

You can expect to get a nice clean, 3 litre, 2nd gen for £2,000 mate. For that price it should be a well looked after example, that has some evidence of service history (most likely UK only).

Don't go for the first one you see (unless it's a very good truck of course), there are plenty around and £2,000 cash is a good haggling point.

Use the search function to glean some buying tips and things to look out for, there is plenty of information to be had on this forum.

Good luck with your hunt for a nice truck.

[Scorpion]

Helps if you put a price to this as one at £800 is going to be nasty but one at £3500 could be bling

Read the thread, he clearly states that he has around 2k to spend!

[Apache]

Yes you should get a decent 2nd gen 3.0 for £2k these days. You're unlikely to ever see 30mpg to be honest, but if you drive sensibly, you should manage 25-28mpg on standard size road biased tyres.

As for tidyness - if it isn't, walk away. Simples!

[madcampbell]

Read the thread, he clearly states that he has around 2k to spend!

Whoops was trying to be help full...note to self learn to read

[s car go]

Hello!

Reliability on the Toyotas is legendary,as long as they are looked after properly which is not that difficult,oil filters and greasing!!

The achilles heel for most, if not all of these trucks is the cylinder head.A combination of age mileage and poor servicing schedule means alot of these heads are cracking leading to expensive repair. The answear is to look for evidence of a recent head change!

Body work should look good as long as you buy an import and not a UKrunner like mine!!!!

30 mpg??? Dream on,sorry to say!! Unless it's on tow!!
More like early twenties on a run and late teens urban cycle.

Bon Courage

Mark

[hdj]

Boys, just got in from a few hours gardening. Lovely spring day. Thank you so much for your advice. Its confirmed what I thought ie that provided I accept the mpg, its a good buy at circa 2k. to be honest the a4 only cost me 1800, and is pretty bomb proof (as was the newer a6 quattro i had before that), and so you can get good value at that price. I just need something with more ground clearance where I live, and also something that I can drive on the field to help on the smallholding and collecting wood etc.

Plus its a ###### good excuse to get a car I have always fancied. I suppose at the end of the day if I do dont the mpg a problem, I can always sell it if its well looked after.

Thanks again guys for all your help. very kind of you.

H

[BUSHWHACKER]

Hi, welcome on board, enjoy your stay.

Where abouts in Wales are you?

[schrodingers-cat]

50 % veg oil helps with the cost, 20 litres of new stuff in the region of £20 at costco or you could just sting the local chippy but its too much messin round filtering it for me

[hdj]

Im in west wales. North pembs.

I read some of the posts on the oil. I looked that the oil prices and they werent that cheap, but if you can get it that cheap its got to be worth a go in the warmer months at least

[spacast]

Yep, veg oil is the answer.
Look around supermarkets for offers, Tesco recently had 3 litres for £3, and it's £1.10/ltr all the time a Lidl. Just pour it straight in, no messing.
Mine seems to run better, but might be wishful thinking.
There's a good thread about it here
http://www.hiluxsurf.co.uk/showthread.php?t=55767

[schrodingers-cat]

Im in west wales. North pembs.

I read some of the posts on the oil. I looked that the oil prices and they werent that cheap, but if you can get it that cheap its got to be worth a go in the warmer months at least

Used it last spring/summer with no noticeable difference except the smell